Indian author Villas Swards offers a complex murder mystery in his second novel Six Suspects (Doubleday, 2008). Sward's debut novel, Q (Doubleday, 2005) is an international bestseller and the inspiration for the award-winning film Slumlord Millionaire. Six Suspects Ivies "Vicky' Aria is the only son of a high-profile Indian politician. Notorious for bribing his way out of trouble, he goes too far when he escapes conviction for the murder of a young woman called Ruby Gill. During the party he holds to celebrate his victory, Vicky is shot dead and six party guests are detained by the police as suspects.
The suspects include: Moan Kumar, a corrupt retired bureaucrat Sabina Sane, a Plywood star Skeet, a tribesman from the island of Little Madman in the Bay of Bengal Manna Mobile, a small time thief Jonathan Aria, Vicky father and a high level politician Larry Page, a naive Texan conned by a mail-order bride scam In two separate sections, Swards outlines the background and motives for each of these suspects, offering readers the equivalent of six novellas in the 460+ pages it takes to bring each character to the scene of Vicky Aria's death.The evidence and resolution to the crime are then presented in the remaining 80 pages. An Murder Mystery set in India Swards presents India as an almost overwhelming diverse culture in Six Suspects. Plywood, petty crime, call centre, corrupt officials, the cultural significance of family, the contrast between town and country, the place of religion and ritual - all these are presented through the various suspects and secondary characters. Unfortunately, the result is a little too diverse with Swards offering an extensive cast of characters that begin to blur together at times.
The format also prevents the build up of suspense as readers are moved to a new character Just as the story reaches a turning point. The story of Larry Page, the Texan duped into believing that he would be marrying a poor but gorgeous rural Indian girl, can be almost completely omitted as the weakest of the suspect characterizations. The story of Manna Mobile and his family and Skeet the tribesman are far more interesting. Jonathan Aria and Moan Kumar both portray corrupt officials, one a bureaucrat the other a politician, and their characters do cover some of the same cultural ground.
Visas Swards Visas Swards is a member of the Indian Foreign Service. His debut novel, Q&A, has been translated into 35 languages and was made into the multi-Oscar award winning movie Slumlord Millionaire. Fiction Based on Fact The murder of Ruby Gill by Vicky Rae is a thinly veiled account of an infamous Indian murder trial. Other characters and events also reflect stories taken from the headlines. These reviews for The Guardian by Hirsh Shawnee and Jag Argue Sing's Jawbreaker blob offer a more detailed account of the factual basis for some of the Six Suspects subplots.
Swards has obviously sought to reflect the complex and diverse tauter of Indian society and culture in his novel. Several of the characters are quite engaging Ana ten Doormat AT ten story Is Interesting. Unnaturally, It Is all too easy Tort readers to become overwhelmed by the sheer number of characters and subplots and thereby lose the sense of suspense and anticipation needed for a truly gripping murder mystery. Six Suspects is interesting and enjoyable, with moments of great insight and brilliant portrayal. Unfortunately, these are interspersed with less inspiring writing, making it unlikely that Six Suspects will enjoy similar success toSward's previous novel.
Review of Ten Little Indians by Sherman Alexei Review of Ten Little Indians As a whole, Ten Little Indians reflects Sherman Lexis's thoughts on the effects of white culture on the Native American population. He uses Native American protagonists in order to show that the Indian is more complex than Just the crying Indian on the side of the road. While Ten Little Indians cannot be directly compared to Reservation Blues it can be said that the stories in this compilation are significantly more poignant and culturally relevant than the fantastical story told in ReservationBlues. Readers will be impressed with Sherman Lexis's powerful, lyric storytelling and his diverse and complex characters searching for their identity, their capacity as human beings, and Just where their loyalties lie. In short, Ten Little Indians could single-handedly bring back the power of the short story compilation to mass market readers simply for its engaging stories and culturally relevant messages. My Friend by Arbitrating Étagère Art thou abroad on this stormy night on thy Journey of love, my friend? The sky groans like one in despair.
I have no sleep tonight.Ever and again I open my door and look out on the darkness, my friend! I can see nothing before me. I wonder where lies thy path! By what dim shore of the ink-black river, by what far edge of the frowning forest, through what maze depth of gloom art thou threading thy course to come to me, my friend? Maya by Arbitrating Étagère That I should make much of myself and turn it on all sides, thus casting colored shadows on thy radiance ---such is thy Maya. I noun settees a Drawler In tunnel own Delve and then callers thy severed self in myriad notes. This thy self-separation has taken body in me.
The poignant song is echoed through all the sky in many-colored tears and smiles, alarms and hopes; waves rise up and sink again, dreams break and form. In me is thy own defeat of self. This screen that thou hast raised is painted with innumerable figures with the brush of the night and the day. Behind it thy seat is woven in wondrous mysteries of curves, casting away all barren lines of straightness. The great pageant of thee and me has overspread the sky.
With the tune of thee and me all the air is vibrant, and all ages pass with the hiding and seeking of thee and me.
