Love Kills

One of the many books that I had picked up at Harper Collins Garage Sale, Tandon’s Love Kills has redeemed my faith in young adult fiction. I had almost written off young writers from India as not to my taste, but Tandon has come to the rescue. Most young writers seem to be focussing on young adult romance that is a bit over the top. Tandon’s book comes as a refreshing tale of love and lies, crime, drama and psychology, all mixed into one. While the narrative is not as layered as it could be, the book is a quick read. Exploring the life of a psychiatrist who has set up an elite rehabilitation centre in a hill station in India, the story revolves around solving murder mysteries of Johnny’s father, girlfriend and a patient, who it turns out was an eyewitness to another murder. At several points in the book, I kept wondering if the story is inspired by real life incidents and people, but I was not able to trace any such reference. Although a bit stretched, but it seems the tale is totally believable. The language is simple and the story is quite lucidly written. The tale rests upon complex family relations; events, feelings and experiences that are often never talked about. It also brings out one’s deepest desires that press people into action. In the end, you realise that the characters in the story are just people trying to live their lives in the best way that they can. Nobody is good or bad. Just varying shades of grey.