• Title – Fire in the Rain
• Author – Surendra Mohanty
• Publisher – Zenith Star Publication
• Genre – Fiction – Thriller
• Pages – 144
• ISBN – 978-93-5104-713-1
• Price – 100 INR

Blurb on the Book – A serial killer is on the loose. He surfaces in one metropolis after another, leaving behind a trail of murders. He masquerades as respectable citizens in different cities targeting single working women.

ACP Kale is desperate to catch the killer before he strikes again, but he has no clue except that the killer invariably strikes on a n ominous day – Friday the thirteenth, and hires luxury cars to date his victims.

Review – The dark cover of the book speaks well of the gory plot with lightning portraying the secret behind the title of the book. The interesting title of the book kept me looking for clues as to why was it named so. The answer has been cleverly hidden to be unearthed only after reading the full book. The ‘Pentagram’ necklace on the cover is also a vital clue about the serial killer.

The book starts on an interesting note where two young men are coincidentally spotted at a party that led to the murder of a young girl. An array of coincidences leads the police and the readers working hard to uncover the secret whether Rehaan & Varun are two different people or just one.

I’d like to congratulate Mr. Mohanty on the genius of the plot where a serial killer is hunting innocent young women in the metros of India, never killing in the same city twice giving the detectives a hard time guessing his next move.

The book lost steam for me towards the middle leading to a quite predictable ending. I’d like to credit it to the detailed Epilogue that works more as a spoiler than an appetizer to this wonderfully crafted thriller plot.

The language is simple and the story intriguing with the plot well constructed to shift focus from one person to another. However a few editing flaws spread over the entire length of the book act as a distraction that one simply can’t overlook.

There are several incidents where the author has delved into minute description of the appearances of the characters which to me appeared unnecessarily repetitive on a few occasions. At a few places, especially in the chapters containing the happening at Bangalore the chapter begins with a spoiler (mentioning the outcome of events in the city) even before the killer’s plan is shared.

The hasty ending could have been gifted a little more elaboration to let it have a better impact.

I liked the plot and the execution of the story that in my belief serves as a perfect script to be made into a blockbuster movie.

Overall, the book is enjoyable and unputdownable that kept me on my tenterhooks in quest to know who is the killer.

About the Author – Surendra Mohanty writes short stories many of which have been published. He has contributed articles regularly to several magazines, all in Dubai. He used to live in Dubai where he did a cover story for  a leading entertainment magazine there.

Presently, he is the publisher of a national magazine for school children titled Kloud 9. He took voluntary retirement from the Indian Navy in the rank of Commander in 2000. He is 55 years of age and works at KIIT International School, Bhubaneswar.

Fire in the Rain is his first novella.

Rating – 3/5