Sniper’s Debt (7even Series Book 2) by Mainak Dhar
Publisher: 4 Hour Press (Trade Imprint of India Research Press)
Pages: 169
Price: Rs. 99 INR(Kindle Edition)
ASIN: B086HQ5DZW
Buy here: https://amzn.to/3edc641
You know your vacation won’t end well when the guy behind you tries to be a hero and ends up dead.
Hijackers? On a flight to Paris?
Passengers are dying. I am next in line, and things are not adding up. The jihadis claim to be Daesh, speak English and whistle to the tune of Stand by Me. To survive and save my family I have no choice but to tap into my violent past.
Rescue comes in a single hushed pop. A Sniper! A man who feels he owes me.
Stranded in alien territory, with no weapons, I have no option but to join hands.
In a world where the most dangerous terrorists are not the men carrying guns but their hidden masters, my frenemy and I have to not just unmask their sinister plan but also show them that we are the predators and not the prey.
About the author:
Mainak Dhar wears many hats. His most important job is to be the best possible father and husband he can be. An alumnus of the Indian Institute of Management, Ahmedabad, his ‘day job’ has seen him lead teams and businesses in the corporate world. A self-described ‘cubicle dweller by day and writer by night’, he loves creating and sharing stories. His books have been bestsellers in India and abroad including the Alice in Deadland series, 03:02 and Sniper’s Eye. His books have been translated into Turkish, Vietnamese, Japanese, French, German and Portuguese, reaching millions of readers. He is also a passionate student of Karate, and holds a Black Belt.
My take on the book:
Major Aaditya Ghosh who has long retired from the Indian special military force Paras, is enroute on a vacation to Paris with wife Zoya and son Aman. Soon their flight is high-jacked by a group of men who claim to be from ISIS and the flight is force landed in the middle of a deserted land-strip in Afghanistan. The hijackers demand release of seven criminals from the US jails and to mount pressure on the US government, start killing few passengers onboard.
Aaditya doubts there is more to their plan than getting back their men, as their conversations sound dubious. Without any ammunition in hand and struck in an abandoned place with family in tow, there is little that Aaditya can do to get out of the situation. What is the real secret behind this hijack drama and does Aaditya save himself and family from this unexpected situation forms the rest of the story.
This is the second book in the 7even series by the author Mainak after Sniper’s Eye. The main characters are retained from the previous book, as this is a series and the action is shifted to a new location and a new task for Aaditya. The author made sure to recap from the first part as needed, so that the readers who did not read the first part do not miss out on details about the characters. Though the reader would not face any continuity issues, I would highly recommend reading the first part as well, as it is an interesting thriller.
As a premise, while a hijack story might sound like a known one, the landscape and backstory chosen are highlight of the book. The USP of the story is the protagonist struck in an unknown land with zero support faced with the herculean task of saving his family from such ruthless men. The author smartly involves the various forces who function out of Afghanistan like the Talibans, the American forces, the ISIS, the locals. If you are aware of the history of this place and the current happenings in this part of the world, then you would enjoy the story in a better way.
From page one, the story moves at a very fast pace and is high on adrenaline rush as it keeps the reader on the edge throughout with unexpected twists and turns. The action sequences are very well described, effortlessly transporting the reader into the middle; the story and narration are even better than the first part. If you love action thrillers, then this is a must read as the author weaves a taut and impressive thriller.
My rating:
5/5.
Geethica Mehra
Hey Kiranmayi, your 5-star rating prompts me ti=o read this book at the earliest. I know that hijacking may be a known story but every author has a different style to narrate.
Looking forward to it.