Review of Hindi Serial Sadda Haq Season 1 & 2

 

Sadda Haq Season 1 & Season 2

After a long time binge watched a totally engrossing TV Serial on Disney & Hotstar- Sadda Haq  Season1 & 2. The acting by the actors Harshita Gaur and Param Singh as the rivals turned college sweethearts Sanyukta and Randhir was very appealing and took me back to nostalgic engineering college days. This is the first hindi serial of its kind where an attempt has been made to show how engineering can be as a career choice for youngsters. On the flip side it is a very addictive serial, so aspiring engineering students might spend a lot of time watching this rather than devoting 10-12 hrs studying as is required to get into a good engineering college. The first meeting between the protagonists is memorably portrayed and this clip is one which is shown again and again throughout the seasons. Season 1 portrays the stress of exams, project deadlines and competition for grades being at the forefront of the student activities. FITE (The name of the engg college) seems to be modelled on IIT Roorkee where mechanical engineering is a most coveted branch for the students.

The serial shows the journey of an aspiring and ambitious woman Sanyukta Agarwal who dreams of becoming an engineer and join her father’s automobile business. In the face of opposition from her own father and brother she is determined to fight for her rights (sadda haq) and the message from the serial is that rights must be snatched if they are not given. She is supported by her mother in her aims to achieve her career goals. Her father is portrayed as a typical regressive man who is interested in getting Sanyukta married and resorts to all sorts of intimidating and underhand means throughout the season 1 to achieve his goal.

Sanyukta clears the tough engineering entrance exams and reaches college only to be faced by a fresh set of hurdles in the form of her arch rival Randhir who is determined to throw her out of college. The serial takes an interesting twist when there is a blast in the lab which prevents Mr Agarwal from dragging Sanyukta back home from her college as it becomes a police investigation.

Sanyukta somehow manages to ward off her family and pursue her dream of an engineering degree. She becomes a part of Vardhan Sir’s dream team a coveted club of students who complete challenging engineering tasks with admirable ease. As an aside I wonder at some of the tasks which the dream team completes which may be out of the league of 1^st and even 3^rd and 4^th year mechanical engineering  students.

The bonds of friendship between the protagonists progresses very naturally and the backstory of various characters is intertwined in the plots to justify their characters and choices they make.

Season 2 of Sadda Haq takes place in ISRC (Indian Space Research Center) which is again the first time a hindi serial has tried to portray what goes on inside India’s hallowed institutions as ISRC is modelled on India’s own ISRO. Here the story again takes on after a gap of two years where the former students of FITE have joined ISRC and are working on India’s Mars Mission.

The serial is very entertaining and I am now left wondering how it did not receive more popularity as compared to the regular run of the mill soaps on television.

The 50 Most #Important Books of All Time

 Important Books in Literature

The Canterbury Tales by Geoffrey Chaucer. Written in the 14th century, this collection of tales brought to life characters and stories that remain popular today. The Canterbury Tales also provides a glimpse into the customs and practices within the society at the time of its writing. This work is one of the most read books and one of the most studied in all the world. Many scholars suggest that Chaucer's magnum opus contributed greatly to the popularization of the English vernacular in literature.

Divine Comedy by Dante Alighieri. Considered one of the most important pieces of world literature, the Divine Comedy is an epic poem that details a journey through the realms of the afterlife and, allegorically, the soul's discovery of God. Long considered to be the greatest piece of Italian literature, the Divine Comedy also provides us with a closer view of medieval Christian theology and philosophy.

The Complete Works of William Shakespeare. William Shakespeare is often considered the greatest writer in the English language and the greatest dramatist in all of history. The characters, stories, and language have taken hold of readers for hundreds of years and have greatly contributed to shaping modern culture. Shakespeare's complete works have been translated into every major language and are still enjoyed around the world.

Moby Dick by Herman Melville. This now-famous book about a man's hunt for the great whale is considered one of the greatest American novels ever written. Moby Dick is heavy on symbolism, but is also famous for the detailing of the whaling industry in the 19th century and its many different narrative styles and structures.

1984 by George Orwell. This dystopian novel describes life in a totalitarian regime that has stripped the people of their rights. The themes in this novel have become a major part of modern culture, creating terms and concepts that have been incorporated into our own society. Surveillance, truth, and censorship take center stage in this novel; no other book has contributed to our understanding of these themes like 1984.

Brave New World by Aldous Huxley. Another dystopian novel, this one by Huxley is often considered one of the great novels of the 20th century. Huxley's novel looked unfavorably on the loss of an individual's identity through futuristic technological advancements. Huxley's own fears of commerciality and the emerging youth culture are fully on display in this novel.

The Iliad and The Odyssey by Homer. These two ancient Greek epic poems are not only the preeminent works in ancient Greek literature, but they are also incredibly influential texts for all forms of art, thought, and music in Western civilization. The Iliad details a few weeks during the end of the Trojan War and the Odyssey describes Odysseus' ten-year journey home from the Trojan War. These two works are important for their detail of Greek history and legend, the composition of story, and the development of themes.

Don Quixote by Miguel de Cervantes. This Spanish novel, originally published as two books, is one of the most influential and popular novels in the world. It's also considered to be one of the best books ever written. The adventure, symbolism, and characterization contained in Don Quixote has promoted the book to the incredible popularity it has today. Don Quixote became one of the earliest canonical texts and has been inspiring artists of all kinds for hundreds of years.

In Search of Lost Time by Marcel Proust. Daunting in length, the seven-volume In Search of Lost Time is one of the most prominent modern works of the early 20th century. The novel explores themes of memory, childhood, and meaning, but it avoids the plot-driven model of 19th-century novels. The supporting cast are incredibly well drawn and the events are moved forward by the differing perspectives that experience them, writing techniques that have been emulated endlessly since the novel's publication.

Madame Bovary by Gustave Flaubert. Flaubert's story of a woman who engages in adulterous affairs in an attempt to escape from a loveless marriage was subjected to heavy censorship at the time it was published, and Flaubert was taken to trial over the novel. After his acquittal, Madame Bovary became renowned as a masterpiece of the Realism movement.

Arabian Nights translated by Andrew Lang. This English language version of One Thousand and One Nights retells the ancient stories that have now become popularized around the world, including the plight of Scheherazade, the adventures of Aladdin, and the voyages of Sinbad.

One Hundred Years of Solitude by Gabriel García Márquez. Considered to be one of the most significant novels in the Spanish literary canon, One Hundred Years of Solitude tells the story of the Buendía family over several generations. The style and themes in the novel are seen to be representative of a unique Latin American literary movement of the 1960s: Magical Realism.

War and Peace by Leo Tolstoy. Though Tolstoy was hesitant to call this a novel, War and Peace is often included in the discussion of the best novels of all time. Chronicling the French invasion of Russia in 1812, the book looks at the psychological effects of the war and the philosophical discussions that it created.

The Tale of Genji by Murasaki Shikibu. Written in the beginning of the 11th century, The Tale of Genji is often called the first novel. While it does not have a plot by definition, the story does have many elements of a modern novel, including a main character, a supporting cast, and characterization. Translation of this novel has proved difficult over time, but most still consider it the first and greatest work in Japanese literature.

Uncle Tom's Cabin by Harriett Beecher Stowe. Written by a middle aged, white woman in 1851, Uncle Tom's Cabin has been credited for changing the views of slavery in the north and continues to serve as a reminder of the effects of slavery and other inhumane acts.

Crime and Punishment by Fyodor Dostoyevsky. While Fyodor Dostoyevsky has written several works that could be considered some of the most influential ever published, Crime and Punishment is one that stands above the rest as one of the best books ever written. This novel explores the mind of an individualistic person from within, challenging the rules of crime and punishment as they apply to the main character and the people around him.

Things Fall Apart by Chinua Achebe. The theme of preserving cultural history in the face of Western domination in this novel gave voice to the oppressed people in Africa and caught the attention of the world. This novel, written in 1958, is still widely read and studied as an example of the damage of colonialism.

Faust by Johann Wolfgang von Goethe. Faust is a tragic play, but it has long been considered the single greatest work in German literature. The tale tells of Faust selling his soul to the devil for worldly knowledge and pleasures. The influence this story has on art, literature, music, and thought is immeasurable.

Beloved by Toni Morrison. Written to honor the memory of African American slaves brought over during the slave trade, Toni Morrison's Beloved is one of the most recognizable and influential texts in modern literature. For giving voice to the African-American experience and observing and recording the collective memory of the population, Morrison's novel won the Pulitzer Prize for Fiction in 1988.

The Diary of a Young Girl by Anne Frank. This landmark book is built from the actual diary kept by Anne Frank, the young daughter of a Jewish family hiding during the Nazi takeover in the Netherlands. The innocence of this young girl so full of hopes and dreams is held in sharp contrast to the reality of her situation at the hands of the Nazis. This book has become a strong symbol and reminder of the impact of racial persecution.

The Vindication of the Rights of Women by Mary Wollstonecraft. Considered the first great treatise on feminism, Wollstonecraft's text was written in response to those who felt that women should not be educated. She argued that women are deserving of an education that is proportionate to their position in society, that of educators and companions. Wollstonecraft demonstrated that inequality is not only morally and ethically wrong, but is also economically and socially irresponsible.

The Second Sex by Simone de Beauvoir. The Second Sex examines why a woman's position in society is prohibitive and how it got to this point. Establishing herself as a fundamental figure in feminist philosophy, de Beauvoir was one of the first to explore gender as a social construct, distinguishing between the terms "sex" and "gender."

A Room of One's Own by Virginia Woolf. In A Room of One's Own, an extended essay that Woolf delivered to two women's colleges, the differences between male and female writers and how those differences are the result of the limitations and restrictions imposed on females, is discussed. Without the freedom, the education, or the financial rewards of male authors, females are barred from creating a literary tradition of their own.

Walden by Henry David Thoreau. Walden is the textual reflection of Thoreau's social experiment of living isolated in a cabin next to Walden Pond in order to better understand society. Thoreau wrote the results of his experience with self-sufficiency and simplicity in Walden, which has subsequently become a source of inspiration for those seeking a life removed from the business of society.

A Dictionary of the English Language by Samuel Johnson. Considered the most influential dictionary of the English language, Johnson compiled this book over seven years all by himself. Credited as the foundational text for the study of the English language and lexicography, Johnson's dictionary was not the first of its kind, but it was the most comprehensive and well-researched.

Critique of Pure Reason by Immanuel Kant. Immanuel Kant's Critique of Pure Reason is largely considered to be one of the most influential philosophical texts of all time. Exploring human knowledge and reason, their extents and limitations, and the perception of space and time, Kant's text is one of the most important books to read for all who are interested in philosophy.

Important Books in Politics

These titles represent some of the most influential books that examine politics, economics, and philosophy. Each of these texts had an impact on the way we understand governance.

The Republic, Plato. Written around 380 BCE, this text is considered to be one of the most influential pieces ever written. The Republic observes justice in man and politics and discusses the role of the philosopher in society. Many of the intellectual concepts contained in The Republic are still discussed today, but the text is also an important historical document that provides historians with a snapshot of Greece at the time of its writing.

The Communist Manifesto by Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels. One of the most recognized and popular political texts ever written, The Communist Manifesto details the class struggle that exists in society and traces its beginnings in history. The document highlights the problems of capitalism and capitalist production and how these structures impact the political and societal landscape.

The Rights of Man by Thomas Paine. The Rights of Man argues that political revolution is acceptable and permissible when a government fails to perform its duty of protecting the natural rights of its citizens. Written as a defense of the French Revolution, Paine's 1791 book was widely circulated and challenged all societal institutions that don't benefit the nation overall, including institutions such as monarchies and aristocracies.

Common Sense by Thomas Paine. Published anonymously in 1776, this pamphlet supported the Americans in their fight for independence from the British during the American Revolution. The pamphlet encouraged the people in the American Colonies to resist the leaders from Great Britain and push for an egalitarian government. Still today, Common Sense is one of the all-time best-selling American titles.

Democracy in America by Alexis de Tocqueville. In what was originally meant to be an observation of the American prison system, Democracy in America is a look at American society and institutions overall and the reasons why American democratic equality exists and thrived at the time of the writing. Alexis de Tocqueville traced the historical evolution of equality and suggested that specific conditions, such as widespread economic opportunity and the abolition of primogeniture, led to the American democratic revolution.

The Prince by Niccolo Machiavelli. Considered to be one of the first works of modern political philosophy, The Prince is a political treatise from 1513 that offers advice on how aspiring leaders can survive and thrive in the contentious political landscape. While the intent of the book is still debated, the result is one of the most unabashed meditations on political power and what is required in order to make it last.

Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass, an American Slave by Frederick Douglass. Written by the famed orator and former slave, Frederick Douglass, this narrative is considered the most famous of pieces written by former slaves and one of the most influential texts during the abolitionist movement in the United States. In the text, Douglass recounts his life as a slave on his way to freedom.

On Liberty by John Stewart Mill. This philosophical work is considered a foundational text for modern liberal political thought. The text applies ethical utilitarianism to society and state governance, arguing that more importance be placed on the consequences of actions as they relate to the interests of others than one's own interests.

The Wealth of Nations by Adam Smith. The Wealth of Nations, published in 1776, describes how and what builds a nation's wealth. Largely viewed as the foundational text for classical economics, The Wealth of Nations explores the economic system and suggests that a free market is able to automate and regulate itself. These functions are only limited by the privileges given to certain members within the economy.

Important Books in Science

Philosophae Naturalis Principia Mathematica by Isaac Newton. Written while Cambridge was closed because of the plague, Newton's Philosophae Naturalis Principia Mathematica details the principles of gravity, mechanics, calculus, and light and color. This book set the stage for modern studies of both math and physics.

The Meaning of Relativity by Albert Einstein. The Meaning of Relativity is a collection of the Stafford Little Lectures made by Albert Einstein in 1921 at Princeton University. Delivered five years after Einstein's groundbreaking paper on general relativity was published, these lectures sum up the man's work. While many of the ideas were presented in different forms prior to the publication of this book, The Meaning of Relativity remains one of the most important collections of ideas ever put together.

On the Origin of Species by Charles Darwin. This work by Darwin laid out the foundation for the theory of evolution. Since its publication, the book's theories and observations have helped make life sciences what they are today. Darwin's adaptation and evolutionary model still aid modern scientists as they build a better understanding of all Earth's species, including our own.

Silent Spring by Rachel Carson. Carson wrote on the topic of environmental justice in this book that inspired readers to think more seriously about their relationship to the Earth. Silent Spring helped the modern environmental movement get off the ground and led to the nationwide ban on DDT.

Geographia by Ptolemy. Ptolemy wrote and mapped the world according to the knowledge he had available to him in the 2nd century. His maps and methodologies were used for hundreds of years afterward. Today's cartography is directly descended from Ptolemy's work.

The Interpretation of Dreams by Sigmund Freud. Freud included the basics of his theories on psychoanalysis in this landmark work that is still read and studied worldwide. In this work, Freud introduced the concept of the unconscious and demonstrated how his theories are used to interpret dreams. Freud's work popularized the science of psychology and helped build the foundation on which modern psychological discourse now stands.

Important Books in Religion

 

The Bhagvad Gita :'The Song by God'; often referred to as the Gita , is a 700-verse Hindu scripture that is part of the epic Mahabharata (chapters 23–40 of book 6 of the Mahabharata called the Bhishma Parva), dated to the second half of the first millennium BCE . It is the holy scriptures for Hinduism.

The Bible. This sacred text brought Christianity to the world and has continued to serve as a source of inspiration for millions of people. It is the most translated and the most frequently purchased book in the world.

The Qur'an. The sacred text of Islam, the Qur'an is believed to be the last word of God told to Muhammad through the angel Gabriel over a period of 23 years. This book is the cornerstone of the Islamic religion.

The Torah. The written laws and teachings that are contained in the Tanakh have offered a way of life for those of the Jewish faith. The text provides teaching and methods of practice for daily living and has influenced art and literature in countless ways.

The Tibetan Book of the Dead. Perhaps the most well-known Tibetan text, this book was written by a Tibetan monk and discusses what happens during death, the time between death and rebirth, and rebirth.

The Analects by Confucius. The Analects is a collection of sayings and ideas attributed to Confucius, a Chinese philosopher. The text has been read and studied in China for the last 2,000 years and has had a monumental impact on Chinese culture, values, art, and thought.

Review of 50 Shades of Grey

This book by E.L James is a little short of pornography. How then has it become a bestseller? It's because it is porn with well sketched characters and taut tension filled situations. The girl Anastasia Grey, a young, virginal, poor girl is strongly attracted to the young, handsome, incredibly wealthy tycoon Christian Grey as soon as she comes to interview him for her school journal. He too seems to reciprocate her interest and they meet meet once or twice by chance. Stuff of mills & boon stories with smouldering glances and swooning moments. The fun starts when Grey refuses to even kiss the poor girl who is desperate for him without her signing a contract where she agrees to become her sub as in submissive to his superior or something of that sort. After that the porn starts which is pretty sick and repetitive in parts. The other characters in the story are quite superficial. The girlfriend Katherine Kavanaugh , Grey's brother, family etc are pretty simple straightforward types. The main focus is on the two main protagonists and their interactions.

Review of the Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins

Just finished reading the book The Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins. It is a pageturner allright. The story is set in the future where America is no longer present. The new nation Panem is divided into 12 districts where the powers that be hold a game of survival and death every year - the hunger games where one girl and one boy of each district has to participate by a draw of lots among all citizens of the districts. The game of survival of the fittest can have only one winner and the herione of the story Katniss Everdene becomes a contestent when she opts to take the place of her little sister who is unluckily chosen in the draw of lots. The story unfolds along the lines of a David and Goliath theme where other contestents are much more powerful and clever than her. Yet her skills as a archer and hunter helps her to win against all odds. There is also a love angle as the other contestent from her district a baker's son Peeta, is also in love with her. The fast paced plot, action and nicely sketched characters add to the story. Though the end is a little tame and predictable the book has all the elements of a fascinating read.

Review of Diary of Bridget Jones

This book is written by Helen Fielding, about the life of Bridget Jones a young financially independent woman, touching thirty, who is constantly on the lookout for a partner, is obsessed about her weight. Every chapter is prefaced with her calorie intake, alcohol intake, cigarattes consumed and boyfriend status. She has an affair with her boss Daniel Cleaver, who turns out to be inconsiderate and immoral. He dumps her and gets married to another woman even before their affair comes to an end. Bridget's parents also have problems of their own, with her mother going away with a younger man & father crying over this. Her mother tries to fix a date for her with Mark Darcy, a divorced rich man who is also their family's long time acquaintance but he does not seem to fancy Bridget. She turns up in the most hilarious costumes & also has verbal diarrhoea. The dialoges in this book are very strange, peppered with words like 'fuckwittage' used liberally. The author is hugely inspired by Jane Austen's Pride and Prejudice hence the similarity of the title of the leading man 'Darcy'. All's well that ends well when in the end Bridget finds out that the rich eligible man Mark Darcy loves her.
The book story is not new, though the dialogues and situations are novel and funny. Specially the messages Daniel sends her about her skirt are funny. Some of the writing gets boring and repetitive at times. The end where Mark Darcy comes around and confesses his love for Bridget is rather trite and commonplace. All in all it is a rather interesting story about love and relationships in the present generation. The film too is very interesting with excellent acting by all the leading protagonists

Review of Far From the Madding Crowd

This book, written by Thomas Hardy is a story of a pretty woman, Bathsheba Everdeen, the men she encounters, the choices she makes the & their outcome. Set in rural England, where all of Hardy's novels are set, it describes the scenes of sheep shearing, Thanksgiving festival, autumn in the forests, soldier's sword manoeuvres with great eye for detail. Bathsheba Everdene is portrayed as a pretty young woman, quite aware of her own good looks, but practical and independent. She meets a young shephard Gabriel Oak who has just started his independent sheep farm & he becomes enamoured with her & proposes to her. She refuses him as he is too homely and unassuming for her fancy. She inherits her uncle's farm after his death and moves away from the place. She takes charge of the farm and decides to run it herself as the bailiff is found to be a thief. By a misfortune Gabriel Oak loses all his sheep in an accident and becomes penniless. By a curious coincidence of fate he obtains the shephard's job at Bathsheba's farm. Bathsheba, now a rich woman finds admiring male eyes everywhere she goes. Her vanity is piqued when she notices that a rich farmer in the neighbourhood Mr Boldwood, is the only man who is not moved by her good looks. In an idle moment she sends him a valentine card. Her object is soon attained when Farmer Boldwood not only notices her but starts getting obsessed with her. He proposes marriage to her. By this time Bathsheba meets a young, dashing soldier Francis Troy who soon sweeps her off her feet and she marries him. Initially their life is blissful but Troy gives up soldiering and leads an idle and dissipated life on his wife's money. Her farm, which she had earlier managed herself, suffers neglect at the hands of her uncaring husband. In difficult times it is Gabriel Oak who comes to her assistance again & again. Unknown to her Troy had been about to marry her servent Fanny Robin and would have done so but for a cruel stroke of fate where Fanny and misheard the name of the church they were to get married in & waited in vain for her groom in a different church. Fanny's fate is a sad one as she dies of starvation & exhaustion. Troy on coming to know of Fanny's fate, regrets not marrying her & mourns for her & her unborn child. He leaves Bathsheba and goes off by himself He is presumed to be dead when his clothes are found by the beach. Bathsheba who is prostrated by grief and shock by these events , recovers slowly and tries to once more get to normalcy. Farmer Boldwood once again pursues her with dogged determination & forces her to enter into an engagement with him. On the day the engagement is declared Sergeant Troy reappears once more to claim his wife & Farmer Boldwood shoots him dead. At the end of the book when Bathsheba hears that Gabriel Oak will be moving away to America, she feels deserted by her steadfast admirer, and agrees at last to marry him.
The vivid descriptions of pastoral life, conveys its rural, rustic charm to the reader. Bathsheba's transition from a slightly vain, rash, impetuous girl, to a lovelorn, heartbroken, married woman, to a wiser, chastened person at the end of the book is skilfully narrated. The characters of the three men are each different. Troy, as the flamboyant, skilful swordster , who is charismatic but unreliable, persuasive but untrue. Farmer Boldwood is a perfectionist, who gets unhinged and loses his mental balance in the throes of emotion. Lastly Farmer Oak, who like the Oak tree, is simple and without pretensions, but reliable and trustworthy.

Review of Woman in White by Wilkie Collins

This book written by erstwhile lawyer Wilkie Collins in 1859 is supposedly the first mystery novel of its genre. The story begins when a young drawing master Walter Hartright on his way to Limmeridge Hall, on a new assignment, meets a woman dressed all in white, who requests his help. He helps her to reach London and on the way there she relates her circumstances in a manner which marks something out of the common in her life, that she fears a baronet who is somehow responsible for her wretched circumstances. Later Hartwright comes to know that the lady had escaped from a lunatic asylum. Limmeridge Hall is inhabited by Mr Frederick Fairlie, a bachelor and a hypochondric, a very curious character who never stirs out of his room, even at mealtimes,his niece Miss Laura Fairlie and her devoted half sister Miss Marian Halcombe. There is an uncanny resemblence between the woman in white and Laura Fairlie which astonishes Walter Hartright so much that he requests Marian Halcombe to go through Mrs Fairlie's (Laura's mother) letters to find if the lady is in fact related to them in some way. Marian on perusing the letters discovers that the lady might in fact be Anne Catherick, a half witted woman , who had been a student at their parish school where Mrs Fairlie used to visit. She had been so fond of Mrs Fairlie that once, as a little girl, when Mrs Fairlie had praised her for looking nice in a white dress, Anne had promised her that she would dress in white always. The identity of the woman in white now established the mystery remained that who was the wicked baronet and what had he done to injure Anne Catherick.
During the course of teaching Laura and Marian drawing, Walter Hartright falls in love with Laura, though most of his coversations are with Marian Halcombe. But there is no hope for him to declare himself as he is poor and Laura is the heiress of Limmeridge Hall and all property which will come to her on the death of Mr Fairlie. She is also betrothed to Sir Percival Glyde, a marriage arranged by her father. But by this time Walter suspects that Sir Percival Glyde might be the wicked baronet which Anne Catherick had referred to. Without declaring himself to Laura he decides to leave the place, as the marriage is finalised , but Marian Halcombe knows of his feelings for Laura & suspicions against Sir Percival. She charges Sir Percival with Anne Catherick's story that he was the person who had sent her to asylum. Sir Percival very cleverly obtains a letter from Anne Catherick's mother absolving him of all blame and shows it to Marian to convince her. After Walter Hartright leaves Limmeridge Hall, Laura, who loves him, tries to get out of the engagement by declaring to Sir Percival that she is ready to marry him if he will accept her, though her heart belongs to another. Even on hearing this Sir Percival refuses to break off the engagement & promises Laura that Marian will live with her after the marriage. In the marriage settlement he refuses to accept the stipulation that if Laura dies before him without leaving any children , the twenty thousand pounds she will inherit may be left according to her will. This means that in case of her death he will be the sole owner of the huge sum of money.
Laura and Sir Percival are married and go for a six months tour to Europe. When they return to Blackwater (Sir Percival's home) they are accompanied by Count & Countess Fosco. Count Fosco is extremely shrewd, menacing and obese Italian gentleman who is also the husband of Laura Fairlie's aunt Countess Fosco, who is totally under her husband's thumb. Countess Fosco also stands to benefit monetarily if Laura Fairlie dies. Soon after marriage Sir Percival, who is in financial troubles, asks Laura to sign papers which will hand over the control of her money to him. She refuses to do this on Marian Halcombe's advice in consultation with her lawyer. Sir Percival's problems are aggravated when Anne Catherick arrives there to tell Laura his 'secret' which she knows. Marian Holcombe overhears Sir Percival and Count Fosco's plans regarding them. She gets drenched in the downpour and contracts a dangerous fever which turns to typhus. Count Fosco has already hatched a plan to get rid of Laura using the resemblence between Laura and Anne Catherick. Taking advantage of Marian's illness they trick Laura into travelling to London. When Laura reaches London she is drugged and taken forcibly to the asylum as Anne Catherick. Meanwhile Anne is taken to Count Fosco's home as Lady Fairlie. Here she dies soon after of a heart ailment. All of Lady Fairlie's money now goes to her husband and aunt. Marian Halcombe on recovering from her illness goes to the asylum to meet Anne, and is overjoyed to find Laura instead. She bribes the nurses and escapes with Laura. Here they meet Walter Hartright who had so far been in the Honduras, and has come to pay his respects at Laura Fairlie's grave, when they meet him.
Walter Hartright then takes up cudgels on Laura's behalf to restore her fortune to her. He suspects that Sir Percival's weak point lies in the mystery which Anne had threatened to reveal and which he had claimed would destroy him. Walter starts enquiring about Anne Catherick's background from Mrs Clements, the lady who had mostly looked after Anne and Mrs Catherick, her mother. He soon suspects that the secret lies in Sir Percival's past. With this aim he visits the church vestry at Welmingham to search for records of Sir Percival's fathers and mothers marriage. He finds this, but his suspicions are roused. He finds out from the original record that Sir Percival's father and mother had in fact not been married at all, but was in fact an illegitimate child. Meanwhile Sir Percival who has been following Walter comes to the vestry to try to cover his crime of forgery by burning the record. Unluckily the fire engulfs the entire vestry and Sir Percival is trapped in the blaze. Walter Cartright tries to save him but he is killed in the fire and the record of his crime is also destroyed. To establish Laura's true identity Walter then pressurises Count Fosco to give a written confession. He obtains this with the help of his friend Pesca, who are both members of a secret society in Italy. Count Fosco gives the statement by which Laura Fairlie is once more established to be living. Walter and Laura marry and their son inherits Limmeridge Hall. Count Fosco is later found murdered by the secret society members whom he had escaped from. Anne Catherick's strong resemblence to Laura Fairlie is found to be because she is probably the illegitimate daughter of her father Mr Philip Fairlie, she may be in fact Laura's half sister.
The suspense of the story is maintained in the narrative almost till the end. The ingenious plot of Count Fosco to switch the identities of the women is masterly. Sir Percival's secret is also one which is not easily fathomed. The tempo of the story builds up slowly and surely. The character of Count Fosco is finely sketched. He is shown to be courteous but menacing, kindly but unscrupulous.

Review of Persuasion

Main Characters : Anne Elliot, Captain Frederick Wentworth, Sir Walter Elliot, Lady Russell

Persuasion by Jane Austen is one of my favourite romantic novels of all time, not only because its plot is a lot like the evergreen Cinderella story written in Jane Austen's quintessential style of restrained emotion and sharp characterisation. Anne Elliot is the middle one among the three daughters of a baronet Sir Walter Elliot, a widower, who has currently fallen on hard times and so has to rent out his grand mansion Kellynch Hall to Admiral Croft, a retired seafaring gentleman, and move to smaller quarters in Bath with his unmarried elder daughter Elizabeth. Anne is also unmarried at 27. She is a gentle, sensible, warm natured girl with so much consideration for her family that she had been persuaded to give up the love of her life Captain Frederick Wentworth, eight years ago, as then being only a Lieutenant he was not thought to be good enough a match for her by her father and Lady Russell, who is a mother figure to her. The story begins at the point when Anne Elliot and Captain Frederick Wentworth meet accidentally again after eight years under much changed circumstances. He is now a rich man, having made his fortune in the navy whereas her family has fallen on hard times. He is as handsome, or even handsomer than earlier, age and experience having given his face more character than it had earlier perhaps, whereas she is no longer in the first bloom of youth. She has not forgotten him and still has the feelings which she had eight years earlier for him, whereas he was bitterly disappointed when she rejected him at the behest of her family, has nearly forgotten her, and now being settled in life is looking for a suitable wife.
With her father and elder sister moving off to Bath, Anne Elliot comes to stay with her younger married sister and her family. Mary Musgrove , her sister is a demanding and often querulous and fancies herself ill most of the time & asks Anne to come look after her which Anne being the sweet and dutiful sister she is readily obliges her. The Musgroves live near to Kellynch Hall which has been rented out to the Crofts who incidentally are the sister and brother in law of Captain Frederick Wentworth who comes to visit them. When Anne meets Captain Wentworth after all this time, she is full of trepidation whereas he finds her so altered that he would not have known her again. In their next meetings he hardly acknowledges her presence, rather he begins to flirt with the Musgrove sisters. It is slowly by degrees when they are thrown together more and more that he realizes that the image of his ideal life partner which he had in his mind is none other than Anne whose excellent qualities of head and heart surpass those of any of the other ladies he had met, was meeting or ever would meet. But by the time he realises this Captain Wentworth's name has been already linked with Luisa Musgrove.
Anne Elliot next moves to Bath to her father's house. Here she finds favour in the eyes of her cousin Mr Eliott who is also her father's future heir, and the man her elder sister Elizabeth wants to marry. But Anne who had earlier rejected the suit of Charles Musgove, who later married her sister Mary, though always polite, does not fall for his charms. He is later found to be unscrupulous and avaricious who had courted her only to safeguard his inheritance. By lucky chance Captain Wentworth finds himself free of the obligation of marrying Louisa and hurries to Bath, where he now finds Anne courted by her cousin. Surmounting the obstacles the two now realise that there can be no one for them but each other, resulting in a happily ever after.

What I like about the book :
The romance between Anne and Captain Wentworth which has the flavour of old wine, which gains more flavour as it ages. The characters of Sir Walter as the narcissistic, autocratic and imperious person is rather well drawn. I wonder why he wasn't so horrible to his other daughters as he was to Anne. Maybe it is the author's ploy to draw more sympathy for Anne.
Anne get's the reader's full sympathy as she is the despised and downtrodden sister, the Cinderella, at home. Both her elder sister Elizabeth and younger one Mary are more dominating and rather more selfish than her. But the irony is that Mary's husband had earlier proposed to Anne whereas Elizabeth expects Mr Eliott to court her whereas he opts for Anne instead.

Review of Sense and Sensibility

Main Characters : Elinor Dashwood, Marianne Dashwood, Willoughby, Colonel Brandon

Written on similar lines as Pride and Prejudice this novel by Jane Austen is quite similar to it in character and cast. The main characters of the story are Elinor and Marianne Dashwood, young, pretty sisters like the Bennet sisters of Pride and Prejudice. Unfortunately the Dashwood family has fallen on hard times due to the death of their father. His property goes to his only son Mr John Dashwood, the girl's stepbrother. Mrs Dashwood and her daughters are forced to seek a home more suited to their current state of relative poverty as they are disliked by Mrs John Dashwood. Sir John Middleton, their distant relation offers them Barton Cottage far away from Norland and they decide to shift there. Elinor is in love with Edward Ferrars, who is also Mrs John Dashwood's brother. Marianne and her mother all like him and expect Elinor to be engaged to him but he does not propose to Elinor when they are at Norlund though he shows a decided preference for Elinor's company. Elinor gives excuses for this to herself and her impetuous younger sister Marianne who cannot understand dilly dallying or withholding her emotions. Elinor is on the other hand level headed and sensible as compared to Marianne who is rather rash and impulsive giving in to her sensibilities. This is the crux of the difference in the characters of the two sisters. At Barton Cottage Marianne meets Willoughby who is a young and handsome young man who soon seems completely devoted to her and besotted by her. She too falls deeply in love with him as he is the epitome of young man to her, sharing in all her interests like music and dancing. Colonel Brandon , a respectable gentleman of thirtyfive odd years, Sir Middleton's friend also becomes interested in Marianne but she pays no attention to him having eyes only for Willoughby. They spend idyllic days in each other's company, meeting for parties and picnics where they have eyes only for each other. After this Willoughby is suddenly sent by his aunt from whom he is to inherit Allenham Cottage, on an errand. He comes back no more to Barton Cottage. Marianne expects him to return daily and watches everybody who comes by on horseback to be Willoughby. Edward Ferrars comes for a visit to their house and goes away without proposing to Elinor. In Sir John Middleton's house they meet Mrs Jennings his mother in law, an elderly, rich, friendly woman and Mr and Mrs Palmer, Mrs Palmer being the younger daughter of Mrs Jennings. Mr and Mrs Palmer are absolute opposite of each other. Mrs Palmer is talkative, goodnatured and friendly whereas Mr Palmer is taciturn and uncommunicative who takes no notice of Mrs Palmer's speeches. Elinor and Marianne also become acquainted with Lucy and Anne Steele, two girls who are relatives of Mrs Jennings & are thus invited to Sir Middleton's house. Lucy Steele is a clever, conniving girl and on becoming better acquainted with her Elinor realises that Lucy Steele is secretly engaged to Edward Ferrars, and they have been engaged for many years. Although Lucy tells Elinor that Edward is very attached to her Elinor does not believe this as she feels that Edward had entered the engagement when he was younger and not aware of Lucy's character fully. Elinor believes that Edward being a gentleman cannot sever the engagement but regrets it. Of this she becomes sanguine, though she does not reveal all this to her mother or sisters who still cherish the hope that she will marry Edward.
When Willoughby does not return to Devonshire, the girls Elinor and Marianne agree to Mrs Jenning's invitation to stay with her in London for a few months. On reaching London, Marianne comes to know of Willoughby's presence in town. She writes him a number of times but receives no reply to her letters. This agonises her so much that she can hardly behave normally with others. Willoughby's true character is revealed to her when they hear the news that he is engaged to be married to a rich heiress. Meanwhile Colonel Brandon tells Elinor that Willoughby had seduced and then ditched his ward. The Steele sisters also arrive in London to stay with the Palmer's. Here Lucy Steele is invited to stay with Mrs John Dashwood, Elinor's sister in law. Lucy Steele meets Edward Ferrars younger brother Robert and finding him to be richer than Edward gets engaged to him after breaking off her engagement with Edward. After Willoughby's betrayal Marianne is anxious to leave London and return to her mother. On their way back she falls dangerously ill and they have to break their stay at Colonel Brandon's house. She is nursed to health by Elinor. When she is sick Willoughby also comes there and asks Elinor's forgiveness for his behaviour towards Marianne which he regrets deeply. Marianne recovers slowly. The story ends with Marianne accepting Colonel Brandon's proposal of marriage and Elinor marrying Edward Ferrars who has been provided a living as a clergyman in Colonel Brandon's parish church.

What I like about the book:
Elinor's character is a balanced and sensible one. She is able to judge people accurately and she guides her mother and Marianne to take proper decisions when they would have acted foolishly or impulsively. She is able to judge Edward's actions in the affair of Lucy Steele, and does not reproach him for it.