"The Brightest Fell", by Nupur Chowdhury

In the wake of a bloody civil war, we enter the world of Naijan, a fictional and futuristic country ruled alternately by the Birhani and the Zanya factions who had agree to share power over the population. The tale opens in the aftermath of a bomb-blast in the metro system of its capital city that left hundreds dead. The blast has created public rage and pressure on the Prime Minister to clear the use of Amven on criminals during the investigation....and so the game begins.....

The story is mostly set up to be a political thriller with plenty of corruption, disputes and resentments between the two factions. It also spins a dash of Sci-Fi around a miracle drug that would make terrorists docile. But the creator of the drug wants to keep the drug out of the hands of politicians even it means betraying his closes friends. Then, the story introduces us to some very colourful characters that have their own hidden agenda. The names of places and characters may be a challenge to remember but bear with it eventually it will all fit in. The characters do use slangs and expression some may use in their daily lives but not everyone, another challenge.....The witty and funny dialogues helps to keep the elements of suspense moving along at a fast pace. Some would say the story is dialogue heavy, indeed we do, pages after pages without a break. Dialogue driven story is a style I like, it makes for a lively read. A lot is going on: back stabbing, double crossing and plenty of unpredictable twists and turns.

This thriller is well-written, no choppy sentences, everything flows smoothly, the prose is of quality and the plot interesting, overall nicely done.

Thanks to the author, who provided me with a free copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.