Megha reviews The Red Diary, by Neelam Saxena Chandra, for Different Truths. 

The Red Diary, by Neelam Saxena Chandra, is a riveting and deep exposition of the entire spectrum of human emotions ranging from love, desire, hatred, revenge, thrill, and mystery. It has all the elements of a successful and good novel worth reading from cover to cover.

I love the way the story has been divided into different parts narrating the different times in the life of the protagonist Rihaan. How the first part deals with the crisp character introductions and the narration and his varied emotions. The relations between the protagonists and the other characters in the novel are also clearly and brilliantly defined.

The second part of the story, which is one of my favorite parts, brings out more characters and the stories behind them. I love how the different characters add to the flavor of the novel by not taking away the attention from the story of the main character Rihaan. I loved the realistic portrayal of the characters and the lucid language used in defining them.

I am very intrigued how the author has beautifully juxtaposed the different emotions of the love (one between Ketan and Supriya) and the unrequited love between Rihaan and Shivi, the desiring love between Ina and Rihaan. The middle part also tells and concludes the story of the star-crossed lovers (Rihanna and Ina) and adds the element of mystery and intrigue to the mix following the sudden death of Ina and the events which unfold after that. How Ina falls prey to the greed of success and fame and becomes entangled in the flesh business which ultimately leads to her murder.

The riveting story in the novel comes full circle in the third part of the novel, where the protagonist finally comes to know about the life of his parents and the reason to be in the orphanage. Through the protagonist’s story, the novelist has marvelously expressed the varied emotions of the human heart and the trial and the tribulations in one’s life which propels oneself to the path of success, as what happened in the case of Rihan and how he ended up being a successful tennis player. I loved the happy ending of the story where love and faith win over every possible struggle.

If I must sum up in one line, I will say that The Red Diary is a beautiful exposition of human emotions in all its entirety with a beautiful and inspiring ending.

First published in the author’s blog

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Megha Sood

Megha Sood is an award-winning Asian-American poet, author, editor, and literary activist based in New Jersey. A Literary Partner with Stanford University’s “Life in Quarantine,” she is the author of four poetry collections, including My Body Lives Like a Threat (2022) and Language of the Wound is Love (2025). Her work has appeared in over 900 outlets, including MS Magazine, PBS, and NYPL. Her anthology The Medusa Project was launched to the moon with NASA in 2025.

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