The Fragile Thread of Hope

by Pankaj Giri

Finalist of the Amazon Pen To Publish Contest 2017.

A moving, inspirational fiction about love, loss, and finding hope in the darkest of times.

About the Book:

In the autumn of 2012, destiny wreaks havoc on two unsuspecting people—Soham and Fiona.

Although his devastating past involving his brother still haunted him, Soham had established a promising career for himself in Bangalore.

After a difficult childhood, Fiona's fortunes had finally taken a turn for the better. She had married her beloved and her life was as perfect as she had ever imagined it to be.

But when tragedy strikes them yet again, their fundamentally fragile lives threaten to fall apart.

Can Fiona and Soham overcome their grief?

Will the overwhelming pain destroy their lives?

Seasoned with the flavours of exotic Nepalese traditions and set in the picturesque Indian hill station, Gangtok, The Fragile Thread of Hope explores the themes of spirituality, faith, alcoholism, love and guilt while navigating the complex maze of family relationships.

Inspirational and heart-wrenchingly intimate, it urges you to wonder—does hope stand a chance in this travesty called life?

Reviews:

“Well-sketched, sympathetic characters. A good read.”
- Chitra Banerjee Divakaruni, Award-wining author of The Palace of Illusions

“An epic tale of love, loss, hope and faith that will remain with you long after the final page. With its lovely characters and beautiful prose, it ranks right up there with my favourites.”
- Renita D’Silva, Award-nominated bestselling author of The Forgotten Daughter

“A literary masterpiece!”
- Keshav Aneel, Bestselling author of Promise Me A Million Times

About the Author:

Pankaj Giri was born and brought up in Gangtok, Sikkim—a picturesque hill station in India. He began his writing career with a book review blog and after several years of honing his writing skills, he wrote his debut solo novel The Fragile Thread of Hope. The inspirational fiction novel was selected as a “Top 5 Finalist” in the Amazon Pen to Publish Contest 2017 and received critical acclaim worldwide. It also led to him being felicitated by Sikkim Manipal University for his contribution to the literature of Sikkim and being invited by popular website YourStory.com and ABN TV, India’s first Nepali satellite channel, for exclusive interviews.

He is currently working in the government sector in Sikkim. He likes to kill time listening to progressive metal music and watching movies and sitcoms. Pankaj loves interacting with his readers via social media and always responds promptly.

Genres: Fiction, Contemporary, Romance, Literary Fiction, Indian Literature

320 pages, Paperback

Published December 17, 2019

About the author

Pankaj Giri was born and brought up in Gangtok, Sikkim—a picturesque hill station in India. He began his writing career with a book review blog, and after several years of honing his writing skills, he wrote his debut solo novel The Fragile Thread of Hope.

The e-book version of the inspirational fiction novel was selected as a “Top 5 Finalist” in the Amazon Pen to Publish Contest 2017 and received critical acclaim worldwide.

The paperback version—published in late 2019 by Fingerprint! Publishing—also got an excellent reception, a 5-star rating from the renowned literary blog New Asian Writing being the highlight. It was a commercial success, too, selling more than 4500 copies. In July 2020, Pankaj won Best Author (Fiction) at the Indian Literary Awards 2020. He has also been featured in top media houses like The Sentinel, The Morung Express, The Statesman, and The Echo of India.

In September 2023, Pankaj released his next book The Unforgettable Woman, an emotional, inspirational story exploring the themes of drug abuse, love, regret, and forgiveness.

Pankaj is currently working in the government sector in Sikkim. He likes to spend time listening to music and watching movies and sitcoms.

Reviews

[Anish Kohli · Rating 1 out of 5]

Update as on 25/11/18: Please read

In a first, I am revising my rating of a book from original 3 stars to 1 star bcz of the misbehavior from the author. Upon posting my review, the author took a dig at my credibility and hurt another new author, Anumita Sharma, through his review of her book. I know how it may look like a harmless review and a generous rating at the first glance but I promise you it isn’t. The way he has mentioned my name multiple times specifically and then gone after a budding author, much like himself, bcz of a missing comma splice shows what he is trying to accomplish. I urge any suspecting person to read both the books and form an opinion of their own as to which one is better and if my ratings were anything but honest.

And if this was not sufficient, Pankaj then went on to mistreat and belie the opinion of another reviewer, Yamna Rashid, whom he approached for a review willingly. Not only did he try to ‘explain’ his book to a seasoned reader like Yamna through his comments, he also went on to degrade India and Pakistan, both, as nations of psychos and rapists on the whole. One of these 2 nations being his own motherland! I am left wondering what sort of a person this guy is even?
You can read his comments on Yamna's review unless he has deleted them.


I do not stand for authors feeling okay with commenting and belittling any reviewer’s opinion. This is a space for us to feel free in sharing opinions about books, expressing our feelings and ridiculing or adoring books as per our own free will. Any attack, outward or as a seemly ‘explanation’ is NOT welcome. I have had many authors attack me in the past and I am so getting fed up with this. This is totally unprofessional and very insensitive of any author. I do not condone this behavior and I am thus revising my rating. And would also urge other readers to avoid this book and the bullying author!

However, my original review, remains unchanged as an honest opinion of the book, including all good and bad parts, is as follows:

Note: Free copy in exchange for an honest review.

“I feel so empty, as if... as if life is just drifting past me without me participating in it. Loneliness eats me up every day. Maybe someday soon I’ll give up and I... I’ll…”

Pankaj and I came in touch through my review of One Indian Girl (or our mutual loathing of CB and it shows in this book too) and we made a deal. I was to read his book when it came out and he’d read a book that I’d recommended to him. I’ve kept my end of the bargain, good sir! I’ll hold you to yours! ;)

This book is a toughie to review bcz I have such mixed feelings. I’ll try my best to chalk out the good and the bad, both and to keep it coherent at the same time bcz honestly I am very confused about how I feel for this book. The only clear thought in my head for now is that I have ramped up my rating simply bcz of the way it ended. It was done very nicely and that’s something important for me. Tying things up.

Let’s begin.

The Plot
I’ll say the plot is fairly simple and complex at the same time. This is the story of two people, Soham and Fiona, both stricken by life and its cruelty. Both scarred in their own ways. This book is about how some people have it rough in life and how some people can make it rough on themselves by just being the way that they are.
The simple part is creating a tragedy that will test the characters by threatening to break them. The complex part is providing enough background and detail. Providing the back stories and side characters that would bring the story together and justify it all.

The Writing
You know how they say that the devil is in the details? It must be true because just like the devil, too much of detail can torture you as well.
While the detail is there, the backstories are there, the focus is somehow lost to a certain extent bcz along with all the relevant details, there is a fuckload of detail that should have been weeded out simply bcz it isn’t adding to the story in any way expect if the purpose is to connect to the readers of just one state or region. While the focus on the culture and background of the northeastern Indian is definitely a fresh thing but it starts to lose its sheen when things are used or mentioned in excess. Sometimes this book became a little too detailed for its own good and that ruins the flow of story. I just don’t see the need of some specific things like how the name of a crematorium is important when you are adding no other details apart from that. Or a need for specifics like the mentioning of Mahamrityunjaya Mantra instead of just saying someone was praying or chanting.

While the book is not grammatically incorrect, it’s poorly executed in many places. For example the over usage of the phrases “an ocean of..” (used 23 times) and “hands of..” (used 16 times)
These phrases were used with everything and anything and way too many times. If I am to be blunt, I think the author was trying to make every line, every description, sing. Trying to make it all poetic and beautiful. And he’s overdone it by quite some measure. What that essentially does to the reader is that the story seems to be dragging and the pacing becomes off. So the reader feels not just bored but also daunted by the number of pages. This book can be easily atleast 50-60 pages shorter if those parts are removed as they should have been.
I believe, that the story has to keep moving forward with every page and every sentence bcz that is the most important thing. Bcz we all want to know what happens in the end, right? It is very important to strike a balance between the details that are needed and that are to be weeded.

The Characters
The characters are pretty well done even though I have some issues with them.

I felt that Soham is looking for a way to let his pain out. And that’s all. His main focus is to be rid of the pain. And while I can understand that to an extent but to let that drive you is a very different thing. He looks to JUST let things out. To be not in pain. That rings wrong. I get the wanting to be happy part. I do. But the way it’s detailed, that doesn’t work. What happens is that Soham comes across as a character who is trying to unload his past, looking to dump it on someone, and let them help him cope with it. Soham doesn’t own his pain, you know?

Fiona is better done and she makes for a much more real character. I understand her fears and reasons and drives much more clearly than Soham’s. Her pain and her apprehensions and the way of tackling them, or lack of it,is very real or close to home. Even though she could have used some more details and mention of more scarring incidents, she still makes more sense than Soham and is easier to connect with.

But I didn’t see the connection between the two lead characters. When two people like Soham and Fiona meet, given their loss riddled lives, sense of abandonment, betrayal and an overall sense of hopelessness, it takes a lot to make them click or connect. One person's insecurities need to become other's as well.
That shared pain has to play the pivotal role in binding them together and that needs time and details. Not just a retelling of the past account but more of WHY AND HOW it impacted them. What their root phobias are. What their triggers are and how the other counters them. Jangled nerves aren’t calmed just by sharing sad stories. Sharing simple interests like music bands and reading as a hobby or loving the same sitcoms is not enough to drive two people like them towards each other. It contradicts the nature of the very characters that you have so painstakingly sketched. This is where is connection doesn’t make sense and is wanting for details.

Overall Impact
To begin with, I was glad that this book was different from what’s usual in the debut author circuit. It’s a step up from all the love stories or the love stories in engineering colleges or mostly cheesy scripts and it’s definitely much better than our bestselling Chetu! Full credit to Pankaj for picking up such a theme, a tough one, and doing it justice to a great extent!

What lessens the impact of this book for me is the part about Soham contemplating a suicide. It’s what bugged me the most and it was what disconnected me with this book completely. Not only is it very casually slipped in a very passive way, there is not enough attention given to it afterwards. Infact, to begin with Soham’s character curve is neither a sensible one nor a believable one. I don’t see his reasons of perpetual misery and pain. I don’t see what would lead him to a train of thought where it would seem better to just give up. The reasons that are supposed to have him depressed are also the things that are given very less weightage. I mean Soham is shown as a character who doesn’t really care about the very things whose loss would drive him into depression. His character is self-contradicting to a certain extent. There is a lack of detail in this department and worst of all there is a severe lack of detail AFTER the revelation of him thinking about suicide. It’s more like if you touch on a sensitive topic like this, you need to give it the detail and respect it demands. This is a place where the author falls short.

The book is also sexist towards both men and women in a couple places but to be fair, I don’t think that it was either intentional or a slip up. I think that both those instances were cases of a badly phrased sentence but it still needs pointing out as it is something to work on.

But despite everything, despite all of those issues, this book is easily 3 star material. It’s well written and manages to create an atmosphere that makes you feel pity, angst, hurt, hopelessness and much more. I liked how the part about Alcoholism was dealt with and it made for an enjoyable section. I really liked the parts about Fiona and they kept me going since I was invested in her and although at points her behavior seems a little irrational, she’s a character to root for and I did root for her. I wanted things to finally look up for her and they did. The last 20-30 pages are very well handled. I actually enjoyed the part about Fiona’s realization and her subconscious decision to let go of the past and I really loved how the author pulled his pen away from paper and let it end where he did. I think that must have been a difficult decision. The epilogue was very well done and it is pretty obvious that the author is capable of not just writing but much better than this. The epilogue made me smile, I also loved how the author didn’t give into the temptation of giving his characters smooth sailing. The small mention of their share of troubles made it more real and I feel content with the fact.

My closing thoughts on this are pretty clear. This book needs love. It needs attention from readers and a decent publishing house and a good editor who can not only trim the book but also guide Pankaj bcz he sure as hell can write!
Thank you, Pankaj, for letting me read this. I wish you all the luck, my friend! I hope you keep improving and writing. And I’ll look for more books from you.

“Whenever the gift of happiness is bestowed upon you, embrace it and savor it till it lasts, because long and unforeseeable is this life, and fragile is the thread of hope you must cling on to.”

[Jules · Rating 5 out of 5]

It has taken me a couple of days to recover from this book and compose my thoughts on this emotional story.

The 22nd October was a very special day, as it was the day I started this book and discovered a fellow book reviewer and blogger was also a very talented writer with a gift for creating an emotional story in such a beautiful way.

The Fragile Thread of Hope is a beautifully descriptive and atmospheric character led story about family, love, loss, grief, regret, loneliness and hope.

This story put me through so many human emotions. I really felt for the characters and experienced a deep empathy for their sadness and pain. I felt frustrated by the injustice of certain situations, heart-broken by their despair and loneliness, and happiness when their lives were more positive. All these emotions are what makes us human. Life experiences can shape us as a person and emotions can drive our future decisions.

All the pain and loss felt somewhat intense at times, but that was because I read about the characters’ lives in just a few days. In reality, many of us will go through some of the things these characters went through during our lifetimes. We’ve all experienced loss of a loved one at some point in our lives. I’ve lost family too soon due to health problems, and friends due to tragic accidents and suicide. Many of us have been in love and fallen out of love, and wondered if there is anyone out there for us. Readers will have no problems relating to the emotional challenges the characters within this book are going through, but be prepared for it being an emotional read. I had tears in my eyes on a number of occasions and even cried near the end after a few days of built up emotions. I think it was a combination of grief and relief that caused my own emotions to run down my cheeks.

This is not only an emotional read, but a thought provoking and inspirational one too. It reminds you how fragile life is, how easily loved ones can be taken away and how dreams can be completely shattered. It makes you question whether some things happen for a reason. My heart physically ached throughout this book, but the one thing I held onto was a feeling a hope. Nothing can take away your hope unless you let it. Hope is such a powerful thing. It can get you through pretty much anything if you allow it to help you.

I loved how this book made me feel so alive. Those raw emotions that make us so human. This is the kind of book that will inspire you to live for every moment and perhaps hold your loved ones a little longer and keep them closer. The Fragile Thread of Hope is a remarkable story by a very talented writer and is a book I highly recommend to anyone who enjoys an emotional read.

I’ve included three of my favourite quotes to give you an idea of the beautifully descriptive prose within this book:

A naughty breeze flirted with the stray grass in an uninhabited plot nearby, the lazy sway of the tall leaves betraying their shyness.

He found the rope of his consciousness slipping as darkness swept over him like a cloak.

She found herself glancing towards the heavens. The inky sky offered her a glimpse of the dark future that lay before her. The monstrous mountains stared back at her as if reminding her of her insignificance and mocking her for her helplessness.

My review is also available on my blog here:
https://littlemissnosleep.wordpress.c...

[Pankaj Giri]

So, here it is! Finally my latest book - The Unforgettable Woman - is out. I'd be really grateful if you could check out my book and order a copy if you are interested. 🙏

Amazon link: https://amzn.to/3sCdZDf

About the book:

Abandoned by his wife and daughter and living with his cousin’s son, senior doctor Adarsh leads a lonely and uneventful life . . . until he begins glimpsing someone in the streets of his hometown, Ilathang—a woman he knew once, a woman who had long disappeared.

As Smriti starts working as a teacher at Ilathang Government School, she develops an affectionate bond with her PG owner’s son—a teenage drug addict—which fulfils her childhood craving for a brother. But one day in the summer of 2007, a dramatic turn of events unveils a devastating secret, a secret that turns her life upside down.

Will Adarsh be able to discover the mystery behind the curious glimpses of the woman? Will Smriti be able to recover from the trauma of the shattering secret?

Set in fictional towns in the beautiful state of Sikkim, The Unforgettable Woman is an inspirational, heart-touching story that explores the themes of regret, love, and forgiveness and shows how a single secret can influence several lives.

[Rohit Enghakat · Rating 3 out of 5]

On GR the punchline for this book is "A gripping emotional inspirational fiction about love, loss, and finding hope in the darkest of times". It was not gripping, but it certainly lived up to its punchline - emotional and inspirational fiction. This is a decent book on human emotions of love, loss and a sense of hope. The main characters are Fiona and Soham who go through the lowest points in their life - losing loved ones. How they overcome their loss and find each other forms the main plot. Being fed on a heavy diet of thrillers for a long time, this looked like a breath of fresh air, when the author approached me for a review. And I don't regret it.

The setting is Gangtok and the author has beautifully described the place with its wonderful climate, the heavy rains, narrow roads and alleys, the tea shop, the local bookshop and Kanchenjunga at sunrise. Believe me, when I say that the Kanchenjunga at sunrise is one of the most beautiful sights to behold, it is an understatement. Also one gets a bit of an insight into the Nepali culture, traditions and language which I feel the author should have been more liberal with.

The main grouse is the author has spent too much time going into the details with a heavy dose of wordplay. Somewhere the story drags and the reader tends to lose interest. The author seems to have a very good vocabulary but I couldn't help notice a few grammatical mistakes (syntax errors ?) in some places. The first fifty pages, I was lost in the chronological order in which the author had written the book and couldn't keep up with it, having to turn the pages backwards a couple of times to check what was written earlier. Once you get used to it or maybe ignore it, it becomes easier to read.

Being a debut work, this was a decent one and I wish him all the best for the future.

PS: - Free copy in exchange of a review.

[Aakanksha Jain · Rating 4 out of 5]

The fragile thread of hope is author's debut book. It's a contemporary fiction. The main characters of this book are Fiona and Soham. The story revolves around their family and love life. Both felt the loss of their loved ones at very young age & this tragedy continues in future. Soham and Fiona are very different but their pain brings them close to each other. Soham is an engineer worked in Bangalore while Fiona is a school teacher. They have fears and tragic past memories which made them think that they didn't deserve to be happy. They lost the purpose of their life. But later they overcame with the help of each other.

The plot based on Gangtok. The story is slow paced. The author described characters and events in detail which is unnecessary and made the story boring. I felt the pain of characters. It's been an emotional roller coaster ride for me. The characters grow slowly.

I like Fiona's mother Sharon character. She is a strong woman. The main character Soham and Fiona are little dull maybe because of their past. The author can do much better with these two characters. The writing and vocabulary are good. But there are few words which I don't like especially the word Nani. It's a self-published book. I really appreciate the author's writing and effort he put in this story. It's heart melting story and a piece of art. This book tells that never gives up and never loses hope. I recommend this to all.

PS- Get a free e-book copy in exchange for a review.

[Bharath · Rating 4 out of 5]

The book has two principal characters – Soham and Fiona. For a large part of the book, their stories run in parallel converging towards the later part of the book.

The one thing in common between the lives of Soham and Fiona is the pain in their lives. Both come from humble backgrounds and face hardship as well as tragedy. The other aspect in common is their strength in looking ahead despite deep rooted personal suffering.

Soham's brother's untimely demise affects him deeply, and he is haunted by memories. It has an impact on his parents, as well as their relationship. Soham works in Bangalore in an IT firm and is doing well professionally. A relationship with a co-worker seems to be exactly what he needs to move on with life. But then, the happiness is short lived and more difficult times come up in his life causing him to return to Gangtok.

Fiona's mother Sharon has had an especially tough life with a husband who drinks every day squandering his money and his health. As he passes away, it is not clear how Sharon can make ends meet and educate Fiona – but she does it with great strength. Fiona feels she has found the love of her life too, and yet long term happiness proves elusive.

Soham and Fiona are now both in Gangok. Can they find meaning in their lives, which seems to have lost purpose as a result of the pain they have suffered?

There is deep rooted tragedy and pain in the lives of Soham & Fiona – yet this book is about their character, strength and certainly hope. The setting and culture of Sikkim is well explored and described. Having visited Sikkim, just this past year – it brought vivid images of the beauty of the place to my mind.

With it's impressive build up of it's strong characters and good story line, I certainly recommend this book to be read.

Note: I received an advance copy of the ebook for providing an honest review

[Apratim Mukherjee · Rating 4 out of 5]

Thanks to the author for providing me the book for free in exchange of an honest review.The book is all about facing the ultimate tragedy and still carrying on by looking towards the positive side of life.While reading the book,if at times you go back and think about your past when you lost a loved one,it means the author has done his job well.The only problem is that on some occasions the book drags on and bores you (for which I deducted a star).Otherwise presentation of the text is good which makes the book interesting.Finally I want to appreciate the author's depiction of Gangtok and its people which makes the book all the more readable.

[Yamna · Rating 1 out of 5]

Second update: 1/12/18

So...the misogyny persists. As a way to save face, the author sent me a personal apology...laced with the sexism and mansplaining any woman is sick of

Author: Only when I read Anish's account did I realize

The fact that men still think only another MAN and not a WOMAN can change their opinions is...just...Why? Why are some men still misogynistic? Isn't it the 21st century? Disgusted.

Update: 25/11/2018 - PLEASE READ THIS

So, as an honest reviewer, I gave a detailed and very fair review for this book that I was ASKED to review
What did I get?
The author, in a very long, harsh, racist and offensive comment meant to belittle me, said: I don't know about other parts of India or Pakistan, but people in the hills are not rapists or psychos

I do not need to add further things he said in the review. He insulted me, talked down to me and tried to force me to admit I was lying about his books. I do not tolerate bullying at the hands of a butthurt author and therefore, I am one-starring this book

**********

We have now sunk to a depth at which the restatement of the obvious is the first duty of intelligent men – George Orwell

(Some people don't realize he is saying this as an insult and not as a sign of intellect)

Thank you to the author for a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review

So…where do I start?

A gripping emotional inspirational fiction about love, loss, and finding hope in the darkest of times.

My understanding, when I delved into this book, was I would be presented with two characters who take the juxtaposition between loss and love and find their true selves with the help of each other . But the blurb is severely misleading
First, where the author wants you to believe the book is about a love story between Fiona and Soham, he doesn’t manage to make his character meet till 70% of the book and I assure you, I CHECKED
Second of all, I believe the blurb is saying the two characters would realize how to overcome their loss. But again, till about 60% of the book, the characters were just facing their losses in the form of the deaths of their loved one. They spend the next 10% grieving over said losses and then the last couple of chapters hastily “getting over it”
Third of all, ahem

If you love contemporary literary fiction novels by Khaled Hosseini and Jhumpa Lahiri, contemporary Christian fiction novels by Melissa Storm, and tragic romance novels by Jojo Moyes and Nicholas Sparks, then make time for Pankaj Giri’s new heartbreaking inspirational novel The Fragile Thread of Hope

Yeaa…no



If someone hasn’t read any of these books, they’d say this novel could be considered in the same category as them. But since I have read four out of the five authors mentioned (and unfortunately for the blurb’s writer, also adore said four authors beyond anything) I can safely say the above line is a grotesque overstatement. Not because I am saying this book could have had “an expertly play of metaphors and similes and beautiful poetic prose” but because I can’t consider it a contemporary literary fiction or a tragic romance novel
A contemporary fiction would possess the narration necessary for any literary book e.g. details that went further than Fiona’s lunch with her boyfriend (like Hosseini went to great extent to paint the picture in his reader’s mind by describing the scene, Afghanistan’s devastating war, Amir’s favorite hobbies etc.)
And tragic romance would have ROMANCE between the protagonists (which was severely lacking if not altogether skipped). Hence, both are a complete miss. So I’d say the book falls into a very different category and comparing it to bestsellers in a vague fashion is just a way to sell the book
That being said, let’s look at the book in a methodical manner

The ACTUAL Plot

Since the blurb falls short of showcasing what the book is actually about, I’d like to offer my own take on the story
Fiona, living in Gangtok, has a lot of issues owing to her deceased alcoholic father. Her only ray of sunshine is her husband. Tragedy strikes
Soham, an engineer, has been trudging through life after having witnessed the death of someone close. Tragedy strikes once again when he loses more people close to him
The story details how Fiona lost her father then met her husband then lost someone close. And it also details how Soham lost his loved one and then faced more grief
I REALLY wish I could add more but there isn’t. The story starts off with each of them being struck head-on with misfortune and then it goes back in the past and then it circles back to how said misfortune happened. Very very later on, they meet and fall in love
I could explain everything wrong with the basic plot but that would take far too long
Instead, I’d like to focus on a few errors in the crux of the plot.
- Fiona’s part of the story reeked of sadness. What they say is true; too much of anything IS deadly. All I felt when her chapters came was “O great, more whining and little to no mention of her dreams or what she wants to do in LIFE or how she’s coping with her life’s problems.”
- Soham’s part of the story was as lackluster as a typical Indian soap opera. And I mean the likes of Ye Rishta Kya Kehlata Hay which are so cheesy you can feel a ring of fat forging around your heart just by looking at a trailer of the show. Where the focus should have been on how he managed to live a fulfilling life despite having faced loss, all we saw was how wracked Soham was over what had happened and how he never gave anything else some thought (a fact that surprisingly Soham himself admits toward the end of the book)
- The overall plot is too depressing and too marred by sad moments to make you feel invested. Don’t get me wrong, I enjoy a good tear-demanding book. But if all the story has his “O God that happened to me, I just want to cry and cry”, you want to pull your hair out

The Story

The story starts off with, again, a tear-jerking start. And not the fun kind either. (Koko Kohli, you may as well snigger now, eh). Fiona is going in a taxi with her husband, Joseph, when they are met with an accident. On the other hand, Soham is waiting for his father to come home (to watch cricket with him, a sport I might add the author enjoys to the point that he treated us to an unnecessary amount of details about it) when he receives a shocking call.
The story then continues to Fiona’s mother’s early life and to Soham’s childhood. Both scenarios had me wondering what in the hell was the point of showing the future if we had to circle back to the past. It made no sense.
Let’s break down each part.

- Fiona’s Side

Fiona’s mother was married off to an older guy without her consent, who, of course, turns into an alcoholic soon after Fiona is born. This was the foundation of how Fiona’s character came to be as untrustworthy as she was in her present life. Things take a turn for the worse when Fiona watches her father physically abuse her mother. One day, they are rid of their misfortune in an unexpected form. Soon after, Fiona’s mother converts to Christianity (I don’t remember her or Fiona’s birth names)
This is where the story starts to turn way too cheesy. Fiona grows up to be bitter and according to the author, she is supposed to hate all men because of how her father was, although throughout the book Fiona only expresses her hatred for her own father and no one else
One day, Fiona’s class fellow, Joseph, strikes up a conversation with her. The author tries to convince us Fiona doesn’t like Joseph nor will she ever even talk to him but two separate conversations later, Fiona is suddenly smitten, to the point she does extremely stupid things not even a girl in a metropolitan city would do like go on a bike ride with Joseph up to the mountains a couple of days after meeting him



I don’t care what bollocks the author says about Joseph like how much of a gentleman he is, I don’t see any reason why Fiona would jump at a chance to go alone with him given her past and the fact that people CAN lie. We then move on to even more ridiculous, extremely cliché scenes like Fiona falling sick and her mother seeing that Joseph is calling her phone and picking it up to tell him, a stranger she has NO IDEA about, to come over and bring medicines. Oh, and when he does come in? Fiona’s mother invites him into her daughter’s room without a thought . Look, I don’t know WHAT kind of people do this but a protective mother? Yea no. there is no chance in hell a mother in a hill station in a developing country would just invite in a random man into her daughter’s room. At this point, I just lost interest in the story and boy, did it get more ludicrous.
I also had a lot of problems with Joseph's character. Apparently, he is very handsome, very smart, sings “like an angel” and he has fallen in love with Fiona at first sight. O and he’s an absolute gentleman. What a lovely guy, right? Except he’s as hollow as a drum because guys like him simply do not exist. There is no way a guy can be this nice and this decent and not have any flaws. And when I say no flaws, I mean literally no flaws. The emptiness of his character just made me frustrated
Of course, the girl with supposed issues with men goes on to marry him



Until tragedy strikes. This is where the story gets more frustrating. From Fiona’s mother urging her to discard EVERYTHING Joseph ever owned in his life (not even keep an article of clothing in his memory, because this is some fucked up way of “letting go”, which btw is very unhealthy), months after his death to her mother hiding a letter by Fiona’s supposed “repenting” father because he asked her not to show it to her as it would make Fiona forgive him and potentially start trusting men again as some sort of “punishment” for himself , the scenes were a cluster of borrowed storylines from about thirty Indian drama movies
Fiona trudges on in life with little to no accomplishments, I mean God forbid she has a dream to fulfill. Although I do not hate methods of grief people resort to, I do have doubts that building your character completely around their pain is a healthy way to express their story
And you can believe my annoyance when I tell you this is literally till 70% of the book

- Soham’s Side

Where Fiona’s story was marred by an occasional weeping episode here and there, Soham’s was stuffed full of every dramatized scene you can ever imagine in any Indian drama ever
Soham’s childhood is full of love as the favorite son of his father. This is where we see a very cruel side of his father; he literally discards his other son’s feelings and repeatedly calls him names. To add insult to the abuse, Soham appears unfazed by the lashings his older brother, who supposedly loves him more than anything else, gets on a regular basis. Not only that, on some occasions, Soham appears happy at the stream of curses hurled at Dada
To make matters a bit more cinematic, of course, Dada dies a horrible death. And for the rest of the story, Soham’s character is a shell of what it could have been, heavily influenced by his guilt over Dada’s forsaken short life. Several issues with this part of the storyline:
a) Soham’s dad’s behavior was borderline abnormal. He hated Dada a bit too much. And the fact that he doesn’t acknowledge it as completely his mistake was a huge concern for me
b) Soham’s mother never held her husband accountable for being cruel to her elder’s son. She sure forgave him fast for it. I won’t have questioned it before but considering how Fiona is also too forgiving despite her “issues”, I find it hard to believe every character is prone to letting go of their complaints so easily
c) Dada’s death causes Soham to hide all his inhibitions and not talk openly to anyone. Now although I completely understand that, it came to the point that literally all ever Soham thought about for the next 60% of the book was how much he hates that Dada died, to the point he does absolutely nothing else
To make matters more romantic, Soham, of course, has a crush on a colleague. Needless to say, the execution of this part was not only lackluster, but it also seemed pointless to me. Soham keeps wooing this new girl until one day he has the bright idea of proposing to her with flowers, goes to her home and overhears her (and this is where it gets funny) speaking about him to her boyfriend from inside the shower in her home while he stands at the front door and can clearly hear every word she is saying
First of all, the shower? Really? What kind of a bathroom is right next to the front door? Second of all, Indian soap operas much? This is a blatant rip off of every infuriating scene ever in any drama. If you would like to imagine Soham’s expression:



I’d like to ask you to venture a guess as to what happens next. No guesses? Well, of COURSE, he goes out and it starts to rain and he stands in the rain, bowling his eyes out

Cue Chan Se Jo Totay Koi Sapna



And what happens next was what I call Ex Machina aka a scene which exists purely to facilitate the author’s thinking and not to add to the storyline in any way. Care to guess what happens?
He gets hit by a car. Just…



That leads to Soham’s parents coming over to care for him. And this is when he realizes he has wasted about thirty years being sad over Dada and has completely ignored his parents. The fact that he refused to acknowledge their presence or love until THIS happened had me wondering why this is supposed to an awesome or “enlightening” scene

While he emptied his bowels, Baba removed his dirty trousers, soiled underwear, and tossed them in a corner. After passing motions, he called out to Baba. Baba came, helped him squat down, and waited until he cleaned himself

So I imagine your parents wash you for the hundredth thousandth time in your life (you realize you were a BABY once too?) and that’s when you realize they are important people?

That leads to the present moment where Soham receives a call that his Dad is dead. And shortly after, his mom passes away from shock. The author then briefly (and by that I mean for two paragraphs) delves into depression and anxiety in about as poorly constructed manner as you can assume. He then also dips into the concept of spirituality for about five sentences, a concept unnecessary in such length. And then miraculously, after two pages, Soham is healed of his depression and thoughts of suicide. Don’t ask me what brought that on but that should have been the last straw for me to DNF for this book except until this point the love story hadn’t even begun so I was even unsure the novel had even STARTED
We fast forward to Soham meeting Fiona through more Ex Machina scenes and viola, he is in love
The story concludes
I know

The Writing

Although the story, the generally irritating characters, the scene and the minimum complexity lent to the plot did nothing to impress, I was, however, taken to the author’s mastery of the English language. The flow, the descriptions, the metaphors, the similes, the art of articulating things in a refreshing manner, I loved all of that. It’s the only reason why the book has earned two stars
However, the author went so far as to stuff beauty into literally every scene

A column of watery snot cascaded down Fiona’s nose

A grinding sound drilled into his ears as the machine shat the instant Cappuccino into her cup (I now hate coffee, thanks to the author)

Also, since he spent so much time showing off his knowledge of the different synonyms for excreting and life and love and whatnot, he forgot to pay attention to character development or a coherent storyline

Flaws

Since I proofread manuscripts, my eyes are trained to identify any error. And although the writing structure was near perfect and the prose had no errors, I couldn’t figure out which format of English was being used. The spellings were from both British and American English (-er and -our are British and -ize is American) yet there was the use of Oxford commas and periods after honorifics so I don’t know what format was being used

There was also an overabundance of similes and metaphors
The title’s own words i.e.
The thread of was used 8 times
Hands of: 13 times
Immersed in [a pool of]: 19 times
Moments of [silence]: 15 times
Sea of: 17 times
Seed of [hope]: 9 times

Also, where I don’t mind books set in certain time periods, I didn’t get the point of showing what event was happening at what date. Honestly, the whole execution of roaming between different years seemed useless to me

Special Mentions

Here’s a list of some further flaws I had a huge problem with but couldn’t describe in detail owing to the limited character space.
- Fiona’s mother is too meek and open. First, she invited Joseph happily into her home. Next, she invited Soham happily into her home. It made me greatly question her credibility
- The love story between Fiona and Joseph was rushed together to the point that it was implausible and downright unbelievable, not to mention poorly executed
- Soham moving to Gangtok simply to look after his parents’ home following their death despite hating it seemed cruel to me. He wasn’t obliged to do it yet he was there purely so the author could make him meet Fiona. Also, this is where I could sense a bias toward government organizations in India. There was way too much bashing of govt. offices and their toilets to be considered normal.
- Unnecessary scenes were hastily scribbled to add some flair to the story. E.g.
o Fiona’s mother falling down the stool and injuring her head moments after Fiona tells her she hates her
o Fiona acting extremely bitchy to those around her for the sake of her own pleasure and then acting like she wasn’t mean at all. Like she yelled at her mother for saying her father’s mistakes could be forgiven or at least forgotten so she could move on (to the point that her anger seemed unrealistic). And her being cruelly mistrusting of Soham’s love to the point she thought he would “taint Joseph's love in her heart”. At this point, I was thinking she was a borderline narcissist
Here are some quotes to show just how much of a bitch she was:

“What do you think? You think finding out that you had slept with your lover and got pregnant before marrying my father will make me change my mind?” (May I mention this shows Fiona thought her mother loving someone was a bad thing to do?)

“I’ll never betray my first love like you” (Apparently, loving someone and then being forced to marry someone else is “betrayal”)

- Soham’s blog. We are at the age where anyone with the intelligence of a mushroom (both kinds *winks at Koko*) can figure out it was HIS blog Fiona coveted. So adding it to the story only frustrated me
- Misconstruing the true effects or causes of depression and putting them in the book solely for the purpose of appearing informed. That is just borderline insulting to real patients

To conclude this very long rant, DO NOT READ THIS BOOK

[Rosh ~catching up slowly~ · Rating 3 out of 5]

In a Nutshell: An interesting character-oriented book focussed on the aftermath of grief. While this wasn’t exactly my type of read (especially in the second half), it is a credible debut work and will work decently well for the right reader.

Story:

The initial half of the book, set in 2012 (with some flashbacks), comes in two parallel but distinct narratives. Fiona in Gangtok and Soham in Bangalore are both individuals with a sorrowful event in their respective childhoods. Both have tried to let their past go and have finally found some happiness in their individual lives. But when tragedy strikes each of them again, they find themselves grappling with their emotions and struggling to find the will to go on. How do they find the will to surmount yet another painful devastation? Can they learn to forgive, to forget, to move on? Read and find out.

Up to about 60-70% of the book, the storylines of Fiona and Soham move on their individual tracks. Then their paths converge, and the combined narrative proceeds into a joint healing for them. If you are an avid reader, it doesn’t take much for you to figure out what will happen in the end because it’s very evident. (And let’s be honest: we Indians always want a happy ending. 😉) The more important matter is the “how”. And this is where the book and I didn’t exactly blend well because it became too philosophical/spiritual for my reading preference and I found the sudden connection between the two leads abrupt. But if I discount this last 30-odd per cent of the book, the rest of it was right up my alley. So you can say I quite enjoyed the first 70% and liked the rest of the book.

As a character-oriented novel, Fiona and Soham had to be strong personae so as to carry the book on their shoulders. Fiona comes across as a gutsy character, albeit with a misguided attitude towards relationships. Her angst is pretty well-written and her emotions are quite believable. Soham’s narrative was weak in comparison. He comes across as short-sighted in his thinking and selfish in his behaviour, so I struggled to connect more with him. In terms of character growth, it is Fiona who takes the cake as her progress is more steady and natural throughout the narrative, as against Soham’s, whose development is more in random spurts.

I have read a fair bit of contemporary Indian works by now, and I must say that in terms of linguistic flair, this is among the better works I’ve read. Pankaj Giri is a very elaborate writer and his personal style shows itself well. There is a minimal amount of repetition and the grammar and vocab seemed mostly on target. The imagery is beautiful and the writing, lyrical throughout. This works well in many scenes but in others, you feel like the poetic description is dragging the pace of the action downwards. Of course, keeping in mind that this is a literary fiction, it is meant to be on the slower side.

My favourite part of the book was the regional flavour the author added in almost every chapter. His having familiarity with Gangtok is so evident! Every scene can be pictured in front of your eyes. (He knows Bangalore very well too as is evident from Soham’s initial chapters, but he shines in the Sikkim-based content.) I simply loved the local touches of language and culture. If any Indian writer wants to see how to incorporate regional words into an English novel, this would be a good book to learn from. Pankaj intersperses the Nepali words within the text in such a way that it adds authenticity without breaking your comprehension.

One very minor grouse, and this comes only because of my personal experience with the religion. There are some errors in the depiction of the Catholic faith. The procedure of joining the Catholic Church is totally wrong. It's not that you declare to a priest that you want to convert and a week later, you are showered with holy water and your name is changed to a Christian one, and voila, you are a Christian! No! There’s a long procedure that takes more than year to follow to be initiated into the faith, and that too, if you voluntarily declare you want to be a part of the church. (I’m only talking about the Catholic rite here as that’s what is referred to in the book; I know there are any other Christian sects who doggedly pursue conversions as if God has given them targets to meet before they die. Hell with them! They literally “know not what they are doing”. Sanctimonious jerks, all of them!) Names aren't changed after becoming a Christian, and even if I assume a priest will make the new initiates change their names, he would surely choose biblical names and not a modern non-biblical name such as Fiona. ‘O Holy Night’ isn't a song but a carol. A priest will never say "Oh Dear Lord" as that is counted as a blasphemy. You make the sign of the cross, you don't ‘gesture a cross’. These might be minor errors in terms of the big picture and most readers won’t even realise these goofs, but as a Catholic, these stuck out very visibly for me.

These are just trivial complaints though. The book does have many wonderful moments and great writing. It is a book that looks at relationships and attitudes, at grief and hope, at endings and beginnings. It weaves a complicated web not just of human emotions but also shines light on human behaviour when in times of trouble or grief. For the right target audience – one who is more into philosophy and spirituality, this book will certainly work even better than it did for me. But I don’t regret this read. It was a very different kind of story. And it showed me that there are writers who are willing to go beyond the typical college/job/marriage woes fare for their debut work rather than sticking to the tried-and-tested. And that itself deserves appreciation.

Do give it a try if you enjoy literary fiction combining melancholia and hope into a thought-provoking narrative.

I received a complimentary copy of this book from the author and these are my honest thoughts about it. Thank you very much for this opportunity to read and review your work, Pankaj. 😊




***********************
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[Renita D'Silva · Rating 5 out of 5]

I absolutely LOVED this beautiful book. It is right up there with my favourites and this epic tale of love and loss, of heartache and ultimately redemption will stay with me for a long time. A multi-generational, multi-faceted saga, beautifully told. I loved how the different stories were weaved together into a satisfying whole. Loved the way Nepali tradition and way of life, culture and duty, ambition and love were all interspersed so expertly into the tale. Once I started it, I could not put it down. An emotional read, sensitively rendered. I loved how the author depicted family relationships. I loved the writing and connected with each of the characters. The author’s prose is beautiful – through it, one gets a flavour of Nepal: the winding roads, the taste of momos. A stunning masterpiece from an extremely talented author. I cannot wait for his next book!

[Hiba · Rating 4 out of 5]

Actual rating: 3.5*
First of all, I want to thank the author for having shared with me his book and I appologize for not reading it before now.
I found it quite interesting, and really catching at some points, I loved how the writer brought together two separate stories and found a way to unite them at the very ending. I must admit that it made my eyes tear at some points.
The language is so smooth and easy to read, and very very poetic sometimes; the only thing that I didn't really appreciate was how sometimes there was a lot of unnecessary details and descriptions of the mental state. (And this of course remains a personal opinion)
It was a good read overall.

[Yvonne · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a stunning and also a bit of an emotional roller coaster of a read. We are taken into the lives and families of Fiona and Soham. The start of the story is as an accident occurs, then it goes back in time. We meet the two main characters, to each other they are strangers, but we are told of their childhoods, experiences and memories as they progress through their lives.

Yes it’s a story about growing up with a religious and inspirational aspect to it. I will be the first to admit that this is not something I would actively seek out to read. But I was asked if I wanted to read this book by the author, I checked out the reviews and was intrigued by what I read. Now after reading the story myself, I am so glad I accepted to give this story a chance.

Pankaj has taken the characters and created a story around them, it is beautifully written even though they have experiences and events in their lives that are heartbreaking and indeed does show how fragile life is. I started the book, a few hours later I had finished it, I cannot say when or where I found myself avidly turning each page, it just happened. It was like being immersed or cocooned in the world that Pankaj had opened up.

Each character suffers personal tragedy in their lives, we experience their desolation, thoughts, emotions and agonies as well as hearing inspirational insights of help and advice from those around them. The way Pankaj has beautifully written and explained everything is what makes this special and also impossible to leave.

This is a book I think would appeal to readers of literary fiction, with romance, inspiration and religious aspects. It is a beautifully crafted story that I absolutely loved and would highly recommend.

[A. · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very rarely one comes across books/stories which are so full of emotions, which leaves you shaken.

The Fragile Thread Of Hope is one such book, which reaches to the core of your heart, shakes you up and leaves you sad. The story about Fiona and Soham, who have suffered the loss of their dear ones in a very sudden and tragic manner, which leaves them broken and shattered, and how they find solace in each other, when they had given up hope.

The book is so full of emotions that one can actually feel the pain the protagonist's experience.

I congratulate the author, Pankaj Giri for writing such a powerful book. An author’s greatest achievement is when a reader feels the emotions of the characters while reading and that Pankaj has achieved, through his powerful and wonderful writing, which I would like to say is not everyone’s cup of tea.

The book is definitely worth a read but a warning… keep tissues handy. This book is not a fast and easy read as you will feel the need to close the book/kindle and close your eyes and let go the pain you felt while reading it.

[Kathy - Books & Munches · Rating 4 out of 5]

Beautifully written! Pankaj Giri definitely has a way with words. At times I didn't even feel as if I was reading a novel simply because it felt like poetry half the time. I lost myself in the descriptions and loved every second of it.

He found the rope of his consciousness slipping as darkness swept over him like a cloak.

To me, The Fragile Thread of Hope is a book filled with emotions and confrontations. I hoped, I cried, I smiled. There was nothing else to do, I kept doing one of those three things, although the sequence did chance once in a while. I fell from happy, beautiful moments into sad, heart-breaking ones and then climbed back up again.
I wouldn't compare this novel with a roller coaster ride though. It flows way too gently for that.

There are a lot of subjects the author touches upon. From alcoholism to abuse to dealing with the loss of a loved one and suicide. Even faith, spirituality has a fixed place in this story.
That spirituality felt so authentic. Set in India, where Pankaj Giri grew up himself, you are thrown into the Nepali culture. The food, the habits, the rituals. Everything is incorporated, yet it doesn't feel forced at all. On the contrary. Authentic is exactly the word I'd use for this.

Moments passed, moments dipped in an ocean of apprehension, moments spawning an army of questions, moments hanging in the delicate branch of uncertainty, moments seeming to last an eternity.

Of course this novel is extremely character-driven. The pace isn't necessarily slow, with all the jumps in time, but you do notice that you shrink, grow and develope together with the characters. They take you with them on their journey through loss, pain and hope in a beautiful way.

One of the first things I noticed were the different POV's and time stamps when I just started reading. It took a bit of struggling to get my thoughts straight and not confuse the characters and different times when events took place.

Something that made reading that bit less fluent for me was the way some sentences didn't feel natural to me. I think - shoot me if I'm wrong - the author, Pankaj Giri, doesn't have English as his native language - neither do I, so no hard feelings. But when it comes to writing a book, it's hard to hide. Yes, he writes beautifully and I loved his descriptions, but sometimes it felt too forced, too "neat" to be comfortable to read. I hope this makes any sense because I don't know any other way to explain this...

Clinging on to a thread of hope, he inhaled a deep breath.

I did get over the negatives, though! And I really did love this story.

4 / 5!

Kathy

[Oviya Balan · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.75 stars

First of all, kudos to the author. When he offered me a free copy I was quite hesitant to pick it coz I knew I am not a big fan of this genre. I still wanted to give it a go and guess what? I really liked it. More than the story, it's the authors writing style that made me like the book. It takes us on an emotional journey and we will take some time to get out of the wholesome pain.

A fine attempt by the author indeed.

[Deborah O'Regan · Rating 5 out of 5]

Firstly I received a free copy for an honest review.

I loved this book. I loved the way I spent my time trying to figure out the connection between Fiona and Soham. Great story line keep me intrigued the whole time I was reading it.

[Pankaj Giri]

So, here it is! Finally my latest book - The Unforgettable Woman - is out. I'd be really grateful if you could check out my book and order a copy if you are interested. 🙏

Amazon link: https://amzn.to/3sCdZDf

About the book:

Abandoned by his wife and daughter and living with his cousin’s son, senior doctor Adarsh leads a lonely and uneventful life . . . until he begins glimpsing someone in the streets of his hometown, Ilathang—a woman he knew once, a woman who had long disappeared.

As Smriti starts working as a teacher at Ilathang Government School, she develops an affectionate bond with her PG owner’s son—a teenage drug addict—which fulfils her childhood craving for a brother. But one day in the summer of 2007, a dramatic turn of events unveils a devastating secret, a secret that turns her life upside down.

Will Adarsh be able to discover the mystery behind the curious glimpses of the woman? Will Smriti be able to recover from the trauma of the shattering secret?

Set in fictional towns in the beautiful state of Sikkim, The Unforgettable Woman is an inspirational, heart-touching story that explores the themes of regret, love, and forgiveness and shows how a single secret can influence several lives.

[Cathy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Read the review on my blog with links to additional information about the book: https://whatcathyreadnext.wordpress.c...

The Fragile Thread of Hope is a powerful story of grief, loss, betrayal and survival. At times, the thread of hope feels very fragile indeed – frayed almost to breaking point, in fact – as tragedy follows tragedy for its protagonists, Soham and Fiona. Told in separate, alternating storylines that have shifting timelines and flashbacks, the book does require a degree of concentration from the reader to make sense of the chronology.

As a debut novelist, the author is naturally still developing his writing skills but already he shows an eye for imaginative metaphors and evocative description. For instance, after a telephone conversation is abruptly ended, Soham wonders if the sudden termination of the call is an indication of ‘the harsh unpredictability of life – all it needs is a flick of a heavenly switch to abort the feeble connection.’ Another imaginative phrase I noted down was ‘Sorrow hung in the air like a curse.’

Occasionally, some of the similes felt a little forced – ‘Time passed like a bulldozer through a marsh of silence’ – or overdone. For example, I loved this description of two tea glasses: ‘Clouds of steam rising from the glasses twisted and twirled around each other like long lost partners.’ But the preceding sentence didn’t work quite so well for me: ‘Water droplets dripped from the side of the cone-shaped glasses like cold sweat.’ (Ugh!) However, there are some wonderful descriptions of landscape and of food. Like this, of a paneer cheese grilled sandwich: ‘Soham bit into the melange of cottage cheese chunks, juicy onion, capsicum, tomato slices, and rich mayonnaise wrapped inside crunchy grilled sandwich bread slices. Traces of the topping – grated, luscious mozzarella cheese – stuck to his teeth like gum.’ My mouth was watering at this point and I don’t even like paneer!

One of the author’s chief achievements is to make the characters feel real, so that the reader becomes fully engaged in their emotional journeys. I especially liked the relationship between Soham and his older brother; a really affecting picture of brotherly love. And I felt incredibly angry on Soham’s behalf at one particular point. (You’ll know it when you get to it.) I also felt drawn to Sharon for her resilience and her desire to do the best for her daughter, Fiona, despite the traumatic experiences she had suffered herself. Finally, in Fiona, the reader gets a real sense of someone struggling to trust others and to regain a sense of her own self-worth.

Sadly, for both Soham and Fiona, the prospect of happiness may be eagerly grasped but is often found to be transitory or deceptive. However, the book also delivers an uplifting message of the possibility of overcoming even the most devastating tragedy. ‘It is easy to lose our way in the dark maze of despair and give up on our precious lives, but we must hang on.’ That thread may be frayed but, in the end, it is not broken.

I received a review copy courtesy of the author in return for an honest and unbiased review.

[Manogna · Rating 4 out of 5]

Firstly, I am glad the author approached me with the book. I would have missed it otherwise. Here is my honest review.
I went in without much thought, I came out with a blown mind. The writing style simply amazed me. The author's understanding of various lifestyles interested me the most to continue reading the book. The story is what it promises to be , emotionally gripping. The plot is so natural and close to Indian understanding that you vision yourself at some point in every character. Coming back to the writing style, it's high end, clean and so professional. The story at some points gets predictable, but I would recommend this book if you are going for a natural story, something that is close to everyone's heart.

[ri · Rating 4 out of 5]

Actual rating : 4.25 stars
I never thought that tragedies could be entwined so beautifully into a simple yet heartwarming tale, until I read this book.

If I begin counting as to how many times in the past I’ve missed possible great moments with my loved ones just because I was too busy doing not so necessary things on my mobile or laptop, I will lost the count in the first few seconds.

And this is what ‘The Fragile Thread of Hope‘ teaches you - how memories must be made, cherished and savoured; how unpredicted life could be; how one moment the person you love is there but in another, gone, faster than the puff of smoke.
But the most of all, it taught me how important it is to move on and recover.
How necessary it is to shove back every curveball life throws at you.

So is this book inspirational? Yes.
Is it motivational? Yes.
Will it make you emotional? Triple yes.
It is everything it proclaims to be, so if you want to read a story that will touch your heart’s darkest corners then check this one out.

[Rohit Sharma · Rating 4 out of 5]

Like I said earlier in one of my posts that sometimes it is not us who is picking up a book but at times a book too can pick you up. And when you read it, love it, finish it, sit back and think about it, you realize that you were destined to read it for so many reasons. This book invoked so many of these feelings in me as it just came to me or shall I say the Author somehow found me and sent me this book to be read and reviewed. As usual, I had no idea of neither the Writer nor the book so what and how it clicked? The Author happens to be from one of my all time favorite city "Gangtok", now that is one piece of heaven that I've decided to settle down as and when the right time comes and one of my besties is from the city and is still there, who've been calling me for a visit for ages now. Co-incidentally Author's and my own ancestors belonged to Nepal. Not going too much back in time, my Grandpa and Grandma were from Nepal as well as my Dad who was actually born in Kathmandu before they migrated to India around mid 40's. Until my granny was alive, we used to follow all the traditional Nepali customs, functions, festivals and what not, even for communication the official language of our household back then was Nepali :). I still do remember so many words and sentences that I try to impress a Nepali as and when I come across one. This book had so many of those terms, rituals, festivities beliefs and specially the words that he used in the narrative were simply too good and put a big huge smile on my face throughout.

The book starts with a shocking accident and breaking of the sad news to the two main characters who have got nothing to do with each other and are miles apart. But as the story goes in flashback some thirty odd years to the very start, develops and covers the three decades of their lives full of Love, Loss, Pain, Betrayal, Philosophy, of-course some Hope and so many other emotions that I got totally engrossed in it. Soham is recovering from the loss of his much loved (and hated) elder brother "Dada", who he loved as well as was jealous too. How his dad hates his elder brother who is good for nothing as per him and curses him big time, it felt so real (even in fiction) that it reminded me of our own time when it wasn't too uncommon for a parent to tell a kid that they should have dumped them right after the birth and shouldn't have taken any pains of raising them. And so is the life of Fiona on the other hand, abusive childhood, drunkard of a father who leaves his loving wife and a very young kid to survive on their own with nothing to look forward to. How they survive, struggle and yet try to live a dignified life is the rest of the story and twists. The majority of the story takes shape in Gangtok and that is why the Nepali connection too as there are so many people who speak in that language. Beautiful scenic city of Gangtok, its cruel weather which looks so good from outside specially to us who crave to be there and how the locals survive and live with it is so well told, amalgamated in the story which adds up some shock value too to it.

The way Soham's life and character is carved out is so damn real life like. A typical life in a metro where we slog nine to five and have no social life to look forward to. Our parents did the same too to make our lives beautiful and at the end of the day there is no one to enjoy the fruits of their hard-work or even ours. Whereas Fiona's life is totally different than his, a small town girl with no big dreams, just to stand on her own two feet and live a normal life, forget about the painful past, look forward to the better future. Born in a Hindu family, how religion comes to her mother's rescue in trying times is a heart touching story.

Not comparing it with Danielle Steel's "The Long Road Home" but it so much reminded me of the story of Gabriella, as the pain in her life never comes to an end, it made me so much emotional and my heart cried out for her big time. Exactly like that here too, Fiona's troubles seems like never going to come to an end but I hoped they would eventually. I loved the way Pankaj has carved out his characters, exceptionally well and kept me on toes with both of them, their hobbies, their lives, thinking, achievements, regrets, differences with parents and all that. It is so real and written so efficiently well and in great details not hurrying the narrative at all. Since this isn't a thriller or a suspense saga it takes its own sweet time to take story ahead. Some people may find it slow or may be lengthy too but I totally loved it. Even the philosophy and meaning behind the story and the way he told it through the twists and turns in the lives of his two main characters was mind-blowing. The music references, cricket connection, songs and bands, books and what not is so terrifically submerged that it always felt like as if I knew this guy personally. Or that the main characters could have been so easily any of us telling their own story.

It is a must must read for all and specially for those who enjoy and cherish a meaningful book with so much positive philosophy of life and times. Plus an effort like this should be praised and recommended big time, in today's time when so much of trashy literature is making up the bestseller list whereas a deserving story(s) get no fame.

PS: Today I actually messaged the Author and asked him his age too :). Going by his Facebook profile I just couldn't believe that such a young man follows such beautiful philosophy. He is definitely going places and I would keep following him now for his upcoming works for more enlightenment.

[Gurdeep Kohli · Rating 4 out of 5]

As the name suggests, the book indeed is about HOPE, hanging on a fragile thread of longing that emanates out of desperation, of the characters, thrown in together by destiny. The story revolves around an untimely accident of two people, who have nothing in common, yet over a span of three years how the connection gets build up through thick and thin of life.
The story thus progresses on parallel lines, touching many a chords, portrayed through day-to-day life of a drunken man, his wife and a daughter. How he acts and reacts to situations and his harmful effect on the young mind of his daughter, Fiona, who from an early age deals with abuse, abhorrence, isolation, panic and distrust. In absence of the support of father figure, she goes in to a self-willed wall that she finds difficult to break, hence takes time even to open up to accept the love of her life.
On the other hand Soham carries a burden within, living in a guilt of not being true to his dotting ‘Dada’ after he loses him in a freak accident. Carrying this burden for years, he moves to Bangalore and finds solace in the budding friendship with Shruti, that turns out to be short-lived as she leaves him heart-broken once he gets to know her intentions. Her treachery brings him closer to his Aama and Baba, however, fate brings him back to Gangtok, to fend for himself rendering him orphan by destiny's cruel hands after an untoward incident. It is here after hearing inspirational sermons from Shraddha Didi, he joins a Spirtual Ashram that gives a meaning to his lonesome life with solace to his bruised soul.
From here on the story takes twists and turns, folding and unfolding like a roller coaster taking one through myriad of emotions, leaving one fully drained at times. Against all odds, stand tall the great friend Tenzing, who is the true saviour in bridging the wall of togetherness.
“Each meeting occurs at the precise moment for which it was meant”... is what Providence is all about, which is amply clear in how the end turns out. Overall makes an interesting read, though the end is kind of predictable, yet enjoyable.
There are a few good phrases but following is my favourite, having dedicated it earlier to the memory of my late bro …
“ If thousands of tears could make a pathway to heaven, then I’d shed trillions to build a stairway,
and if memories were a lane, I’d walk all the way just to bring you back” …
Anonymous

[Basundhara Ghosh · Rating 4 out of 5]

A very wonderfully written book that will tug at the strings of your heart very strongly. It takes you on a journey with the two main protagonists, and how they endured and survived one tragedy after the other. You need to have a strong heart to read this book, because at times it will bring tears to your eyes for sure. But at the end of it, beyond all the sadness, the most important message is that life goes on, and we have to have faith in the hope that pervades our existence. No matter what we go through, all wounds heal with time and we find something to look forward to. The only thing that I wish is that the author didn't make every situation and feeling so descriptive, it just feels unnecessary at times. Otherwise, I am completely overwhelmed by the impact this story had on me. Highly recommended.

[Anuja · Rating 4 out of 5]

*CONTAINS SPOILERS*
The Fragile Thread of Hope, as the title suggests is a story about hope and how it has it's own unexpected ways of creeping into our lives when we least expect it.
The story revolves around two main characters - Fiona and Soham and is about how the loss of loved ones, the hopelessness they feel brings them together at the end. It is a fast paced story with good narration. Pankaj has tried to paint a verbal picture of Gangtok and the traditions out there and he has done a good job with it. There are a few places where you feel there is too much description but I guess the author wanted to readers to get complete idea about his hometown and its culture.
Even though the book revolves around Soham and Fiona, the characters of Sharon, Joseph and Soham's parents are well built. It is the depth of the background characters that makes the story more interesting.
Apart from the excessive stress on detailing, one thing I noticed and would like to mention is that before Soham and Fiona met each other, their story went on at a leisurely pace and then once they met each other, the story suddenly picked up pace, so much so that Soham ended up thinking on the lines getting together with Fiona. When so much of the book was spent in describing and building other relationships, the relationship between these two happened quite quickly which may strike the reader as odd (at least it struck me).
Every book has a few flaws but that doesn't mean that this is not a good book. This book, even after being the author's debut book is a great book. I really enjoyed reading it.
My sincere best wishes to the author for his future books. :)

[Keerthi Murali · Rating 4 out of 5]

4.5/5
What a brilliant piece of work! I absolutely loved this book and I'm so happy I picked this book without hesitation. This was an emotional roller coaster journey. After years of reading a lot of the "usual" contemporaries with the same kind of IIT IIM romances and repeating crappy stories, this is such an eye opener. Very inspiring fictional work indeed. Authors like this deserve all the hype rather than everyone following the 'usual' bandwagon.

Plot and Characters: This book follows two main characters Soham and Fiona and the series of events that takes place in their lives. The stories of both are unrelated in the beginning and takes place simultaneously. The narrative is mainly from the perspectives of Soham, Fiona and Shanti. The book mainly focus on the hardships and challenges one is probable to face in her/his life as beautifully depicted in the stories of Soham and Fiona. I don't want to give away any spoilers by discussing specific events in the story even though I have a lot to express. A lot of emphasis is given on the importance of family and realtionship. There are several tear jerking moments that made me cry my eyes out. This is not an easy read. The characters are so well developed that I could feel all their pain and agony. Its really true that we don't know what we've got until we lose it. For those people who has gone through such severe hardships in their lives, this book can be a ray of hope and motivating in every possible way. This book also discusses and lot of social issues like woman and child abuse, alcoholism etc. In fact the most hideous face of alcoholism and how it can destroy families is brilliantly depicted in this work. My favourite character is Shanti (Fiona's mother). I feel a lot of respect and love for such a strong character who can simply be described as the Iron lady in the story. She actually represents a lot of Indian women who face similar hardships in their lives.

Favourite quote : "When faced with an obstacle, the river alters it's course, but never stops flowing, never gives up."

WRITING: Pankaj is definitely without doubt an amazing author. This is definitely some quality writing. It's simple , yet charming and gripping. But some scenes were way too descriptive (like the grieving moments). It was slow paced at times but I never got bored. In the beginning few chapters, I was quite confused with the dates and kept mixing up the past and the present. As the story progressed, I got familiarised with the writing style. Once I started reading this book, it kind of became a marathon read for me. I couldn't put it down. It's such a page turner and like the title, the reader also holds on to the fragile thread of hope traversing a variety of emotional moments expecting and hoping for the best.
The best part of this book, in my opinion is the ending. It's so amazing how the author blended both the stories in the end and everything made sense in the perfect way. I can't say the ending was anything unexpected, it was a given, but beautifully presented.

Apart from all these, another major attraction of this book was the descriptions on Nepali culture, food, traditions..and all those beautiful places in Sikkim. Actually this is what made me purchase the book immediately on reading the synopsis. I'm an person who travels a lot. I'm from Kerala and I have been to a lot of hill stations in North India and south India. But unfortunately, not Sikkim. This was such a fascinating read learning a lot about unique Nepalese culture and traditions, not to forget the exotic food. There were a lot of local and traditional terms which were quite interesting I was so curious that I googled a lot of them and learned a lot of fascinating facts.
Overall, this book is such a fantastic read. I loved it with all my heart. I high recommend this book to all readers who want to enjoy a character-driven emotional read.

[Charu · Rating 3 out of 5]

Note: free book in exchange for honest review.

When Pankaj asked me if I would be interested to read the book and review it. I immediately checked some of the reviews of the same. And needless to say I was intrigued. And I am happy that I agreed to read the book.

This book is difficult to review as it has both positive and negative points. And I totally have mixed feelings for this.

PLOT

It was the main reason I agreed to read the book. For me it is the best point about this book. This is a story of loss, death, tragedy, love, grief, and hope. It was an emotional ride for me.

CHARACTERS

All characters in the book are well written. They are believable and one can connect with them.
Main characters, Soham and Fiona, both have detailed background information. This made book very realistic.

WRITING

Here I have totally mixed feelings. Pankaj writing is very poetic and to an extent I really loved it. But I really believe it was overdone. After a point it gets too repetitive and due to that story starts to drag.
Then I also believe this book needs good editing. Although there are no grammatical error. But I believe there were many details and dialogues which were totally useless and could be deleted for good.

Overall it was a good read. I enjoyed the book and would recommend to others.

[Tanmay Jadhav · Rating 4 out of 5]

Wow. I really don't know what to say really.

Pankaj Giri has not failed to impress me.

This book is a rare find that found its way to me.

I won't go into what happens in the book but I will say that the book isn't what it seems to be. It has so many subtle undertones of complex Indian relationships and acceptance that towards the end I was terrified of missing out on even one of them.

I started the book off on a skeptic note- the writer was using too many unnecessary adjectives and the story didn't seem to be going anywhere and as always, I was scared to have come across a sub par book.

The book was genuinely slow unnecessarily towards the middle but I guess which book isn't.

Though the book seems long initally but every single nuance falls perfectly into place in the end, believe me.

All said and done, this is one book to reckon with.
It is a true master piece and I feel immensely proud that this has come from an Indian mind.

Pankaj, you've added a true fan today. I'm sure you have what it takes to be an international bestseller and i hope people realise that we have authors of you rather than focusing on exaggerated authors like Chetan Bhagat and the likes.

I'm waiting eagerly for your next book.

Cheers
Tanmay J.

P.s. I was not paid to write this review. :P

[Rainz ❤️rainnbooks❤️(on a break) · Rating 3 out of 5]

To begin with, I would like to thank Mr. Pankaj Giri for sharing his wonderful work with me in exchange for a honest review

The Fragile Thread of Hope is an outstanding effort. Becoz this genre is not something that I normally pick, I was a trifle skeptical in accepting to read this. But I think the author has definitely manged to write a story and grab the attention of the reader.

Two scarred and beaten souls find love and solace in this inspirational story of "never losing hope". Fiona and Soham have had their share of tragedies in their life and most readers, am sure, will feel connected to this grief of facing Life. Soham is a lovable and kind person but in most ways very weak in character and Fiona having suffered a single incident of abuse in her childhood, forever views the world thru the dark glasses perched on her eyes. And as the story progresses each of them suffers some more tragedies without any respite from their loneliness and despair, finally finds love and happiness.

Overall I loved reading this book but there were parts in the book that left me bored as the descriptions and details were a little too long. Another 50 pages short, the story would have been more impressive. And ofcoz enjoyed reading that RCB won:-)

[Sara Mariam · Rating 4 out of 5]

A beautifully crafted novel. I am not so much of tragic romance genre fan, still loved the book, the way emotions are captured and artistically represented with the background. The way nature is portrayed in every scene, was a treat to my imagination. The philosophy entwined in the story is subtle yet amazing.
Some thoughts and phrases were a bit repetitive but not so obvious. Liked the finishing as well, good and bad are just the phases of life and we need to cling on to "the fragile thread of hope" in the moments of despair.

Thanks for the free copy Pankaj Giri! It was a rollercoaster ride of emotions. A Nicholas Sparks in the making. Love the way you spin the tale and usage of words are just admirable to read. Wish to see more of your novels in different genres as well!

[Gomathy Subramanian · Rating 3 out of 5]

Long but, a page-turner.

First of all, I would like to thank the author for making me read this book. Great narration and I loved reading the book.

I started this book long back and I had to take a break now and then before completing this book. It has so much of emotions and happenings. Honestly, I did not expect so many things to happen in a 400 pages book.

The book is about two protagonists ‘Soham’ and ‘Fiona’ and their messed up lives. They both struggle a lot as life decides to rob away all their happiness on by one until a thin ray of light is shone into both of their lives.
Since Soham and Fiona’s stories were narrated parallelly, I did not think that they both will meet each other. To my surprise and satisfaction, Soham and Fiona meet (almost at the end) and end up together.

If you need a 'cry over' weekend I strongly recommend this book ;). 3.5 stars read.