Imagine being accused of murder (you did not commit) and then losing your memory… making things more complicated and troublesome for you. And then, also add weird encounters with ghosts, souls of dead persons vexing and bothering you. What will you do? Now way out, it seems. The same happens with Maya, the protagonist of the novel, Maya, the blindfolded: Her Mistake? She trusted him. Whom does Maya trust? What was the mistake? Why is she being haunted by ghosts? Is she the murderer? Who killed Mrs Pinto, after all? There are many questions that will keep the readers at the bay while reading this thrilling debut novel by Prasad Bag, an emerging novelist who is looking to finish other novels in the coming months.

Maya is a young professional who works for a company run by Mr Kapoor. She is good at work and has a loving and caring boyfriend, Michael and many friends. With Mrs Pinto, at her workplace, her chemistry is not up to the mark but not that ugly to provoke her to murder the old lady. However, the murder takes place and Maya is the prime accused. On the other hand, her home maid is supposedly killed by Bhagat’s ghost, as Maya’s neighbour Suzy puts it. Maya is in the mess and she believes that she has started seeing the ghost of Bhagat who conveys Maya to leave her home. Maya, amidst the chaos, loses her memory and cannot think of what to do. Michael and Sarah help her in coming back to the track.

The murder mystery becomes intense because there are very few characters that readers know of. It is either Maya, Michael, Sarah, Roy or Sam. One of them is the murderer and readers will be actively pursuing the case because of the affordable width of the plot. The language further adds one more compelling reason to go on reading the novel. It is simple, basic and very easy to navigate. The plot, for the first-time novelist, does make a strong case in front of the readers. The story has come out tense, tightly knit wonderfully thought and nicely executed. Prasad Bag has made a wonderful murder mystery that readers will find further enhanced with horror and relatable realism.

In spite of its length, I could relate to the story very easily and was able to finish reading it within a day. Contemporary readers will like such novels with a compelling speed that entices them to find out the truth, and secrets and reveal the course of action. The horror angel that the novel portrays will add an alternate point of view to the readers’ interpretations until the real causes and motifs are revealed. Whether Maya actually sees and interacts with ghosts or everything is just made up by her mind? This question is also important and readers will be shocked at the end of the novel when they finally reveal the truth.

You can get a copy in Kindle format from Amazon India and start reading the novel right away on your mobile phones or Kindle readers. You can also read the Kindle copy on your tablet, iPad or laptop. Get a copy by clicking the link below:

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Review by Anand for Featured Books