Wild Card2 — by Asfiya Rahman(Author), Chetan Soni(Contributor)
Publisher: Half Baked Beans
Pages: 296
Price: Rs. 225 INR(Paperback)
ISBN: 978–9384315825
Buy here: https://amzn.to/2FWnt0P
Tahira Rizvi was a young tennis player who got the opportunity of her life when she was invited to be part of Karan Mehrotra’s successful attempt at Wimbledon. Back from Wimbledon she wants to make one last attempt at building a career for herself as a professional tennis player. But there are just too many questions. Has she left it too late? Will she get the support she needs from her friends and family? More importantly, will she get the opportunity she needs to prove that she can turn things around? And what about Vikram? He may say he is in love with her but can they have a future together? What do you do if both opportunity and romance are knocking on the same door? Who will you let in first? Will Tahira be able to move from the stands of Wimbledon to the courts of Wimbledon? And if she does, what is the price she will pay?
About the author:
Asfiya Rahman, a management graduate, is a language teacher by occupation and a writer by inclination. She is fluent in French, English, Hindi, and Urdu and hopes that genuinely qualifies her to be called a polyglot. She has published many short stories and been associated with writing workshops and literature festivals.
She loves to read and can often be found curled up with a book or daydreaming about the perfect library she hopes to own some day. She also loves to travel. To find out more follow her on instagram and twitter @doonwriter
My take on the book:
Tahira Rizvi is just back from Wimbledon after witnessing Karan’s mind-blowing success in the men’s singles. While she is inspired by his win, and believes this experience will help her game, her parents think it is too late for her to build a career in tennis. After some initial setbacks, not-so-great support from family, Tahira keeps moving back and forth between pursuing tennis and moving on to other course options. Her relation with Vikram is also not yet defined as they are not sure if they are just friends and to take their relation to the next level. Karan is to his original routine after the historic win, but is this the last time that he played tennis? Did Tahira’s dream end even before it started forms the rest of the story.
Wild Card2 is sequel to the best selling book Wild Card that came out a few years back. Wild Card2 starts where the first one ended, however, the author gives a quick summary of all that happened in Wild Card for those who haven’t read it. However, I would personally recommend reading Wild Card as it is an awesome book and also will help in relating more to the characters in this sequel. The second part does not have many new characters, so the existing characters are built more so those who read the first part will enjoy the characters’ graph more.
When I first read the blurb for this one, I wondered if it will take the same route as the first part. But the author took enough care not to repeat the plot, hence Tahira’s journey is totally different from Karan’s. Also, the author succeeds in establishing the difference between both of them though both the main characters are into the same sport; their attitude, playing style, everything is portrayed differently. The conversations between Karan, Tahira and Vikram are handled well, in a very mature way, and those who read the first part will definitely want to know if there is going to be love-triangle between them.
There is less narration around tennis in this part, unlike the first part which was heavy on tennis and the actual action that happens on court. Since this part is more about the struggle of Tahira to be ready mentally as a professional and how her relationships are affected in the process, the action on the court starts majorly in the climax only. Pick this one for an awesome sports drama which delves into what makes a champion beyond their skill and talent.
Wild Card(part1) review: https://blog.medhaapps.com/2019/07/book-review%e2%80%8a-%e2%80%8awild-card/
My rating:
4/5.