Vagh Pratap Singh aka the Captain is a conman extraordinaire. From transporting illegal merchandise and stealing cars to breaking safes, he’s done it all. But now, in his fortieth year, he’s ready to retire. So when Udham Kumar, a crooked politician from Uttar Pradesh, commissions the Captain to track down and steal Poppy Flowers, a Vincent van Gogh’s painting that has been smuggled into India after it went missing in a museum in Egypt in 2010, the Captain knows that he’s found his last, and biggest case. But the painting is now in possession of a dangerous gangster, and the Captain is being followed by Udham Kumar’s ruthless associates, greedy for both money and power. As the odds against him begin to stack up, the Captain realizes that his last heist might not be as easy as he’d imagined.

When I got this book in my hands, never expected it would bring all the thrill and allure of an action-packed film. For me, reading this novel was like watching a heist cum road movie.

 Vagh Pratap Singh A.K.A Captain, the protagonist, engages in a heist of Vincent Van Gogh’s famous painting “Poppy Flowers”. The whole book is an adventuresome account of this theft. The author has meticulously written every detail, which would make the reader engrossed in the book until the end. I have often seen in books portrays a protagonist as an epitome of virtue but unlike the rest, Captain who is an infamous thief with some moral values. Whatsoever, the story inclines more to reality than fiction.

It’s apparent that the author has done exceptional research before writing this book. Because I felt Dhamija constantly was trying to make the novel sounds realistic with having no loose ends. Throughout the book, every reader could experience the brilliance of his writing and the plot. I am someone from down south who has no familiarity with the road route of North India; even then I enjoyed the account of the protagonist expedition. A tinge of anticipation lurks in every sentence, which points the upcoming twists. Hence the book has the potential of keeping the readers on their toes while reading.

The plot development and character building are excellent. I feel the best part of this book is its story execution, as a well-planned heist. The story veers through unexpected tracks. Oh boy! I would not stop praising the author’s imagination. I was just flabbergasted.

The character building of the main protagonist and the other relevant characters is in the right proportion without overdoing it. Especially the protagonist’s life events have revealed through different chapters rather than telling it in one go.

So with the writing style, it’s lucid yet sophisticated. I got learning many new words from the book, indeed a brownie point to the readers.  The book has been written in the first-person and third-person perspective.

Towards the middle, the story seems to lag and would bore the reader for a while. One reason for the lag is, the author gives away rather unnecessary information on ammunition. And the other, the book has more descriptions than dialogues. As a reader, I would like to read a story through the characters conversations. I felt the story could have been better if it avoided those lags.

The biggest disappointment, as far as I am concerned, was the editing of the book. I have spotted serious editing mistakes, which in turn dwindled my enthusiasm. I think these mistakes could not be overlooked because it would affect the book severely.

The quintessential part of the book is, of course, Vincent Van Gogh’s “Poppy Flowers” which was stolen from Egypt Museum in 2010. I was unaware of this before. Hats-off to the author who fictionalises this real incident in his book, which is splendid. I would recommend this book to those who like to read the action-thriller genre.