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shreyabaldwa's review
dark
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
Set during the early days of demonetisation in 2016, K R Meera’s Assassin (known as Ghathakan in Malayalam) tells the story of investigation of an assassination attempt on the lead character and narrator, Satyapriya. Meera has dedicated the book to journalist Gauri Lankesh, who was shot dead outside her home in 2017. The note ban is a recurrent theme in the book and often is used to depict Satyapriya’s internal turmoil. She frequently (and oh so beautifully) uses similes and metaphors to let the reader enter the minds of the characters.
Through Satyapriya and her mother, Meera has tried to call out misogyny, patriarchy, child sexual abuse, caste biases, domestic violence and its impact on women. Satyapriya’s mother Vasanthalakshmi goes against the stereotypical image of a mother and is my favourite character from the book.
Demonetisation, increasing intolerance in the society, power hungry politics, the Hindutva discourse, Maoism are some of the issues that provide the background while the lead character sets out to find her assassin. In her pursuit of the assassin’s motive, she has to unravel the covers of her past and this forms the crux of the book.
J Devika's translation is smooth and keeps us interested in this political crime thriller. I love how Meera has made repeated references to the socio political climate in India and easily mixed it in the story without disrupting the flow.
My only issue with the book was that at times I was lost among the too many characters in the story and had to trace back the origin. But this doesn't take away the charm of the book. Go, give it a read.
Through Satyapriya and her mother, Meera has tried to call out misogyny, patriarchy, child sexual abuse, caste biases, domestic violence and its impact on women. Satyapriya’s mother Vasanthalakshmi goes against the stereotypical image of a mother and is my favourite character from the book.
Demonetisation, increasing intolerance in the society, power hungry politics, the Hindutva discourse, Maoism are some of the issues that provide the background while the lead character sets out to find her assassin. In her pursuit of the assassin’s motive, she has to unravel the covers of her past and this forms the crux of the book.
J Devika's translation is smooth and keeps us interested in this political crime thriller. I love how Meera has made repeated references to the socio political climate in India and easily mixed it in the story without disrupting the flow.
My only issue with the book was that at times I was lost among the too many characters in the story and had to trace back the origin. But this doesn't take away the charm of the book. Go, give it a read.
rebelbooksta's review
dark
mysterious
tense
slow-paced
4.5
#Assassin by #KRMeera K R Meera
The wizard delivers yet another tome-masterpiece.
Deftly translated from Malayalam (originally published as #Ghātakan) to English by #JDevika .
The story begins with the chasing of the assassin.Satyapriya, a middle class & middle aged working woman brushed with death. Completely aghast at the fact she missed the bullets by an inch, ultimately the murder attempt on her. Uncanny timing of the plot. The inchoate crime begins during the demonetization and climaxes at the assassination anniversary of Gandhi.
She’s completely ravaged by the failed assassination attempt on her & became hell bent on finding her assassin and his story. Her paralyzed dad at his death throes by poison, also perpetuated by the assassin, warns her of the inevitable doom coming for her. Inexplicable and terrifying for Satyapriya. Time was running out and she had to find out the truths by hounding down her executioner.
In her pursuit of the assassin’s motive, she had to resurrect the ghosts of her past, excavate deep labyrinths of her past. The imagery of her life was so poignant yet powerful in exposing the various types of violence she faced within her family, and her pedophilic father’s culpability in precipitating the assassination attempt.
Satyapriya’s mother Vasantha asserted her covert resistance against the patriarchal society. It was her sagacious influence on Satya that gave her daughter the power to confront her executioner. Femme-fatale like.
Unforgettable character who sets the pace at each step of Satya’s investigation with her profound critique.
The demonetization fiasco destroyed the common men and women, including Satyapriya caught up in the maelstrom had to sell her organ for money. Satyapriya became the one woman representing her microcosm against the larger magnitude of political catastrophe unfolding around her.
I felt K.R Meera was personified in her protagonists- Satyapriya and her mother. They were her visceral reflections.
A razor-sharp political commentary composite of factual events, power dynamics, corrupts of law and order, socio-economic structure, ingrained caste based political mobilization, fiscal policies that deny the women of financial independence, thriving sexual abuse, hereditary wealth distribution, a scrutiny of the underbelly of society,
personal accounts of her own life, with a #whodunnit investigation in a dangerous web of conspiracies.
Out and out genre-defying political crime thriller satire that demands political accountability for the people.
#translatedworks #bookstagram #igreads #keralaliterature #sahityaakademi #kobobooks #bookstagrammer #booksofinstagram #bookrecommendations #bookstagram #bookreview
#read #book #reading #readersofinstagram #bibliophile #Malayalam
#krmeera #hangwoman #jezebel #qabar #thegospelofyudas #thepoisonoflove #theunseeingidoloflight #yellowisthecolouroflonging
#sotl #botl #cigar #padron1964 #dalmorecigarmalt #dalmore #padron #thebookdesigners #harpercollinsin
The wizard delivers yet another tome-masterpiece.
Deftly translated from Malayalam (originally published as #Ghātakan) to English by #JDevika .
The story begins with the chasing of the assassin.Satyapriya, a middle class & middle aged working woman brushed with death. Completely aghast at the fact she missed the bullets by an inch, ultimately the murder attempt on her. Uncanny timing of the plot. The inchoate crime begins during the demonetization and climaxes at the assassination anniversary of Gandhi.
She’s completely ravaged by the failed assassination attempt on her & became hell bent on finding her assassin and his story. Her paralyzed dad at his death throes by poison, also perpetuated by the assassin, warns her of the inevitable doom coming for her. Inexplicable and terrifying for Satyapriya. Time was running out and she had to find out the truths by hounding down her executioner.
In her pursuit of the assassin’s motive, she had to resurrect the ghosts of her past, excavate deep labyrinths of her past. The imagery of her life was so poignant yet powerful in exposing the various types of violence she faced within her family, and her pedophilic father’s culpability in precipitating the assassination attempt.
Satyapriya’s mother Vasantha asserted her covert resistance against the patriarchal society. It was her sagacious influence on Satya that gave her daughter the power to confront her executioner. Femme-fatale like.
Unforgettable character who sets the pace at each step of Satya’s investigation with her profound critique.
The demonetization fiasco destroyed the common men and women, including Satyapriya caught up in the maelstrom had to sell her organ for money. Satyapriya became the one woman representing her microcosm against the larger magnitude of political catastrophe unfolding around her.
I felt K.R Meera was personified in her protagonists- Satyapriya and her mother. They were her visceral reflections.
A razor-sharp political commentary composite of factual events, power dynamics, corrupts of law and order, socio-economic structure, ingrained caste based political mobilization, fiscal policies that deny the women of financial independence, thriving sexual abuse, hereditary wealth distribution, a scrutiny of the underbelly of society,
personal accounts of her own life, with a #whodunnit investigation in a dangerous web of conspiracies.
Out and out genre-defying political crime thriller satire that demands political accountability for the people.
#translatedworks #bookstagram #igreads #keralaliterature #sahityaakademi #kobobooks #bookstagrammer #booksofinstagram #bookrecommendations #bookstagram #bookreview
#read #book #reading #readersofinstagram #bibliophile #Malayalam
#krmeera #hangwoman #jezebel #qabar #thegospelofyudas #thepoisonoflove #theunseeingidoloflight #yellowisthecolouroflonging
#sotl #botl #cigar #padron1964 #dalmorecigarmalt #dalmore #padron #thebookdesigners #harpercollinsin
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