HONEST REVIEW OF PAIN & CURE ( LONG RANTING)
My honest review about Pain and Cure...
So guys, recently, after seeing so much hype around Pain and Cure, I decided to give it a try. I do not know why, but seeing so many people hate the book made me curious enough to read it. Within one week, I finished it till the latest chapters, and now I am waiting for updates. After reading it, I realized that the book actually deserves the hype it gets because everything about it feels so unique. Every chapter brings something different, and I genuinely do not understand why people hate it so much. To be honest, I am a very, very selective reader and only read books from selective authors, but now I understand the hype around Sublime/Subh. Pain and Cure is genuinely a very well-plotted book.
People on Reddit keep hating on Isha, saying things like how she is a heart surgeon yet acts overly innocent and behaves like a 'sati savitri' , but I feel like most people completely miss the intention behind her character. By the latest chapters (mid chapters also), it becomes clear that she is not innocent at all. Before her marriage with Ekaksh, she had already made a deal, and she is actually a spy working in the dark realm because of an Indian cult and rituals. That is the reason she was intentionally portrayed as overly innocent in the beginning. Now I understand why people who only read the starting chapters end up hating the book on Reddit.
Honestly, I enjoyed the book so, so much. Ekaksh being a mafia is not just for the title. The author actually shows the functioning of mafias in detail, how syndicates work, and how the underworld operates. Everything is explained so well that it genuinely feels like the author has done extensive research instead of randomly writing things for the sake of aesthetics. I genuinely think this is one of the few Wattpad books where the mafia profession is not just there to make the male lead look powerful ( obviously not like those mafia MLs being a Mafia king and lurking behind his wife everytime) The male lead even attends syndicate runs, and the entire book is deeply rooted in dark underworld politics.
At first, Isha is portrayed in a certain way, but slowly, as the story progresses, the dots start connecting and huge twists are revealed. Everything begins to make sense. I genuinely do not understand how such a good book still gets hated on this sub.
Another thing I loved is how women are portrayed in the story. In Wattpad, women are often reduced to doormats or manipulated characters, but not in this book. Ekaksh himself has endured immense pain, and the only two women who truly mattered in his life, his mother and bua, were taken away from him. The women in this story are never treated as weak or helpless. They are powerful, important, and often the ones influencing major decisions.
The entire Golden Triangle plot is incredibly impressive and one of the best mafia-related storylines I have read. The lost princess arc between the families is so well written too. Imagine a book becoming this hyped while having only one smut chapter, and that too around the 69th chapter. The rest of the hype exists because of the bold dialogues, layered storytelling, and uniqueness of the plot. (I think it is a pattern. For example, Brutally Yours gained massive attention because of its bold dark dailogue reels, and the same happened with Pain and Cure ( lotus position) . That is why many people assume both books are overly smutty or cringe. But to be honest, I think Instagram’s algorithm has become like this for authors with genuinely good plot-driven stories. To attract an audience, they often rely on bold or attention-grabbing reels because unique plot-based content hardly gets pushed by Instagram, and people usually do not engage with it as much. So maybe that is how authors try to market their books, but it often ends up bringing hate too. In both books, the plots are actually very strong, while the bold dialogues are what gained attention. The smut is very limited, and in Pain and Cure, the first smut scene only appears around chapter 69.)
Yes, the starting chapters can feel cringe at times, and there are certain parts that may make you question the writing. But trust the process. If you ever decide to pick up the book, read till the end. The way the plot twists unfold, layer after layer, keeps every chapter engaging and makes you want to continue reading. Everything from the cult, the curses, the underworld, and the mafia world is stitched together beautifully. It never feels disconnected.
What I loved the most is that the mafia aspect is not only there to make the male lead look strong. The author genuinely explores how mafias function, along with darker tracks like child trafficking, and reveals everything chapter by chapter in such an interesting way.
Goddammit, I absolutely loved the women in this book. They are never treated like doormats. In many ways, they are the ones running the story while the male lead is wrapped around their fingers.
At last, I genuinely never understood why this book is so hated on this sub, but this is my honest review. It has become one of my favorite picks. If someone is looking for a twisted mystery thriller with romance, I would definitely recommend giving it a try. Also, the female lead is not innocent at all. She is actually very smart.
And please dont bash on me i gave honest review after completing from first to last (latest chapter) so please be respectful and don't tag me as any 'minion' i gave geniue and honest review of the book...