Book Review: Messed Up! But All for Love

Title: Messed Up! But All for Love
Author: Arvind Parashar
Publisher: Srishti Publishers & Distributors
Pages: 156
ISBN: 978-9382665946
Source: Writersmelon

‘Messed Up! But All for Love’ is the first book in the ‘Messed Up!’ trilogy. This book delves into how sometimes our love for each other can create a mess between us and how misunderstandings & miscommunication can lead two lovers to the threshold of separation.

Let us jump into the Mess…

Gauri & Neil are a happily married couple. The two are ready to go to any limits for the sake of their love. Neil has his bunch of friends- Tom, Jerry & James, while Gauri shares all her sorrows with her friend, Mehr. They often spend time together, go to vacations & make fun.

Problems start arising when Neil decides to lose some weight to surprise Gauri & starts meeting Srinya for the same purpose. Gauri dislikes Srinya due to some reasons. While the couple is on their Thanksgiving vacation, in Cuba, along with their friends, Srinya is also found to be there. Misunderstandings thus become inevitable & lead to a spat between Gauri & Neil. But, ultimately it is Love that wins.

Drishti, a News Anchor, is married to Somesh, who is a Police Officer. The two have their own share of problems that arise mainly because their expectations from each other remain unfulfilled. Both the couples’ paths cross in Cuba, when Neil has an altercation with Somesh. And henceforth their destinies start playing with them.

A chain of events starts unfolding once they are back in India. One thing leads to another & both the couples are now seeking divorce. Neil has spent a few days in the Jail. Is it destiny playing its cards or is there someone behind all this? Can the two couples discover love once again?

My Verdict

To be honest, I’ve many issues with this novel. First of all, I really don’t know when will Indian authors learn to write a romance without Bollywood. I think, they simply can’t. There is, undoubtedly, a lot of Bollywood elements & the mention of Bollywood in this particular novel.

The other issue, that I had, is with the narrative technique. The author has employed First Person POV, so the story is told from Neil’s perspective. But strangely, Neil can narrate whatever is going on in other’s lives. He can tell us at what time Drishti slept on a particular day, how was she feeling at some point. That’s really insane! But, if any such technique exists, I request you people to let me know about it.

Neil is narrating the whole story to his boss, Ganga, after he is released from Jail. And it is quite strange to see how Ganga has nothing else to do but listen to his story, even in the office hours. We don’t know how well Neil & Ganga are bonded, but Neil does narrate to her even the love making scenes in detail. So, yes! there are elements of Erotica present in this novel.

It took me a lot of time to finish this book, considering the length. It is so because I never had the urge to return to this book. The liberal use of Hindi in the text (which, I must say, is in abundance) made me avoid this book. It never got tempting at any point, except the last few chapters. Yes, that is where the thriller portion kicks start & gets over within 15- 20 pages. But the ending again was not very impressive one.

There are a lot of abusive words, as are often used in a group of boys. But I didn’t like them. Neil & his friends seemed irritating to me, but others might enjoy reading about them. There are also a lot of scenes where they are smoking & drinking. The author has made sure to include a note on their harmful effects in the beginning of the book.

I feel the author wanted to include a lot of things in this book (and so he has done) to have a greater audience. But he has failed in it. Had he written this book only as a Romance, I think, it would have been a better book. We all have heard, “The Jack of all is Master of none.” I’m really surprised how this book has managed to get such nice ratings on Amazon & Goodreads. I think it is overrated there. But some people might have enjoyed reading it. It is okay for a one time reading.

My Rating: *** (3/5)

Have you read this book? What is your view on the Romances written by Indian authors? Do share your thoughts. Thanks.

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Check it online at Amazon.in, Flipkart & Goodreads.

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*I received a review copy from Writersmelon. Views expressed are entirely personal & unbiased.*

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