So Many Books, So Little Time : Book Review: #IAM16ICanRape by Kirtida Gautam

About the book:

Title: #IAm16ICanRape

Published by:

Paperback, 1 edition, 593 pages
Published August 22nd 2015 by Read Out Loud Publishing LLP

Rating: 3.5/5

Blurb:

To destroy great EVIL, GOOD has to shed tears of blood.

Rudransh Kashyap is a self-made billionaire and man of high moral fiber. His life is shattered when he returns home one day to find that his prodigy, his 16-year-old grandson, Aarush, has been arrested and accused of a brutal gang rape. It is easy to say, “Kill the Rapist” but what if the accused is your child?

This case takes an unprecedented turn when Aarush’s identity is made public on social media. Rudransh finds himself living a nightmare as he fights against tremendous odds to get justice for Aarush, to save him and to bring him back home… But what if the unthinkable is true? Can Rudransh save his grandson, or will he end up fighting a different battle altogether?

About the author

Kirtida is a clinical psychologist turned screenplay writer who completed her education from the Film and Television Institute of India (FTII), Pune, India. Her passion for psychology and writing inspired her into writing psychological thrillers. While the readers are reading this introduction, the next thriller is in the making...

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My Review:

First off, one cannot just read this book and not commend the author for the stand that she has taken.
She has not just discussed and deliberated the issue on the surface, but through her carefully etched plot and characters, she has managed to bring an entire gamut of secondary and primary issues related to the crime into the big picture. I really cannot commend her enough.

It is a long book, but a simple one, and with the resonance of December 16 in its plot, it creeps the goosebumps out of you. Reading the book, you realise it is your moral responsibility to give a little more thought to all of this than you do now, to make this world a better place.
The story follows many themes and explores a lot of relationships, between a teenager and his domestic help, between him and his estranged parents, etc. And it makes you think that maybe we should care more about how dysfunctional and broken families have larger consequences than we ever thought.
It shows that a lot of effort has gone into the alternate narration given to multiple characters. Keeping up a plot of this intensity, and twists is really an arduous task well done in this case.

And, it also emphasis a point that has me in complete agreement: that we can never fully understand a human mind, and questioning should become a habit. Individualism is the truth and we cannot really make conclusions about a family based on one person.

I do feel that the book could have benefited a lot from a little more editing that could've made it seamless and racy, but the effort that has gone into it shows.

Links to the book: