So I have been part of BlogAdda website and it is a great platform for bloggers to participate in various activities and also to share their blog with other bloggers. They had run a contest where a team of 10 bloggers was created and each team was given the same set of 6 characters with their profession around which they will have to create the story and write a book. Six Degrees Game of Blogs is a collection of 3 stories out of thousands of entries they received.

Before I talk about three stories, let’s take a look at 6 main characters around which story is framed: 

Shekhar Dutta – Stay at home dad who does freelance writing in Mumbai and take care of his daughter Roohi. Married to Tara. 

Tara Dutta – Successful media person and too busy to give time to family, especially Shekhar and her daughter, Roohi.

Roohi Dutta – 6 Year old daughter of Shekhar and Tara.

Cyrus Daruwala – First year Law student from Delhi.

Jennifer Joseph – Photographer from South India

Aryan Ahuja – Neighbour of Shekhar and Tara Dutta. 

Stories:

The Awakening

The first story in the book is a sci-fi version. This story talks about an alien invasion on planet earth and effort to stop them from succeeding. The story talks about a secret group who talks about alien and their stay on earth. They define alien in two categories – Gray Alien, the evil one and Peacekeeper alien, the good ones. The story talks about how Peacekeeper aliens have stayed on earth in their human form to maintain balance in the universe and save earth from catastrophes. Everything was going good until Gray Alien found a way to enter the surface of the earth and destroy it. The peacemakers are trying their best to save the earth, but they need help of one of the strong alien who is in human form and has forgotten about the past (real) life as an alien. The commander of Peacekeeper alien heads to awaken the strong one and save the earth. 

The story is very well written. The character and fundamental which are important in the sci-fi book is covered pretty well. Though the ending is totally predictable, it keeps you well engrossed. What I missed or would have liked to be included was super unpredictable twist in the end which makes the readers flabbergasted. Overall, real good attempt at writing sci-fi story.

Entangled Lives

The second story in the book is a murder mystery. This story talks about a murder taking place in Dutta residence and finding the murderer. Few new characters are introduced in the story. Dutta family is living their usual life when one day, 5 main characters happen to be at Dutta residence when their maid, Naina, get murdered. Inspector Java investigate the case and looks for a murderer. While solving the mystery, he finds the connection which entangled lives of all characters in one way or another. Twist and turn in the story will keep you engrossed in the story.

Again, a well written attempt at creating interesting murder mystery out of ordinary character. The story gets little drag in the end and you will be sure that you know the killer when the writers (bloggers) added a powerful twist to the story. The only down point of this book is a little drag in the middle and twist consuming only 2-3 pages, whereas I expected it to be little more that just conclusion. 

Missing – A Journey Within 

The third story in the book is suspense and drama. It talks about characters looking for something missing in their life. The beginning of the story talks about Roohi missing when she doesn’t come home from school. Shekhar and Tara frantically search for Roohi on the streets of Mumbai. The second half of the story takes you to Delhi to the life of Cyrus. Apart from the suspense of where Roohi can be and what will happen to her, it also talks about homosexuality and how it affects the life of a few and their struggle to feel accepted in the world.

Compared to two other stories, this one was little short and quite fast paced. A well written story focusing on the issue people face and how a tragedy can change the life of the people. The team has really put an effort to bring the emotion of the character come alive. Bit predictable in the end, but the drama will keep you glued to the book. 

The entire experience of reading this book was amazing. Initially I thought from the title that the book will be about sharing the experience of successful blogger, however, it turned out to be something else. Six Degrees Game of Blog  offered a platform to bloggers to venture into writing a novel and give life to the characters. The bloggers really came through in their stories.