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Bhaskar Chattopadhyay’s Penumbra brings back the good old detective
Bhaskar Chattopadhyay’s Penumbra brings back the good old detective.
Prakash Roy receives a letter from his uncle he has never heard of, who wants Roy to attend his 60th birthday. He takes up the invitation, reaches a secluded bungalow, on a stormy night, and meets a small gathering of men and women.
That night, not one but two murders take place. Everyone is trapped in the bungalow, everyone is a suspect. To prove his innocence, Roy sets out to find the truth. What he does find is that nothing is as it seems, no one is what they appear to be.
That’s Bhaskar Chattopadhyay’s latest fiction Penumbra. Just like his first fiction Patang, this one is also engaging and pacey. There are no unnecessary details here. Yet, the description is visual. The setting: stormy night, heavy downpour, a huge bungalow in a deserted area, small group of people trapped in it – all reminds one of the horror films of the ’60s, think Gumnaam (1965). At some points, the story becomes melodramatic and is not in sync with the rest of the fast-paced action. The plot is simple, and the protagonist is not a very useful accessory to the one solving the mystery. However, it is charming to read a mystery that reeks of the good old detective stories. This whodunit is an engaging puzzle. The twists and turns make the read worth all your money. You will not be able to crack the case.
Fact file:
Title: Penumbra
Author: Bhaskar Chattopadhyay
Publisher: Fingerprint
Price: Rs 250
Follow the author @medhashri
