Intelligence of Sherlock Holmes and deliberation of Byomkesh Bakshi come together in one character of Penumbra. Many a murder mysteries start on a high note but lose rhythm as they progress. Either the story becomes too predictable or has so many twists that one loses track of original plot. But not Penumbra. Bhaskar Chattopadhyay clearly knows how to balance. After reading Patang (read the review here), I was impatiently waiting for his next book. While Patang’s protagonist was professional and experienced, the character in Penumbra derives his acumen from chess. Superb story, absolutely flawless and gripping writing style and unpredictable climax, is what takes Penumbra beyond awesome by many leaps and bounds.
