The allure of the deep blue waters spanning
beyond the horizon has had many romanticize about it and lead them to
adventures on the high seas. The fathomless depth and seeming peaceful surface seem
to be hiding in its bosom countless mysteries.
How
happy is the sailor's life, from coast to coast to roam; in every port he finds
a wife, in every land a home.
Far beyond the human civilization
surrounded by miles and miles of water as far as you cast your eyes, the sea,
is a perfect haven where things can be buried and lost in oblivion forever!
Countless novels have explored these colours of the seas to weave stories which
have taken us through stormy nights, reckless affairs, one eyed pirates and
even more; over the years. An addition to those, and a great one at that, is
‘Love on the Rocks’ by the very talented author Ismita Tandon Dhanker.
There
is nothing more enticing, disenchanting, and enslaving than the life at sea. The sailors spend weeks and even months on board huge ships far
away from family with only liquor, work and the sea for company. Life on the
blue waters has its charms no doubt but it leaves people longing for the touch
of a loved one or sometimes totally disconnects them from feelings which lead
them to darker corners of their psyche that they would otherwise never have
explored. Men can form strong friendships while being for months on end with
another while feeling a similar sensation of pain or they can get bitter with
contempt and irritable at the slightest provocation. Ismita’s book sketches the
story of the lives of people on one such ship and explores the equations
between them; their relationships, their reactions and the tribulations after
that.
It
must be remembered that the sea is a great breeder of friendship. Two men who
have known each other for twenty years find that twenty days at sea bring them
nearer than ever they were before, or else estrange them.
A newly wedded Sancha joins her husband
Aaron on board a merchant navy ship, the Sea Hyena, looking forward to an
exciting start to their lives together. What could be better than sailing with
the love of your life towards the vast seas? Romance on the high tide would be
the perfect start to their marital bliss or wouldn’t it?
A not so perfect honeymoon overshadowed by
two murders, a theft, devious characters, salacious secrets, doubts and
suspicion turn the mundane sailing experience to one having the ingredients of
a high voltage murder mystery and all these knitted together in a striking manner
by Ismita. You can feel the moist sea breeze blow when you walk with Sancha
onboard the Sea Hyena. You experience the pangs of her heart when she feels
betrayed by Aaron. You sense the pain of Baldy at being ragged constantly as
the mellow newbie. With Aaron you are in constant turmoil, you want to love him
and wish he isn’t the wife hitting monster while still holding on to an affair
of the past. You like the cheeky Harsh and the level-headed Raghav no less. You
will love to hate the Captain too when the needle of suspicion falls on him.
An author, who can lead the readers by hand
through the story while making them feel each and every emotion that she wants them
too, has on her hands a winner. Ismita too does that with remarkable ease. It
is definitely worth a read.
But there is more to this book than the
murder mystery. There are certain aspects of the book that add to its charm;
the two elegant poems and the fact that the story is told from each character’s
perspective. Believe me it is never an easy job to pull off such a feat while
still keeping the suspense intact. Well you would need to read it to believe
it. Ismita’s book is a breath of fresh
air; worth a read any day more so on a lazy Sunday afternoon with nothing
exciting to do. So what are you waiting for, grab a copy now and set sail with
Sancha towards the shore of Love on the Rocks!
PS:All Pictures used in the blog posts are sourced from the internet.