Veena S. Rao, a retired IAS officer was “crazy about literature”.
That is not all, she also enjoyed writing stories, which are “triggered by my thinking and imagination so much that sometimes, it is difficult for me to stop. It also makes writing for me effortless. I believe all of us are writers, some of us express ourselves with words while some don’t as they may have inhibitions,” says Veena.
Her debut novel Charlotte’s End, inspired by Rebecca by Daphne du Maurier, has hit the online bookstores and is available on Amazon, Flipkart and Kindle. “It is available in leading bookstores. “The book starts where Rebecca ends,” explains Veena, so it is set in a similar style and is also very descriptive. The book also has the suspense element of Rebecca .
“Along with literature I was hooked on to Hitchcock series and one of my favourites was Rebecca . For some reason the story just stayed on in my mind. Then I read Mrs de Winter — a novel by Susan Hill published in 1993 as a sequel to Rebecca. Mrs de Winter was a depressing story with a sad ending. I thought why not write about it with a happy ending. I believe every romance and love story demands a happy ending,” she explains.
In Charlotte’s End, the protagonist, starts off timid but grows into a strong woman, who overcomes all her problems.
“She grows from a girl into a woman of strong character. That way the book also has a message to women that trials can make them strong and they can start afresh from wherever life has taken them. The book takes off where Rebecca ends, that is the reason my story is set in that same era as it was natural and gives the story a natural flow,” adds Veena.
