Tales of Mystery & Terror

The first part contains stories which had been a part of a larger volume already discussed. These being the Tales of Terror, contains The Horror of Heights, The Leather Funnel, The New Catacomb, The Case of Lady Shannox, The Terror of Blue John Gap and The Brazilian Cat. But the inertia of terror continues in the first two Tales of Mystery bearing the names The Lost Special and The Beetle-Hunter. The former is the mystery of a special train seemingly vanishing into thin air while the later is a curious anecdote of a doctor witness to a strange behaviour of a seemingly sane scientist. Though there is mystery in each but the strain of terror predominates to make them horrifyingly gripping. The next is the story of The Man with the Watches who is found murdered in a first class carriage without any tickets but with six watches in the dead man's pockets. A gleam of scandal seems to lurk in the the residence of a widower with the entire household doubting the master when a chance situation reveals the truth in The Japanned Box whose content had been the centre of speculations to all. Again an apparent murder of The Black Doctor causes much stir and it remains to be seen whether the accused can be acquitted in a courtroom drama. The curious apparent desecration of The Jew's Breastplate torments the curator and he sets a trap to catch the perpetrator only to reveal a painful truth. But drama is at its extreme in the final piece of The Nightmare Room where everybody will be held unguarded when the mystery is spawned with the last line giving the solution so refreshingly beautiful. Only one bad thing about the publication is the confusion in closing page sequences along with orientations that will cause a bit of a bother to the flow of reading during the finale otherwise so tersely grand.

Chadmabeshi

I had seen the movie, both the Bengali and the Hindi version, so I was actually biased about its humour. Also, as I was going through it I could actually visualize the events which actually showed how cleverly the theme was adopted. But having said that, one thing is certain, the directors of either versions, especially the Bengali filmmaker had trimmed the script to perfection which allowed it to become a masterpiece. But the book itself, though had a humorously thrilling finish and witty dialogues but is not overly enjoying. This is chiefly because of a laboriously lengthy descriptions at places and loquacious dialogues which could have better been avoided. So excitement during purchase actually did not remain much after the initial few chapters but smiles will return during the climactic sequences.

Abduction

What would you feel if someday you get to know that aliens are not coming from outside earth but actually they are living deep inside the ocean floors and they are human beings, only a bit too advanced. That there had existed human race long before dinosaurs will also be a surprising revelation. Besides cities inside earth with technologies so much evolved that people do not die in the usual way will also grip your imaginations. But if all these come as an exciting revelation it will also be surprising how much boring life can be in these technologically advanced place. These and much more awaits a group of deep sea explorers, divers and a businessman when they suddenly find themselves abducted by these human and find themselves classified as the less evolved variant. With the option of spending life without actually the pain of death and with an intellectual abundance in the offing at the luxurious paradise it remains to be seen what choices do each make. A point comes where it feels that good and evil might be the same thing but depends on perspectives. With a surprising twist at the very latter stage, the novel is an easy paced adventure with unique plot that is sci-fi at its best.

Akrur Sangbad

A touching story based on the compromise that is effected in families to choose between a close knit relation and one that is distanced for the sake of job satisfaction. Presenting in her simple style the age old problem is addressed but no solution is proposes. There lies the beauty of the narrative. It relies on the reader to appreciate the problem from their own perspective. When a time comes to choose between progress in career and disallowing distance to creep in relations, it is a real hurdle that many faces. The narrative gives an insight to what happens in some case. The title actually echoes what pains it caused to the inhabitants of Vrindavan when Lord Krishna was to return to Mathura. Actually it asks that to whom people will give their rights to. Will it be those who upbrings them or those who sustains them against their work. I am indebted to this story particularly for the title that allowed me to peek into the famous lines from which the story borrows part of the theme that is so true for all time.

A Strange Disappearance

Detective Q narrates a case to his colleagues of a missing girl from the house of a revered diplomat and how it gradually appealed him first of all due to the skittishness of the aged housekeeper who reported it to the police, secondly due to some curious clues at the room of the missing lady. Added to it was the importance of the house from where it happened and some more evidence that Mr. Gryce, superior to Q unearthed, that eluded the narrator during his searches.
Starting thus, with all the goodness of the old world mystery, it actually goes a bit too much in narrating how the criminals are caught. Also the plot finally divides into two with quite a considerable part devoted to something that could have been wrapped up more succinctly to keep the mystery as the focus primarily.

Hatighishar Hanabari

The childhood days will be brought back with the stories collected in this volume. Four intrepid girls Kalu, Malu, Tulu and Bulu looks for adventure in every nooks and corners, wherever they go. So it is very obvious that mysterious happenings, haunted houses, a treasure trail, curious sounds will attract these young adventurers. Written from the perspective of Tulu, these four young sleuths sets up to solve mysteries wherever they find one. Three of their exploits are contained here which are

• Tibbati Guhar Bhoot
• Hatighishar Hanabari
• Nanda Kananer Rahasya

The Enid Blyton of Bengali literature, Nalini Das had narrated the stories in such an easy pace that it will appeal to every young mind on all the ages. Such an old collection, but still I found them to be enjoyable read. With their backpacks packed with the essentials, the quad looks through age old mysteries and solves the riddles using clues that they pick up in their investigations. Using code words during conversations they easily evade the eavesdroppers in tight places. After reading the volume, only one thing needs explanation which is the name Gandalu whose last syllable may be derived from those of the four's names but why the first part is slightly monstrous in nature I have not a single clue. However, without bothering this part, the stories will refresh the mind not only for the adventure themselves but for the sleuths themselves. The intelligent and fearless Kalu, the code cracking Malu, the narrator Tulu and the slightly shaky Bulu gives completeness to the team and balances suspense and reliefs in the narratives nicely. The illustrations by Satyajit Ray adds an added attraction for the readers.

Gumnami Baba A Case History

The man who was one of the greatest heroes that India ever produced seemed today still the centre of a mystery spanning over decades with the haunting search still on on what happened to the man post 1945. At least three different theories have evolved, the most prominent being that of the Gumnami Baba which is explored by Adheer Som in this book. Not only the book explores the possibility of Netaji's apparent self ordained reclusion but also explores the man himself that gives a precise insight of him. Infact it will inspire the readers with the greatness that Netaji possessed even in his younger days. That a man can leave a life of the passionate revolutionary to a hermit might look a bit too odd to many. But this book actually proposes strong logic on the contrary. The book delves deeper into the information available on Bhagwanji and proposes some brave but logical conjectures that is worth probing. Summarising the reports of the Shah Nawaz Commision, the Khosla Commission, the Mukherjee Commission and the report on the handwriting analysis by B Lal, the author questions that if Gumnami Baba is not Netaji then who is he. Surely there must be some identity that can be converged upon beyond all doubts. But still we are unsure of that which seems quite confusing. With the scientific resources available, is it really very difficult to unearth the identity of somebody? Or is it that the identity is being allowed to be masked? The Baba had several articles that actually would have been more natural to be found in possession of a Bose kin which actually gives some clue to his identity. The author demands to know the truth behind the man for which he investigates from several perspectives. The book is a real eye opener to many. It is a tribute to the legend, It inspires to search for the truth. Rather it demands to know the truth! We can only hope that the author with his inspired readers actually finds the reality that the seekers of justice had been yearning for through the years.

A Thief in the Night

A short story collection featuring A J Raffles and his friend and accomplice, Bunny Manders who narrates some of their exploits and follows it up with an epilogue arranged as

• Out of Paradise
• The Chest of Silver
• The Rest Cure
• The Criminologists' Club
• The Field of Philippi
• A Bad Night
• A Trap to Catch a Cracksman
• The Spoils of Sacrilege
• The Raffles Relics
• The Last Word

All these pieces except the last two depicts the duo as amateur burglars with Raffles being the genius in the trade and Bunny his devoted follower who at times shows doubt at the dedication at the apparent spontaneous acts of his friend which is ultimately revealed as well thought improvisations of the master artist. The final pieces are at a later date when they are at their career's dusk and tragedy has struck and are thus a bit disjointed than the rest both in time and perspective but not in class. The crimes will however make the readers sometimes be sorry for the victims. Inspite of this the interesting part is that, an entire collection which depicts a character doing crimes, is never felt evil, rather the reader will enjoy the artful way these crimes are committed though the description might be a bit unnecessary lengthy at places. A novel character undoubtedly, this might be a revelation for readers of crime fictions who are more accustomed to look into the other side of narratives.

Chandragirir Rajkahini

A tremendously exciting novel with a touch of one of the greatest classics of all times but the moment you expect it to turn towards the obvious direction a twisting revelation makes it all the more rivetting.
A petty mercenary is hired by an aquintance of a dwindling kingdom to act as one of the successors of the dead king due to his close resemblance to the king's elder son who is living a life of the hunted after his step brother, the other  claimant of the title, failed in his attempt of killing him. Bargaining for the adventure with his life at stake, little did he know what awaits him as the deeper he delves, the royal secrets smeard with treachery make him shudder. A tale of royal vengeance where the common man is held as pawn in the name of fallen prestige keeps the suspense high. Though some queries remain unanswered still it remains a thrilling anecdote of an adventure with a touch of the romsnce. I had read several stories of the author but this surely is unique in its character

Hemendrakumar Roy Rachanabali Vol-XXX

I'd read Hemen Ray many a times and so picked this book up in the Bookfair to add up to the collection and also was curious to know how he write for adult. You might not believe me, he seems to had surpassed his own class while writing these social dramas that adorns this volume. This contains a basket of short stories collected under the title S(n)idurchupree which contains the social tensions depicted in Kshudiramer Keerti, the curious drama Chor, the tragic twist in Porarmukhi, the comic Khuror Khamkheyal, the cruelty of the selfish in Golap Phool, the blessed revenge of the natural outcast in Shiuli which altogether brings out the varied hues of the Bengali middle class.

But the gem of the collection is the novel Aleyar Alo which, through a series of twists and turns is a unique tragedy that is class apart from all other Hemen classics that I have read so far. Bordering chiefly on widow marriage at a time it was considered short of a miracle, the story has more than just a conventional sequence which points to disturbing consequences that are not far from reality.

Hemendrakumar is a natural writer of adventures. Here, his naturalness has vented its spirit into an entirely new direction where the essence of adventure permeates into ordinary life giving them an entirely new dimension and perspective. Recommended not for the children this promises enjoyment to mature minds.

The Uttermost Farthing A Savant's Vendetta

A criminal anthropologist with a fame of comparative anatomist starts on a vengeance of his own to eliminate those whom he considers scums of society after his tragic lost of his beloved in a robbery gone astray. A horrifying yet gripping tale of vendetta that is made yet more horrid by the minute details of the procedures that lead the unsuspecting victims to their last breath keeps the suspense alive. But the most terrifying is not the killings but the fact that each is ingenuously preserved with records to serve as a model to research characteristic anatomy of criminals in general. The nature of the narrative is quite novel where the readers may predict the ultimate but here lies the signature style of Freeman where he keeps the interest from never going dull by the way he describes events after events culminating to what the readers actually hope to reach. An enjoyable fast paced read that will keep readers glued to the pages but never will find themselves on the edge of the seats.

Deepak Chatterjeer Adventure

The famous thriller series continues this time in the digest form. The mystery pack contains

1. Kalobajaree Damane Dasyunetree Chamelee o Deepak
2. Dui Tin Char
3. Neel Sagarer Mohonoae
4. Garo Paharer Rahasya
5. Lal Neel Halud
6. Jaliyater Chakranta

All these contains the untiring efforts of Deepak Chatterjee to get rid of the evils in the society. At times, he is assisted by Ratanlal and Deepak's apprentice in the trade, Rajat Sen also appears in a significant role once. A master of disguise, the sleuth and his satellite uncover quite some dangerous plots to put to justice pirates, get rid of the masterminds behind several murders, foil the ploys of smugglers, in a word becomes the most feared person among the bad guys. But there is a glaring set of mistakes starting from the bad grammar, continuing with names of same persons being referred differently and a set of brow raising coincidences that makes the quality poor and the mystery super shallow. Swapankumar's fast paced thriller is best described as adventure that brings nostalgic memories of films not bothering on rationale but making the sleuths the heroes at all cost. Stories start with interesting twists, puzzling the readers quite a bit, but the obvious contradictions bordering on impracticality makes them lame to the extreme. But overall it gives a taste of the old times but will bring a sympathetic smile to the face.

Colonel Samagra Vol VI

The content of the volume runs as

• Briefcase Rahasya
• Neeche Namo B(n)ae Ghoro
• Nagna Nirjan Haat
• Borkhar Arale
• Kuashar Rang Neel

The last two deserve special mention among the various cases of Colonel in the sense that one of them sees the veteran sleuth being overtaken in wisdom and in the other the investigator plots a series of traps to ensure safety to the client while ensuring punishment to most of the criminals. The first one is a case where it is written in the third person which does not have so much appeal as are the following two where some thrill in the otherwise bland preludes is established with some interesting surprises.

A feeling of nostalgia is easily felt as we see a world devoid of cell phones and just the introduction of computers. The Colonel stories are generally independent of technology but one of them here has computer as a central element, where the sleuth seems to take training to get himself geared for the new gen and their cases.