A Quest for Spring is a novel of friendship, of betrayal, and most importantly, of love. Raehan and Amolika, although polar opposites, find themselves being drawn to each other more and more as time passes. What started as a college friendship soon turns into sincere affection for one another. Despite belonging to different religion and social strata, Raehan and Amolika, are caught in a web of uncertainty regarding their future. Underlying their love is an ulterior motive, which prevents them from being together. Raehan and Amolika, separated by destiny, are reunited once again after sixteen years. One is going to become the Chief Minister, and the other is already a renowned journalist. Their meeting will unearth layers of the past which were buried deep within. Will this chance meeting bring back bitter memories or will they see through the storm?
I really enjoyed the beginning of Raehan and Amolika’s friendship during their college days at St.Pauls. Through the entirety of the novel, I was drawn to the character of Amolika. She is driven and highly ambitious and is always up for challenges. Raehan, on the other hand, became an interesting character in the later part of the novel. The author has smoothly incorporated the role of other characters which sometimes came across better than our main characters. I really wanted to read more about Dhruv and his life. What really appealed to me were the plot twists. Since I had ventured into reading a romance novel, I was expecting cliche moments and unnecessary display of affection but here, none of that took place. For someone who isn’t into romantic novels, I was glued to the story for most parts.
Coming to the details, the author has penned down several moments that took place in 1990s, such as the mentions of SRK movies or Titanic or Princess Diana’s death. The political backdrop of the novel makes it all the more interesting. The novel is divided into 4 parts, each taking us through Raehan and Amolika’s transition. The storytelling has been commendable.
Despite the good story line, there has been lack of attention given to punctuation and grammatical errors. There are way too many exclamation marks, and in most of the places two words have no spacing between them. This made it difficult to go through the book. I really wished more emphasis was given on editing. The climax was also predictable.
For a debut novel, Monica has presented to us a romance that stood all the hardships and emerged victorious. Lovers of the romance genre will really like the book.
Author: Monica Mujumdar Dixit
Publisher: Notion Press
Pages: 402
Rating:3.5/4
Source: Review Copy
Blurb:
Raehan and Amolika come from two very different worlds. And for the time that their worlds overlap and stick to one path, life seems beautiful. Between projects at college and hanging out with friends, the two of them come to a startling revelation that involves a bond of love between them.
Unbeknownst to the both of them, there lies a leviathan of espionage that eventually consumes the bond they share, driving them apart by force.
Sixteen years pass, when fate decides to rekindle their bond – only this time, the challenges are exacerbated by the unresolved baggage of the past. Do the two of them find each other? Does the dull, grey, long-standing spell of winter rise to give way to spring?
Books & Teaa 