Official Review: Errors of Omission: A novel

[Melisa Jane]

[Following is an official OnlineBookClub.org review of "Errors of Omission: A novel" by Mukund Gnanadesikan.]

---

4 out of 4 stars

---

Share This Review

---

Often, we don’t appreciate what we have until it’s taken from us. Unfortunately, this doesn’t just apply to material things. Our parents, for instance, are precious in our daily lives. However, most teenagers don’t see how important these parents are. Errors of Omission by Mukund Gnanadesikan is a fictional novel about how important the people in our lives are, and why we should always appreciate them before it’s too late.

Irina is a young girl who lives with her father in Russia. Her mother was a known singer and a dancer. She, however, gave up her singing carrier to bring up Irina. She died while delivering her second-born. Irina developed respiratory complications as a kid. However, it’s not until they moved to New York that her condition worsened. While at a hospital in New York, she meets Dr. Rajesh Patel who attends to her at the emergency room. While still at the hospital, Dr. Rajesh receives information that his parents had been involved in an accident and are in the ICU. Will his parents survive? Will the interaction between Irina and Dr. Rajesh continue even after being discharged from the hospital?

This book has 264 pages. It is divided into 28 chapters. There are two separate stories in this book. The first story is from the perspective of Irina and her father, Alex. The second story is from the perspective of Dr. Rajesh Patel. Although the author narrates two stories at once, they converge and diverge occasionally. Both stories are narrated from the third person’s point of view, and in the past tense. Although appreciation is the most dominant theme, this book contains a wide range of themes, including education, medicine, law, love and marriage, pain and suffering, and murder.

I enjoyed several aspects of this book. To begin with, it had a very captivating storyline. The plot twists and unexpected turns kept me hooked right from the first page. I also liked that most of the characters, especially the protagonists, were well developed. For instance, Irina was portrayed as a tiny but strong and ambitious lady who loves her parents so much. Dr. Rajesh, however, is portrayed as a character who seems to take blames for everything that happens to those around him. He is devoted to helping his friends whenever he can. Since I didn’t find any grammatical errors while reading, this book was exceptionally edited.

Although this is an enjoyable book, some things affected my enjoyment while reading it. To begin with, the author introduced so many characters. Some of these characters only appear once or twice throughout the book. I found it hard keeping track of them, especially if a character who last appeared in the first chapter reappears again in the last chapter. Although I can’t give details without giving out spoilers, I must mention that the ending of the book seems incomplete and unsatisfying.

In conclusion, this was a well-written book with so many life lessons. I, therefore, rate it 4 out of 4 stars. Although it has some shortcomings, I’m sure they won’t bother most readers. I recommend it to people who enjoy drama and investigative novels. Those who like conclusive endings might get disappointed.

******
Errors of Omission: A novel
View: on Bookshelves

[Zaeda Amrin]

It’s unfortunate that the author introduced so many characters but it seems like the food a good job of fleshing out the main two characters! The book sounds really interesting, I think I have to give it a read. Thank you for the excellent review!

[Dimi1]

I like the description and I find it has an interesting plot. I am quite sceptical, though, on the series of topics opened. Either way, I find your review really interesting and to the point.

[Francis Aderogbin]

I like the theme of this book: appreciate what you have before you miss it. Kudos to the reviewer.