Book Review -When Love Came Calling by Preeti Shenoy

"When Love Came Calling" is my 3rd read from Preeti Shenoy, and my expectations from Preeti were matched in this book. I was a little bit skeptical after reading "Wake up, Life is calling". Though the "wake up" was presented as an inspirational book, for me, it was a similar experience that I felt with "Veronica decides to die" by Paulo Coelho. I felt too negative while reading both books. Surprisingly when Love Came Calling was a refreshing, cute, and light read in this pandemic depression.

The protagonist of our story is Arush and Puja. Arush was born and brought up outside India. He was a kind of self-made man who was deciding his life based on his passion. He was selected for a paid assignment to work with an NGO based in Kerala, India. Puja, on other hand, had was a kind of lazy girl who felt her life was not in her hands but her parents. She was not happy with the career path set for her by her parents, at the same time, she didn't want to divert from that path.

When the two met, a bond was created instantaneously. Though both were opposite, their different nature brought them nearer. They wanted to know more about each other. The feeling was mutual, but things were not smooth for them. Puja got up in a mess, and unknown to the depth of the consequences Arush tried to help Puja. Do read the book to know whether Puja was rescued or Puja had to rescue Arush.

Apart from the love story, the book brings us two wonderful things to us,

1. As author Preeti is herself a Keralite, she has wonderfully described nature's bounty of Kerala, proving the phrase " God's Own Country" true.

2. Preeti has a good control over bringing an inspirational story without leaving the story. You are bound to learn good things by reading the story itself. You cannot disintegrate the invitational discussion from the story. 

Coming to writing, as usual, Preeti has used a simple narration style. The usage of English is easy for any level of readers. The choice of words makes interest intact. This book hardly falls under DNF, I finished it in 3-4 sittings but can be finished in 1-2 sittings as well. 

Overall I will give 4 out of 5.

Book links - Goodreads and Amazon

Book Review - Wake Up, Life is Calling by Preeti Shenoy

This is my second book by Preeti Shenoy. The first one I read was "Love a Little Stronger" that was a wonderful light read. I enjoyed the humor, emotion and feeling shared in those stories. And Preeti is one of the bestselling authors of India, so I didn't want to lose the chance to read the next book by her which was a sequel to "Life is What You Make It", again a national bestseller. I happily accepted the review copy in exchange for an honest review.

Book Blurb

Ankita has fought a mental disorder, been through hell, and survived two suicide attempts. Now in Mumbai, surrounded by her loving and supportive parents, everything seems idyllic. She is not on medication. She is in a college she loves, studying her dream subject: Creative Writing. At last leading a ‘normal life’, she immerses herself in every bit of it.

Underneath the surface, however, there is trouble brewing. A book she discovers in her college library draws her in, consumes her and sends her into a terrifying darkness that twists and tears her apart. To make matters worse, a past boyfriend resurfaces, throwing her into further turmoil.

Can she escape her thoughts? Will Ankita survive the ordeal a second time around? What does life have in store for her?

Preeti Shenoy’s compelling sequel to the iconic bestseller Life is What You Make It chronicles the resilience of the human mind and the immense power of positive thinking. The gripping narrative demonstrates with gentle wisdom how by changing our thoughts, we can change our life itself.

"Wake Up, Life Is Calling" is a story of Ankita. She had troubled past. She recently came back from a mental asylum, she was admitted there due to Bipolar Disorder. Her parents were her biggest supporters. The story started when she joined the course of creative writing. She made 2 friends from her class and started living normally. Her phone-friend/school friend or I would say her long-distance boyfriend suddenly entered her life. She was annoyingly enjoying her life when something unexpected happened to her which brought back troubling memories back to her. The last third of the book shows her struggle from the phase.

Frankly speaking, I found the book is inline or may be inspired by "Veronika Decides to Die" by Paulo. Don't get angry with me but I was not able to finish "Veronika...". Somehow I was getting too many negative vibes from that book. Something like that happened to me when I was going through the phase of Ankita's struggle. The reason I sailed through was limited options and 15 hours journey. Also, Indian background helped me to go through. Once I was done through 2nd third, I was enjoying the book. And before I know, I reached the last section. Yes I finished the whole book in one day (6-7 hours)

My observations

1. Though the book is written with good intention and motivation in mind, for people in depression I would advise either finish the book (if you start) or skip it. If you leave it in low of Ankita's character you may get more depressed. 
2. The book is written for mature people with the proper thought process.
3. To make sure, the seriousness of the subject won't affect the reading pace, Preeti has used simple language and straight storytelling.
4. I haven't read part 1, if you want to read it first then do it. It will be helpful.
5. Nice and colorful cover design.
6. I didn't like Parul's behavior in the climax, the way she was portrayed in the beginning I thought she would be mature enough to support Ankita.

I know many people said good words about the book, I felt depressed (even though I was not depressed at all) while reading the book. And that's why I am not able to give more than 3.5

Talking about the ratings

1. Cover - 4.5/5
2. Concept - 3/5
3. Characters - 3/5
4. Overall - 3.5/5

Book can be found at Amazon & Flipkart

Review from other readers can be found at GoodReads

Review of Preeti Shenoy's Latest Book - Love a Little Stronger

I am following Preeti Shenoy on twitter since January 2017. I have window shopped all her books on Amazon. So when I got the copy of "Love a Little Stronger" for review, it was a big moment for me. You may say an SRK fan was asked to watch SRK's new movies on premier and was asked to review the movie.

Book Blurb

Life is a collection of moments, some memorable and some mundane. Often it is the tiniest things that bring the greatest joy, even though at that time, we have no idea that what we are witnessing may be magical, something that we will talk about and laugh over after many years.

Packed with her hilarious narratives, poignant observations and a writing style loved by millions across the world, this book is certain to strike a chord with anybody who has children or who has been a child, themselves!

Before I got to content when I had unwrapped the book, my son liked the cover so much he took the book. It required cajoling from my side to get the book from him.

Now coming to content, I think the author has shared some golden moments of her life. These moments comprised of humorous incidents, some life changing events, some learning lessons. If all of these happened with Preeti then I think she is a lucky person to experience them. Stories include

• Her struggles in becoming an author
• Her parenting years
• Her teenage years
• Early years of her marriage life

She has also given funny and/or important list that we can keep in our mind.

In short, you can think this book as Chicken Soup for Soul. Differences are single author and theme is life (unlike Chicken Soup books). The book is so lightweight in content but so deep-rooted in the context that one can feed it to their productive mind. Take this book on your journey, you will enjoy it. I have finished the book in 2 sittings though you can do it in a single sitting as well.

I would recommend this book to anyone who wanted to read something light & meaningful. Language is pretty simple to follow. Those who are learning English or would like to cultivate reading habit can take this book.

Talking about ratings

1. Cover - 4.5/5
2. Content - 4/5
3. Overall - 4/5

Book can be found at Amazon and Flipkart

Review from other readers can be found at GoodReads