Book Review: ‘Your Ally, Your Foe’ by Saurabh Dev

Swapna Peri

Book Title: Your Ally, Your Foe
Author: Saurabh Dev
Format: Paperback
No.of pages: 216
Published by: Vishwakarma Publications
Genre: Fiction

Book Title
The title of the book, ‘Your Ally, Your Foe’, is both intriguing and fascinating.

Book Cover
The book’s cover depicts an executive-level meeting between countries. The flags and microphones hint at what the tale may be.

Plot
Polash Mukherjee is one of India’s most senior diplomats. Kaya, his daughter, works at NASA, and Aatrei his wife is a noblewoman. Paarth is Aatrei’s brother and a diplomat as well. This is a narrative about global politics in the United States, India, and China that the author handled absolutely well.

India and the United States join forces to carry out a well-planned strategy aimed at the emerging and powerful Republic of China. Polash has privileged access to India’s foreign affairs, which might give China control over the situation. Because of his acquaintance with a high-ranking Chinese journalist, he is detained on espionage allegations.

As if that weren’t enough, his father-in-law dies, and his daughter is detained for invasion of privacy. Paarth is dealing with a lot of emotional turbulence and mental anguish. Is this family righteous? Is someone to blame for their traumatic experience?

What I like
1. The setting of the story
2. The layers where the story unfolds
3. Aatrei’s role as a diplomat’s wife

What I didn’t like:
1. The story lags a little in the second part.

2. I expected a more fascinating explanation for why Polash was framed by a top NSA official.

Characters:
In the narrative, all of the characters have significant scope and strength. Every character is established at the right time, with a fitting backstory. Paarth and Atrei are my favorite characters because of their realistic portrayals.

Narration:
The language in the book, ‘Your Ally, Your Foe’ by Saurabh Dev is clear and easy to understand. However, the narration seemed slow and dragging at times. The novel’s second half of the novel is raunchy, but the drama was not what I expected. Aside from that, the novel is an intriguing narrative involving authorities. Though the novel revolves around adults and executives, the language used is appropriate for readers of all ages.

Language & Grammar
In the narrative, simple language with rich vocabulary is used. In several areas, the language increases the drama of the tale.

My Thoughts
Espionage fiction is a genre of literature that has captivated readers for centuries. It is a thrilling and suspenseful genre that often involves spies, secret agents, and international intrigue. The settings in espionage fiction are often bizarre and dangerous. If it has a political angle to it, the story definitely becomes a racy thriller.

Similarly, this debut novella by Saurabh Dev is an intriguing story. There are fifty chapters in the book. Each chapter has its own elegance and thrilling elements that keep the reader interested. The plot also focuses on the flaws in the systems and how individuals are affected by them.

The story’s central dilemma of the story never dies, but instead adds momentum to the continuous drama in varied leaps and measures. This aspect of the book will complement the breadth of the plot sketch. The tale has the potential to be a superb thriller, yet it falls short somewhere. However, the author’s storytelling abilities make this novel both unusual and readable.

Who can read?
Every fiction story reader can read this book. It is also appropriate for beginning readers and young adults. The plot includes mystery, politics, romance, love, life, and the trials that life throws at you.

How entertaining is the book?
The novel is entertaining and can be read in one sitting.

Buy from Amazon | ₹ 290

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