Five year-end reads by women authors

From what keeps women out of the workplace, to stories that connect law and humanity, here are five female authors to end your year and with.

'Yours Legally' by Sonia Sahijwani

'Yours Legally' is a collection of six short stories related to the interesting and unusual field of law narrated through the eyes of Sia, the protagonist. These are independent yet connected stories with the common elements of law, and humanity. "The book is based on and inspired by real life incidents and events which I was fortunate enough to experience and witness, and stories which I felt needed to come out in the literary world. It has been written in a way that it appeals to not just those who are a part of the profession but even those who might not have ever stepped inside the court nor heard anything about the law," says Sonia Sahijwani Saini.

'Lines of Fate' by Neelam Saxena Chandra

'Lines of Fate' is a short story collection consisting of selected, distinctive and unique tales from different walks of life set in the Indian diaspora. When the dice is rolled, one does not know what the outcome will be. Similarly, whenever there is an encounter between people; the aftermath is simply indefinite and unidentifiable. Maybe, the lines of fate decide the final outcome. Twists and turns are a part and parcel of each of these stories, written in lucid language.

'Have The Women Left Venus' by Geet Mala Jalota

For many women today, there are no role models at home to learn how to navigate the workplace. Women learn to copy their male bosses, subverting their strengths. The book aims to correct this gap. It points out leadership behaviours practised by women confident in their femininity. Using interviews with 60 women from India and abroad, the book crystallizes the success factors and some of the reasons why women leave the workplace. "Have the Women Left Venus" explores the internal external reasons that prevent women from pursuing the career of their dreams or run a business.

'Love Or Life Choices' by Neha Jain

Vivan and Anubhuti are great friends during their graduation time when they first met each other. But towards the end, they start loving each other. Post-graduation is a really tough time for them. Friendship, love, separation, surprise meetings and reunions run through Vivan and Anubhuti's relationship during five important phases of their lives. Discover this enchanting story of love and friendship full of the real practicalities of our normal lives.

'The Involution' by Vijayalata N

"The Involution: The Beginning" is a science fiction novel revolving around multidimensional planes of existence. It combines spiritual, mythological and scientific realms into reality which unlocks the subtlety of one's true potential which blossoms in our tough times as resilience and miracle. The story revolves around four college students Adi, Kriday, Rudra and Deepti, their friendship which entails accepting each other's uniqueness and standing by one other at all times. The protagonist Adi is unique with innate abilities to see and travel through altered dimensions, clairvoyance, clairaudience and telepathic, however is naive to his own abilities. He has a rare immunity disorder that makes him physically sick most of the time but as the universe unravels itself Adi finds his higher self Manasvini, protector rakshak and a white bearded man who trains him in the astral world to unleash Adi's true potential. He discovers that he is not what he thinks he is but his potential is much higher than his set of limitations, the past present and future existed at the same time and everyone has the ability to defy space and time.