You Came Like Hope by Jyoti Arora
Peehu:
“I
heard them mourn my death. I lay in the next room. Motionless, silent, and
staring at the ceiling.”
Adih:
“When
it comes to a broken person, some of them are expert at blinding you. Spend an
entire evening with such a person, but you may still not know how he is
crushing inside.”
Uday:
“Who
would say no to him? He is smart, intelligent, super handsome, rich, suave and
sophisticated. He’s perfect!”
Pooja:
“Pooja
gave no explanation. She asked no forgiveness. She just arrived in his home,
resenting him for being her husband.”
Arunav:
“He
had smiled as if nothing was wrong.
He
had behaved as if he still had his dreams and hopes.
He
had pretended as if it didn’t hurt.
But
it did.”
Does
Destiny hold the key to our happiness?
Is
it always the feeble that is the victim?
Love
can be the embrace of heaven. But what happens when it unleashes hellfire?
Lose
yourself in the intense narrative of You Came Like Hope as it unleashes a
rollercoaster of emotions, uncovers some bitter truths, challenges widespread
prejudices, and forces you to reconsider your beliefs.
Check out the Free Sample of the novel
Book Trailer:
Book Links:
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·
What is the first book that made you cry?
The truth is that tears don’t come easily to me. So far,
there have been only two books that brought me close to tears. The first one is
No Greater Love by Danielle Steel. The main conflict of the book rises from the
sinking of the Titanic. In that one tragic accident, the young heroine loses
her parents and fiancé and has to grow up at once to assume the
responsibilities of her young siblings. All this has been brought out very
poignantly in the book and brought me close to tears several times.
The second book is Villette by Charlotte Bronte. This beautiful book is a journey from one
tragedy to another. It’s the saddest book I’ve read till now.
·
What is the most unethical practice in the
publishing industry?
There is lot of exploitation of the desperate author.
Publishers want the authors to pay for publishing books. All sorts of marketing
agencies have come up to rob the author. The worst practice I’ve seen is giving
negative royalty to the author because the book is selling at a discount.
·
What are common traps for aspiring writers?
Aspiring writers are very attractive preys and there are
many eager to exploit them. From vanity publishing to fraud marketing agencies.
Authors must be very careful and think twice before handing their money to
anyone in hopes of quick fame.
·
Have you ever gotten reader’s block?
Yes, sometimes when I find the book too boring. Most
recently, it was while reading Basil by Wilkie Collins. I liked the story of
the book but felt bored of it at several places. I actually speed-read through
several of its long passages. I felt like giving it up. But then, I am a
bookworm and bookworms don’t give up on books.
·
Do you believe in writer’s block?
Yes, it happens. Sometimes, the ideas just won’t come. When
I’m caught in this situation, distracting my mind with other pursuits helps me in
clearing it.
·
If you could tell your younger writing self
anything, what would it be?
The path you have chosen is not an easy one. Be prepared to
face many disappointments and road blocks. Just trust in your skill and write
as you want to write.
·
How did publishing your first book change your
process of writing?
I had to cut my first novel in half because it was too long.
After it, I am very careful about my book’s word count. Other than that, I
don’t think there’s much change. I still write as before.
·
How many hours a day do you write?
I have a full time, night-shift job. That makes it very hard
for me to find time to write. It’s barely an hour in a day that I am able to write
these days. I try to compensate on weekends.
·
If you didn’t write, what would you do for work?
I once heard of a job of Paid Guest at a luxury resort in
some island. The company wanted to hire someone to live as a permanent guest at
the resort and report if he or she noted anything wrong or any deficiency in
service. I’d love to have that job!
·
Do you read your book reviews? How do you deal
with bad or good ones?
Yes, I read the reviews I get for my books. I consider good
reviews as encouragement and bad reviews as lessons. However, it is the average
of reviews that I consider most important. The gist of most of the reviews. If
something is getting repeated in several reviews, I make a careful note of it.
Read an Excerpt:
Prologue
The trouble with me is that I forget all caution, when I need it the most.
I knew I was not supposed to set foot inside his house. I had already done one blunder. The result of that was wrapping its web around me. Suffocating me. It was foolishness to be stepping into yet another mistake.
But there I was.
‘It doesn’t matter. I’ll leave soon. He’s not here anyway,’ I excused myself, taking a deep breath of the pleasant lemon-scented air of the place.
The room was simply furnished. There was an oval centre table topped with a black glass. Pencil scrapes fluttered on half of it and school books and notebooks covered the other half. An almost empty school bag lay huddled on the grey couch next to it. There were matching single-seaters on the other side of the table. A square dining table stood on one side of the room. It had only two chairs.
Besides this sombre furniture, there were three Disney cushions on the grey couch, artificial sunflowers with smiley faces in a vase, a flower-shaped wall clock, and a cute flower and bee shaped perfume dispenser in a corner. These childish whims and fancies served well to add cheer to otherwise too plain a room.
My eyes brushed past all these things, only to be arrested by a photo hanging on a wall. It showed a girl child holding the hand of a tall man. He was dressed in blue jeans and grey t-shirt. The attire suited his height and strong built well. The child was grinning at the camera. Her companion was looking down and smiling at her. It was a smile that could have forced any woman to become rude and stare with desire. I was glad it was just a picture that I was staring at.
The owner of that smile had moved to Delhi four months ago, renting a house very close to my cousin sister Rajni’s house. This was the first time I had come to stay at my cousin’s home since then. My mother had let me come. But she worried that he was too near, the son of a defamed family.
‘You know what his family history is. Stay away from him, no matter what Rajni tells you,’ she had ordered.
‘Too late,’ I murmured, staring at his picture and wondering what mother would say if she found out. But then, there were far worse things that I had hidden. Things that, I knew, would hurt my parents more. Far more.
I knew I was not supposed to set foot inside his house. I had already done one blunder. The result of that was wrapping its web around me. Suffocating me. It was foolishness to be stepping into yet another mistake.
But there I was.
‘It doesn’t matter. I’ll leave soon. He’s not here anyway,’ I excused myself, taking a deep breath of the pleasant lemon-scented air of the place.
The room was simply furnished. There was an oval centre table topped with a black glass. Pencil scrapes fluttered on half of it and school books and notebooks covered the other half. An almost empty school bag lay huddled on the grey couch next to it. There were matching single-seaters on the other side of the table. A square dining table stood on one side of the room. It had only two chairs.
Besides this sombre furniture, there were three Disney cushions on the grey couch, artificial sunflowers with smiley faces in a vase, a flower-shaped wall clock, and a cute flower and bee shaped perfume dispenser in a corner. These childish whims and fancies served well to add cheer to otherwise too plain a room.
My eyes brushed past all these things, only to be arrested by a photo hanging on a wall. It showed a girl child holding the hand of a tall man. He was dressed in blue jeans and grey t-shirt. The attire suited his height and strong built well. The child was grinning at the camera. Her companion was looking down and smiling at her. It was a smile that could have forced any woman to become rude and stare with desire. I was glad it was just a picture that I was staring at.
The owner of that smile had moved to Delhi four months ago, renting a house very close to my cousin sister Rajni’s house. This was the first time I had come to stay at my cousin’s home since then. My mother had let me come. But she worried that he was too near, the son of a defamed family.
‘You know what his family history is. Stay away from him, no matter what Rajni tells you,’ she had ordered.
‘Too late,’ I murmured, staring at his picture and wondering what mother would say if she found out. But then, there were far worse things that I had hidden. Things that, I knew, would hurt my parents more. Far more.
About the Author:
Jyoti Arora is a novelist
and blogger from Ghaziabad. You Came Like Hope is her third novel, coming after
Dream’s Sake and Lemon Girl. She is Post Graduate in English Literature and
Applied Psychology.
Jyoti Arora is a patient
of Thalassemia Major. But she does not let this stop or discourage her. For her
determination and achievements, Jyoti has received appreciation from Ms Sheila
Dixit, Ms Maneka Gandhi and the Ghaziabad wing of BJP. Her life story has been
covered in various local and national TV shows, radio programs, newspapers,
magazines and websites like YourStory and Inspire India. She was also one of
the ‘100 Women Achievers of India’ that were invited to witness the Republic
Day parade of India (2016) as special guests.
Besides reading and
writing novels, Jyoti also enjoys blogging and has won several blogging
competitions. She loves checking out latest technological innovations, watching
movies, and listening to old Bollywood songs. Reach her at jyotiarora.com.
Contact the Author:
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