Saturday 4 October 2014

Review of 'The Dark Romance' by 'Ankit Gusain'

Blurb: Dark Romance', is a story of two lovers caught up in the narrow minded attitude of village thinking. Superstition and dark spirits that the villagers' believe in add their bit in making their life a living hell. The lovers, Priyanka and Ashu, meet clandestinely and their love develops and grows for each other. Things begin to go well for them, but then things take a dark twist ... Ashu does everything in his power to get Priyanka, the love of his life, out of this darkness. But her family is out to get his blood... Will Ashu and Priyanka ever be able to get out of the clutches of the darkness and the evil that has over shadowed their lives? Will the family and the villagers' overcome their superstition, their old fashioned village thinking and allow the two lovers to find their happiness? Or will the 'dark romance' never find the light of day...


Verdict: ‘The Dark Romance’ is the debut novel of Ankit Gusain. Just like the title of the book, this story is unusual too. The love story has unfolded in the village of superstitious people and the end will definitely give hard time to the reader’s brain cells.

This is the best possible name for a story like this, where the romance blossoms up in the dark atmosphere of spirits and black magic. The cover also gives the perfect impression that this is not just a love story but there is a lot more in the store. At a glance this book is catchy.

The author has a very good command over the language which can easily be figured out through his chosen words. The narrating style is simple and very much in trend now. I felt few scenes can be described in a lot better way, which would help creating the crisis in a more genuine way. The story is divided in small and crunchy which will not give the readers the unwanted break. The rich language summons up the weak story telling skills of the author and the brilliant story line covers up all the flaws.

There are numerous characters in the story. Not every character have an important role to play but maximum of them does. The friends of the main protagonist are wonderful and very much relatable. The family member of Ashu and Priyanka are also described in a well manner and their conversations also reflects their personalities, which I think is very important.

The best part of the book is its intriguing storyline. After reading the blurb one can easily understand that this story is not going to be one regular love stories. The story starts with a creepy dream and then moves to the main protagonist going to his ancestor’s village for his vacation. The atmosphere of the village was delightfully narrated. The love story of Ashu and Priyanka is sweet and lovely until the fateful day come and everything shifts its place. I like the way the author has framed the whole plot by keeping in mind the sentiments of the villagers and the mind of the youths in the cities. This story line has a lot to offer from blind superstition to unconditional friendship, from enjoying a passionate kiss from shedding blood for his love. As we all know ‘If it is not okay, it is not the end’, at the end all became normal and the readers will close the book with a smile on their face.

There are few editing errors, few spelling errors and few repetitive words, which I have spotted quite a few times which can be called as the flaw of the book. This story will touch new chords if the narrating style was a bit mature and if few scenes are a bit inversely described. Keeping in mind that this is the debut work of the author I would say this book is definitely bring a fresh air among the bunch of romantic novels.


Final Words: The different story line of this book will help the author to climb the success and this book will teach the young stars a much needed lesson. A different love story and a must read for all those are searching for a fresh read.


Title: The Dark Romance
Author: AnkitGusain
Publisher: Leadstart Publishing
Page Count: 236
My Rating: 4/5

Available at –




2 comments: