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'The Girl in Room 105' - Book Review

How Chetan Bhagat Stepped out of His Comfort Zone

By Hitarth RavalPublished 5 years ago 3 min read
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I hated it. All that the people could talk in the month of January is the resolutions they (had) made! Now, I knew that the motivation to keep going with the resolution would die in a week (or less) for the most people. So, I never dared to make any resolutions of my own.

This year, however, I was bored and I thought of giving myself a chance. I made a resolution that 'I will read 100 books this year' and not just read them, but also digest them to whatever extent my brain can! I started reading four to five books simultaneously in different genres that interested me and this way, I wish to keep going until I achieve that target. You can read the review of the first book (or rather an essay) I finished, Why I Am an Atheist - Book Review.

This is the second book I finished and despite what others say, I liked it. I always do (because it is Chetan Bhagat!!). So here you go:

Title: The Girl in Room 105

Author: Chetan Bhagat

Number of Pages: 304 (paperback)

Publication Info: Westland, Oct 9,2018

Genre: Romance, Investigative Drama

ISBN: 978-1542040464

Well, this was new from Chetan Bhagat. I was not going to read this book because of this reason. The first English novel I read was Three Mistakes of My Life (by Chetan Bhagat). Practically, I started taking interest in reading becauseof him. However, I felt that he would not be as fluent and convincing at other genres, as he is at writing romance. It turned out that I was wrong!

It is a story of two friends (who are totally ordinary at everything in their life and still) solving a murder; and the love-struggle between a soldier, a coaching class instructor, a Kashmiri girl from IIT (Indian Institute of Technology) Delhi, and a multi-million dollar industry owner. The story cannot get any more interesting than it got in the end.

To be honest, the way Mr. Bhagat writes his prologue has become annoying now. All the stories start the same way in almost all his books—'some stranger trying (or not trying) to tell his story to him, because he is Chetan Bhagat (who will publish their story and earn millions)! Anyways, the stor, in short,t looks like this:

'A boy, Keshav, falls for a beautiful girl, Zara. They are both in Delhi and they both have studied at IIT-D at some point of time in their story. The room 105 in the title is actually Zara's room in IIT Delhi's hostel and it was very dear to her (and to Keshav as well, since he used to visit her in there). They dated for a while when Raghu, the third wheel for this relationship, tags along. Raghu, being a rich, business owner, attracts Zara towards him leaving Keshav for a 'secure future' or 'practical reasons' (as the book says)! The Raghu-Zara chapter runs for a while before Zara gets killed in her own hostel room in sleep and Keshav gets into trouble! Why? Because he was the first on the crime scene. The story takes unbelievable turns, when a Jihadist step-brother of Zara and a soldier of Indian army get into the picture and all in all, the middle chapters (which are a tad boring, tbh) go into the hunt for the killer.'

Rating and Conclusion: 5/5

The two highlights of this book are: the romance in the earlier parts of the book (as it is CB's strongest suit) and the twist in the end. A must read for Chetan Bhagat followers and no matter what the Indian population think of him, he still creates some of the most engaging stories in India! Proof? This book was already a bestseller on the basis of only the pre-orders!

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About the Creator

Hitarth Raval

Connect with me on Instagram @ravalhitarth

Why don't you find out more in my stories? ;)

Check out my book! - Musings Diary - A Collection

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