A Walk in the Rain - Book Review

A Walk in the Rain
By Udai Yadla
Review By Ila Garg

A Walk in the Rain, a novel by Udai Yadla, is published by Kyron Publications. The cover is not an exceptional concept, but managed to interest me with the beach scene and the two lovers running across the beach with the umbrella thrown off on the shore.

Udai Yadla is a passionate author and poet. Mechanical engineer by education, Software engineer by profession, Writer by passion. Owing to his job, he travelled to various cities, socializing with people from different cultures. He cultivated interest in learning more about people, which perhaps enticed him into the study of human psychology. His interest in psychology is evident in his writings. His first book, A Walk in the Rain is widely appreciated equally by critics and peers, and now I am going to review it for you. He has been nominated for the Forbes India Celebrity 100 List. He is the most sought after author among young breed of authors. He is currently working on his next novel, which is a psychological thriller.

The blurb reads as, “Love is elixir that keeps you alive. Love is poison that kills you. Unreciprocated love keeps you alive but kills every day.
Heartbroken Sunny lives a reclusive life, trapped in the past, living in his memories. He has no complaints about his life but refuses to embrace the present.
Saloni is a prostitute who is desperate to earn money by any means. She does not care about exploiting others to fulfill her purpose.
Fate unites the loner and the prostitute to embark on a life changing journey of retribution and self-discovery.
Lovelorn Sunny turns misogynistic after Sandy, the only girl he loved walks away from his life, unannounced. He suffers painful solitude for almost two decades with the relentless haunting of her thoughts. A distressed friend Imran, vows to change his life forever. A surprise planned for his birthday turns into a tragedy that claims the life of his dear friend, triggering a series of unbelievable events. As Imran gets killed by a stranger, Sunny's calm life suddenly turns into a turbulent storm. With nothing left to live for, vengeance becomes his ultimate mission. His reluctant alliance with a prostitute to trace the killer sets him onto a nerve racking adventure of life and death.
Both are bound to a common goal with different motives but destiny has its own motive. A walk in the rain is an intricate tale of intense emotions, driven by hair raising twists and turns.”

This is the story of Sunny, who turns a complete misogynistic (a person who hates or doesn’t trust women) when his only love, Sandy leaves him without a word. This is also more because of an indifferent father; the fear of rejection totally engulfs him. Then, Sunny’s friend Imran tries his best to change Sunny’s isolated life, and plans a surprise for his birthday. However, the birthday turns into a tragedy when Imran is killed.

The author has sketched all the character beautifully, nowhere will the readers feel them to be exaggerated. Sunny and Saloni being the main characters, take the plot ahead. Sunny wants to avenge Imran’s death and Saloni agrees to help him in exchange of money. Sunny already has no trust on women, and Saloni’s greed makes him dislike her more. The plot therefore takes the shape of a thriller as the two of them continue on their journey to trace the killer. Their own lives get deeply affected in the process.

The language is simple and easy to comprehend. Nowhere will a reader feel any disconnect. Further, this 240-page book is a light read and overall a compelling book. How Sunny becomes a misogynist, how he meets Saloni who is a prostitute, how Imran’s death affects him, how he decides to find the killer and takes help from Saloni, will the two of them actually fall in love in the process, will Sunny ever learn to trust again after Sandy betrayed him are some of the many reasons why you will keep turning the pages to find out what happens in A Walk in the Rain.

As a debutant, Udai Yadla has nailed it. However, the author should have been careful about the editing. It’s overall a good book but the editing is a major turn off!

Ratings: 3/5

Buying Link: Amazon