CHARACTERS: 3.5/5
WRITING STYLE: 3.5/5
CLIMAX: 3/5
ENTERTAINMENT QUOTIENT: 3.5/5
Bhaavna Arora has to her credit one of the most sensational and highly popular books “The Deliberate Sinner”. “Mistress of Honour” is the second from her kitty.
Unfortunately, I never got a chance to read the first one but now that I have read the second, I simply cannot wait to get my hands on the first one too.
The underlying theme of the book Mistress of Honour is love and patriotism in which love for one’s country always overrules the love for one’s near and dear ones.
The story spans over two generations.
Pansy and Potnis meet under highly unfortunate circumstances when during the Operation Blue Star tragedy, Pansy’s parents died and Pansy was blessed enough to be rescued by Potnis who was a part of the covert and highly dangerous operation.
They eventually fall in love and get married. Rihana was a lovely welcome to their abode and soon their story started resembling a happily ever after.
But that was not the case to be. Rihana grows up and falls in love. But will her fiancé’s love for her ever be able to override his love for his country?
“Mistress of Honour” has a great storyline which as already mentioned earlier spans over a period of two generations.
The main plot is gracefully complemented by various subplots all of which adds to the entertainment quotient of the book.
In the end, the subplots do not leave any loose ends and effortlessly come together to bring the story to a conclusion.
The characters too are very charming and full of joie de vivre. Pansy, Potnis, Rihana, Kabir and Advik are all characters to look forward to. Even Shamsher with his incessant joviality is a strong and delightful character.
The theme of the book is patriotism and love and the trade-off between the two.
All throughout the book, the characters try to maintain the delicate balance between family and duty with duty always taking the lead but the process is indeed painful and the path is not an easy one to tread on.
As quoted by the author herself, the story is inspired from the lives of many military men and their families whom the author has known personally and thus whatever struggles the characters have gone throughout the book sincerely reflect similar agonies of military men and their families.
The romance in “Mistress of Honour” is also up to the mark and provides an interesting addition to the ongoing adventure and drama. The love story of Advik and Rihana is also nothing if not heart rendering.
The climax is okay and may seem a little dull but is in line with the story.
Overall, the book makes for an interesting and gripping read and I recommend it to all my readers. That being said, I also look forward to reading the author’s next.