An Unusual Honeymoon by Mamta Kashyap – Book Review

The unusual that is prefixed with the title of Mamta Kashyap’s romantic comedy, a novel, is certainly justified. Once you begin reading An Unusual Honeymoon, you will find that it may start a little unconvincingly. However, once the author gets the rhythm and you (the reader) get the idea of what you are reading, there is no stopping for either of the two, the novelist and the reader, until the very last page of the novel that summarises everything with a conclusion that you might envision once you cross the half-way mark in the novel. This is not a boring or very long read. An Unusual Honeymoon is a short, quick, compelling and a mildly exciting read with a sensible plot, wonderful humour and appreciable narrative.

It is about the ups and downs, this and that, if and but, what if this and what if that… it is about Mahashweta, a name that the protagonist finds unusual and loves to be called Shweta only. Mahashweta loves Akshay and their relationship has been going for long and they make love routinely with a robotic program (almost) but the protagonist says that she loves it. However, things go otherwise and Akshay decides to leave Mahashweta right before their marriage. Affected and unaffected by this, she decides to work on her ambitious plan to own The Cowboy Inn in Sikkim and goes on her lonely honeymoon. And there, everything changes as she meets Rahul with the light feud at first sight which transforms into an unusual marriage two days later… will the marriage sustain? Will Rahul accept Mahashweta as his wife for more than six months? Will Mahashweta accept Rahul as her husband? There are many questions that readers may have as they go on reading the work… it is a breezy read with quick events planned one after another.

Techniques and style:

This is not an extraordinary novel. This is not an ordinary novel. It is somewhere between these two bars I would like this work to be placed. The simple language used by Mamta Kashyap makes her novel accessible to a huge reader base. A straight-line plot makes it uncomplicated and instant. A theme that is limited to marriage, love, family affairs and romance makes the work of fiction realistic to the extent that women will connect with it rather quickly than male readers. So, the novelist has planned and executed this light romantic comedy very wonderfully, to be honest. However, there are a few lapses in the work as well. I would have surely appreciated the use of a little more sophisticated narrative that could accommodate the version of Rahul. Also, the repeated use of Mahashweta’s point of view on very frequent intervals might get the readers influenced when they make their judgements.

Conclusion:

I would say that An Unusual Honeymoon is a work which is ideal for a one-time read and enjoyment. The humour will keep the readers mind engaged with a peculiar freshness that I have seldom observed in modern Indian fiction I read in recent years. It has a positive note about it. Women-centric readers can find many interesting things for their discussions on coffee tables. Usual weekend readers can find a few hours of pure humour. Teenagers can find a perfect Saturday-night companion in this novel by Mamta. So, are you ready for it?

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Review by Alka for Literature News