Abhinav Kashyap Releases “The Crossfire of Love”, A Novel by US-based Author Dhiren Tiwari

Abhinav Kashyap Releases “The Crossfire of Love”, A Novel by US-based Author Dhiren Tiwari
Filmmaker Abhinav Kashyap with Author Dhiren Tiwari and his latest book 'The Crossfire of Love'

Mumbai: Filmmaker and screenwriter Abhinav Kashyap of the Dabangg fame recently unveiled the novel The Crossfire of Love, a racing psychological romantic thriller by US-based author Dhiren Tiwari. Within days of the release, the novel has topped the WH Smith Bestseller charts, and has garnered high praise from both critics in print and television, and reviewers on social cataloging website Goodreads.

Speaking at the launch of the novel, Abhinav Kashyap said, “Contemporary characters with deep internal conflicts and fractured souls. The book is a provocative read that inspired me to introspect and heal myself.”

With The Crossfire of Love, Tiwari is fast establishing his position as a leading author in India’s thriving mass market paperback publishing space that is marked by a voracious appetite for the romance and suspense genres. In this tightly paced fiction, Tiwari deftly combines the two high demand genres and embroils the reader in an unforgettable journey of intrigue that is reminiscent of the works of some of the most well-loved crime and mystery writers such as Sidney Sheldon, Stieg Larsson, Gillian Flynn, and Paula Hawkins, all of whom Tiwari cites as his literary inspirations.

Set in the fictional kingdom of hilly Attanooga, the visually evocative novel is an explosive #MeToo story told from the perspectives of Saira, a failed journalist obsessed with reviving her career through a show on the life and times of Attanooga’s dead queen, and Amaan, the deceased queen’s son. The twists and turns in the fate of star-crossed lovers is akin to the nail-biting drama that would at times squeeze the gut.

As Saira and Amaan look to rekindle their doomed relationship, they stumble upon a deadly secret that threatens to smear the royal family’s legacy and push the people of Attanooga to the brink of apoplectic destruction. Much like the characters, the reader is held in deliberate uncertainty, lulled into a false sense of security, only to have the rug pulled under them in the climax - all at a tense, gripping pace.

The surreal feeling of watching rather than reading the unraveling of the minds of Saira and Amaan are entirely due to Tiwari’s narrative technique that relies heavily on skill for his other passion - screenwriting for movies. Much like the King’s Landing in the celebrated fantasy drama series Game of Thrones, the stark dichotomy of Attanooga’s landscape - with its fiery volcanoes nestled in harsh winter snow - serves as an unnerving reminder of the complex ‘do-or-die’ choices that the flawed, multi-layered and morally ambiguous central characters are forced to make, as well as the clash between the primal forces of nature and nurture, a dominant theme in the book.

Commenting on The Crossfire of Love, Dhiren Tiwari said, “There are no heroes in this book. The characters inhabit confused worlds with foggy pasts and are thrown into situations where they have to make life-altering decisions. The novel is essentially a dive into the complexities of the mind and the instinctive need to define boundaries between good and evil.” To develop Saira’s character, Tiwari spoke to several women to understand a female perspective on morally conflicting situations.

“This is one of the most intriguing and entertaining books of this year. It is a must-read for anyone who enjoys reading fast paced, family drama in a high stakes world,” said Arup Bose, Publisher, Srishti Publishers.

The Crossfire of Love is Dhiren Tiwari’s second book after his debut novel Punk Sunk Love published in 2016. Released by former Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan among other eminent public personalities, Punk Sunk Love is a critically acclaimed suspense fiction that frequently topped the bestseller charts at Amazon.in and Crossword. Tiwari, a Director in a world-renowned consulting firm decided to formally launch his first book after nearly a decade of dabbling in writing as a hobby. Punk Sunk Love was also featured in the New-York based Third Annual IAAC Literary Festival organized by the Indo-American Arts Council in 2016.