Review: The Guardian Angels by Rohit Gore

Plot Synopsis:

The Guardian Angels is the epic and tumultuous story of two star-crossed lovers who weren't just soul-mates but were also each others protectors.

The fates of Adi Mehta and Radha Deodhar are deeply entwined when within days of their first rendezvous they save each others lives.

Despite their vast sociopolitical differences, they are drawn to an uncertain future fraught with contrasting ambitions, personas and ideologies.
·         he is the son of a billionaire, she is the daughter of a socialist.
·         he is quiet and unassuming, she is a firebrand and spirited.

However, the unexplained phenomena ties them forever whenever they are in peril, they are each others only saviors.

Over the following two decades Adi and Radha live through hope and despair, joy and sadness, and try to decipher their relationship. As the truth of their bond is revealed, they must confront the true nature of love, and ultimately, their destinies.

Review:

I read this book and I must say I am impressed. I will make a few frank admissions here. Romance is not my favorite genre. It's a super-saturated playing field as far as this genre is concerned. Every Tom, Dick and Harry seems to have a love story to tell. Originality and novelty be damned. And the plot synopsis of this book didn't really appeal to me much. I am a skeptic and stuff like destiny and guardian angels don't really gel well with my worldview. I am pointing these things out merely to highlight one important fact. And that is- impressing a reader like me with a book like this was going to be a difficult task for the author, Rohit Gore. And despite that, the author has pulled it off. Brilliantly, I must add.

I'll quickly make do with the few quibbles I have about this book. But the positives far outweigh them.

Quibble #1 The beginning
The beginning of the book had a Bollywood style flavor which I found over-dramatic and unimaginative. Hero waiting to be reunited with heroine. Rains. Heroine doesn't arrive. An old man arrives in stead with the heroine's journal. The old man remains uncommunicative and mysterious and leaves without answering any of the hero's questions.

Of course, at the end, most of it makes good sense. Such is the strength of the plot. But even then, compared to the brilliance of the rest of the book, the beginning was kind of a disappointment.

Quibble #2 Adi and Radha's childhood
The author messes up a bit here describing a child's view of the world. Radha's journal entries during her childhood appeared to me a bit precocious. She was writing stuff which people that age probably wouldn't write. Of course, one might argue kids these days are more intelligent than we were back in our days. But Radha was twelve in the year 1993. So a 1981 born isn't really getting clubbed in 'kids these days' category.

Quibble #3 The language
The author messes up his prepositions a lot. In many places, he uses 'off' in stead of 'of' e.g. off late, off course etc etc. He messes up other prepositions too. I hope he improves in this department in this future works. Also, the author is in the habit of using similes for imagery. He compares two things frequently using the words 'as' and 'like'. I have nothing against similes. But similes use up more words than metaphors. Relying on similes alone also becomes repetitive. More metaphors would have definitely helped. Thing is, the author writes pretty damn well. If he can polish his act regarding these minor things in his next works, then that would really make for even more dazzling reads.
All in all, though, the author's language is pretty good. Simple. Lucid. Manages to hold the reader's attention.

And now of course, the strengths of this book.

1. Characterization - 4/5
Radha's character portrayal is immaculate and flawless. Adi's a little less so. I found him too perfect for my tastes. But that's okay. Maybe the author intended him to be an ideal to strive for. He is as perfect a guy can be in an imperfect world. The author manages to weave the characters in such a fashion that the reader comes to deeply care about these two individuals. It's no mean feat. And the author deserves rich applause for it.

2. Story -4/5
The story isn't really that predictable. It has its swings. Revelations are made at appropriate times. Various significant events happen to keep the reader interested in the proceedings of the story. And they are all woven together pretty beautifully. One of the best abilities the author has is in portraying emotions like pathos, anxiety, depression and hopelessness. Emotions like peace, satisfaction and fulfillment are portrayed in a neat manner as well. The skills of the author created a very strong emotional core and the effect remains with the reader after he has kept down the book.

3. Dialogues -5/5
The exchanges between Adi and Radha are really nice. Intelligent and witty. Exchanges with other characters have been done pretty well too.

4. Ending- 5/5
Hope springs eternal in the human breast. And the ending is a testimony to this eternal truth. A poignant ending. And the reader can hope for the best and fear for the worst at the same time.

Rohit Gore displays vast emotional intelligence in being able to bring to life a book with such solid emotional pillars. Kudos to him for pulling off such a work. It took a great effort, I am sure. I sincerely hope all that effort pays off and this book becomes loves by all and sundry. I would surely be looking forward to his next ventures. All the best from my side!

The book was received as part of Reviewers Programme on The Tales Pensieve.