NASHA: STORIES FROM THE LAND OF KAMASUTRA BY MAYA BALSI

BOOK REVIEW:
Nasha is a collection of five short stories that the author describes as belonging to erotica genre. Looking at the book cover, the reference to Kamasutra and erotica as a theme described by the author might mislead the reader. But unlike the erotic stories we generally come across, these stories are written touching a multitude of emotions like love, lust, desire, frustration and especially fascination we feel. The backdrops of each of the stories is also varied and even with a common theme running through them, they are very different for each other.
The first story with an interesting title – Red Earth, Blue Sky, Green Sea is about Steffi a bride-to-be who goes on a bachelorette of sorts, with her only close friend Sitara and how the shy Steffi with an orthodox upbringing gets ready emotionally and physically for marital relationship is interesting. We walked in the woods is about a newly married bride Pritha who finds herself suffocating in her new house and her new relationship. Never Deny me your laughter is about long-lost love which may be misunderstood often.
The main highlight of the book is, though belonging to erotica genre, the content is not sleazy. The characters are realistic and flawed to make them real and not too fictional. These character traits also help the reader connect with these characters especially in an Indian society context. Each story starts in a normal way and slowly builds upon suspense before revealing what protagonist fancies or the situations they come across. This narration style helps to hook the user to the story, making them curious and wait for the main twist to show up.

If you always wanted to read books from the erotica genre but was skeptical, then this can be chosen as the first pick in this genre.

RATING: 5/5 STARS