Book Review : Heart of Bullets by Nikhil Kushwaha

Book- Heart of Bullets

Author- Nikhil Kushwaha

Genre- Fiction

Publisher- Petals Publishers

Blurb-

Two army men, best buddies since a decade, working together as a team. It’s a story of Arpan and Sam. Both officers excel in what they do. Sam has an exit plan from every trouble they get into. Right from the start Sam has been the need of Arpan. They love each other a lot.

It’s a story of friendship and the want of doing something for each other. Shradha and Soni are the two leading ladies of the story, playing a very crucial role in this extra-ordinary tale of courage, love and friendship.

How are these girls related to the guys? What happens when Sam is at the verge of losing? Will the void in between them turns into a dark valley? Will they be able to keep aside their heart for their country?

Title-

It’s not another phrase which is used in the book and that is a great thing. Heart of bullets, it make sense when you are reading the closing chapters. It’s literary and highly apt for the book. And also it not allows you to know the real meaning hidden in its syllables.

Cover-

The cover is nice and subtle. It perfectly briefs the story and also hide the real gestures. The images are made clear before your reading.

Character-

There are not many characters in the story. I was hoping for many characters and stories inter-related in one way or the other. But nothing like that happened. But still, the protagonists were easy to catch up with. They were made clear from the very start. But some characters changed their traits which was a surprise and something unexpected.

Narration-

The narration was not strong enough. As the story moves in first person, I found many loose ends. I wished it was in third person so that the flashback that was shown in the story made more sense.

Reviews-

The story starts at a normal pace. The life of an army man crosses your eyes. Arpan is back at home. And it’s so touching to see how their family habituates with all that happen to our heroes on the border. Duty calls and he is back to his workplace.

The heavy scenario makes you patriotic for some moments. Terrorist, blood, death and survival boil your blood and leave goose-bumps all over. You can easily imagine in your head how tense the situations might have been, when someone close to the characters get hurts. Author’s words were gripping enough to make you cry and feel sympathetic at someone's loss. Extra points for that.

Arpan gets into a situation where he starts narrating how his friend Sam used to be back in school days. The tale shifts from heavy cries to a soft road. Arpan and Sam were the back-benchers and they never intended to join army, at least in their school days. Then something happened, something sweet. Arpan and Sam fell in love (not with each other). Love blossoms their life at different tangents.

Author has successfully allowed the reader to peep in the past. Leaving some soft corner for some people. The book has a grip which doesn't allow you to yawn. The story is not one sided and things appear natural that way. It didn’t seem that author made up situations, it appear that they just came. The story gets better and better as the twists and turns arrive. No story is that easy, no love is that straight and no sacrifice is that painless. And that’s what you witness ahead.

The closing chapters have something in them which not allow you to stop. There are some tones of rich hue that hold you to the extreme ends. Every chapter has something new. Every chapter’s name tries to show dominance but it doesn’t succeed. It’s the story, the matter of the chapter, which comes out as a hero, making everything else step back.

There were some bumps, some hindrances but the richness in the story covered everything, specially the end, which teaches a lot, if someone is in mood to grasp.

Eye-catchers-

· “...where sun seems as cool as moon.”

· “No mater hail, storm or rain, wounds, fever or pain, he has to walk, and has to walk for miles.”

· “Although in deathbed, there isn’t a sign of fear in his eyes, instead, he looks calm and satisfied.”

· “Some friends are made for some reason; some for some season, but true ones are there for every season, without any reason.”

· “Sometimes we don’t value a moment till the time it becomes a memory.”

· “Relationships have a starting date, ending date but love doesn’t. Love starts and stays forever.

· “A life without love is a night without moon and a life with love is a winter’s afternoon.”

[I had to exclude some wonderful lines, just because there were so many. Good job author.]

Turn-on’s-

Firstly, special mentions to all the poems that delights your heart from the very start. The verses are very sweet and radiant. They will soothe your heart if your soul is in pain due to a character’s sorrow and will tickle you if you are reading something breathtaking. Secondly, the quotes which come in between from time to time, they were just mind-blowing.
Also, there were some chapters (18, 19 and 26) which surely needed some extra time, because the happenings were very touching.

Turn-off’s-

There were editing errors, big and small ones. Many adjectives and words were used again and again; surely a synonym could have been used, for making the sentence quirkier. Also, there were many chapters which started with long explanations which didn’t go with the story directly. The avoidance of such paragraphs wouldn’t have cost anything.
If there weren’t any filmy scenes in the book, it would have seemed a fresh tale for sure.

Recommendation-

If you like reading mixed genres, you will definitely like this book. It’s a must read for those who have lost faith in friendship or love.