Wednesday 27 August 2014

Book Review: Private India

Book: Private India
Authors: Ashwin Sanghi and James Patterson
Price: 350 INR
ISBN: 978-0099586395

Blurb: In Mumbai seemingly unconnected people are dying, strangled in a chilling ritual and with strange objects carefully arranged with the corpses.
For Santosh Wagh, head of Private India, the Mumbai branch of the world’s finest investigation agency, it's a race against time to stop the killer striking again.
In a city of over thirteen million, he has his work cut out at the best of times but this case has him battling Mumbai's biggest ganglord and a godman who isn't all he seems.
And then he discovers there may be an even greater danger facing Private India. Hidden in the shadows is someone who could destroy the whole organization along with thousands of innocent Mumbai citizens.

My rating: 4.5/5

My review:

When two great mystery writers collaborate for writing a book, you can be sure that this book will be no ordinary experience. Private India is one such book that you can pick up without having an ounce of doubt.

The attractive cover of the book along with the intriguing blurb tantalizes readers to dive into the book. And as you dive in the book, the very first chapter captivates you.

The story begins with the murder of a doctor, Kanya Jaiyen in Marine Bay Plaza Hotel. The Hotel asks Private India, the biggest investigative agency to solve the case. The team of Private India constitutes of Santosh Wagh: head of Private India, Nisha Gandhe: an attractive investigator, Mubeen: the medical examiner and Hari: the technology geek. ACP Rupesh Desai assists Private India in this case.

Soon, one by one murders of women keeps happening in Mumbai and the object common to their murder is a yellow garrote with which the victims are strangulated to death. The corpses are left with uncanny and dissimilar objects like lotus, rosary, half one rupee coin, doll etc. The objects perplex Santosh Wagh to extremity until he starts connecting the dots and then tries to reach closer to the killer.

The way Private India solves the case is amazingly witty and interesting. Especially the juncture where Santosh Wagh connects the dots (read: uncanny objects) is brilliant. It will surely give the readers an adrenaline rush. Similarly, the way Private India finally traces the killer is amazing. No one can guess who the killer is until they reach towards the end of the book. Readers will suspect many people in between reading the book. The book is marvelously scripted in this regard.

There are some chapters where we find the killer’s soliloquy. Those chapters will give the readers some extra thrill.

The main characters of the book are finely etched. Santosh’s character is sketched with the perfect hues. We see him as a painfully intelligent investigator who has a tormenting past that haunts him every now and then. Santosh Wagh’s intelligence will surely blow the minds of readers. Nisha’s character of a brave and fearless investigator is sketched well too. Same goes for the characters of Hari, Mubeen, Jack Morgan and Rupesh.

Well, the downside of the book is that in the middle of the book, so many characters are introduced that readers may feel a little lost. But that phase doesn't last long, the book quickly grips and engages again. Apart from this, there are no flaws in the book.

Private India is an unputdownable thriller. The pages of the book turn themselves. Highly recommended!
Just a suggestion to readers: Try to read it at a go. That will help you savor this mystery thriller much more!




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Thursday 7 August 2014

Book Review: An Audience with Lama

Book : An Audience with Lama
Author: Abhilash
Publisher: Venkatesh Publisher
Price: 100 INR
ISBN: 9789350675

Blurb: In August 2010 the city of Leh was ravaged by a cloud burst. Amidst the destructive facet of mother nature we also witnessed true grit from the survivors. One of the survivors who grappled onto life was Abhilash. He recorded anecdotes and messages of fellow survivors and weaved them into a tantalizing narrative. 

A story that expanses a road trip across the picturesque landscape of Khardung La, laced with mystic spiritualism of Tibet. Aptly titled "AN AUDIENCE WITH LAMA" This piece of biographical fiction coupled with real life events makes a perfect anytime read.

My rating: 3.7/5

My review:  First of all, I must congratulate the author for writing a beautiful book that is a blend of adventure and spirituality. The story begins with ten strangers spending a night on a secluded roof, with apprehension that death may visit them any moment. Leh is galloped by a gigantic flood and destiny brings these ten survivors together. They spend the entire night talking about each other's life, their fears, their flaws and insecurities. When these ten survivors face their demons together, they learn to see their life in a new perspective.

All the characters are different from each other, yet very interesting and relatable. The character that I found the most interesting is the character of Hrijan. The ending is beautiful. Readers will be content when they will finally draw the connection between the prologue and the ending.  The landscapes described in the book will make you fall in love with the places. While leafing through the pages, I literally felt that I have also traveled to Manali, Keylong and Leh with the narrator.

On the downside, some portions of the book were a little dragged. Another drawback that I found in the book is that it becomes difficult to understand who is talking among the ten characters. With proper and frequent change of paragraphs, this problem could have been avoided. 

The author has done a decent job in this book. This book is recommended for people who love spiritual fictions and books on journey of rediscovering oneself.

Saturday 2 August 2014

Book Review: Metro Diaries - Seventeen LOVE Classics

Book : Metro Diaries-Seventeen LOVE classics
Author: Namrata
Published by: Amazon
Kindle Price: 60 INR

Blurb: From London Society of Poets' Author - Namrata, comes the first book as a collection of urban romance short stories.
Have you loved someone? "Metro Diaries" will revive your innermost feelings and imbibe in you the magic of love.
What happens when Abhimanyu Singh, a champion volley ball player, has to make a choice between his love and his dreams? When an ideal student, a perfect son, and a hardworking employee like Abhimanyu gets the opportunity to build up his career at the cost of his love, does he give up on his dreams for his love or does he sacrifice his love for his career? Read 'Love thy Dreams' and sixteen other heart-throbbing stories...
Touching, amusing and deeply moving, Metro Diaries-Seventeen Love Classics are seventeen tales that will hold you from start till end.

My rating: 4/5

My review: Metro Diaries is a collection of 17 short stories, all of which revolves around the beautiful feeling called love. Every story is sketched in a different color that expresses love. While reading the book, at least one or two stories will surely remind you of some incidents or that special person of your life. The other stories will inspire you, make you smile, cry and wonder about so many facets of love. Here is my take on the 17 stories of this book.

1. Once in a life-time: The perfect story to start the book with. It gives you the feeling that you are in for a romantic dive. This is the story of a girl, Nitya whose failed relationship has made her build walls around her heart which a guy called Ansh successfully breaks by the depth of his love. The words that Ansh tell Nitya touches the heart. Extremely romantic!

2. Then, now and forever: A very soulful story. The letter that Ron's grandpa had written for his grandma years back redefines love for Ron. After reading this story, you will be in smiles.

3. Love thy dreams: This is a story about how a girl supports the guy to pursue his dreams at any cost and at the end, the guy wants to fulfill the dream of marrying the girl.

4.The Wait: A girl falls in love with her best friend but her love remains unrequited and disrespected due to the norms of the society. A different story which has a heartbreaking ending.

5. A secret revealed: This is the story of a girl who fought with her identity all her life until someone showered her with unconditional love. 

6. A promise of a life-time: This is a beautiful love story of two individuals who studied in the same college. Their unspoken love metamorphosed into a relationship after they met on a friend's wedding and the guy finally proposed the girl. A feel-good story that will make you smile and the poem at the end of this story is exceptionally romantic.

7.Will you?: A conversation between a boy and a girl after the boy proposes her. The promises mentioned in this story are heart-warming.

8. Love Beyond Words: One of my favorite story in this book. The letter in this story moved me to tears, Exceptionally written; every word soaked in the magic of love. The quotes of Paulo Coelho are well placed in the story which enhances its magic further.

9. Imperfectly Perfect: Another gem of this book. The approach to this story is very realistic. People often wince when they see a beautiful girl with an average guy and vice versa but love is from the heart and the soul. This thing is beautifully expressed in the story and the metaphor used in the story about a poet and his poem will surely mesmerize the readers.

10. A thing called love: This story captures the pain of unrequited and unanswered love beautifully. This is a story about a girl madly in love with a guy who is cocooned by his dreams.

11. The Sole Soul Mate: Sweetest story of the book. The story is about how Nishani, Sahil's best friend explained him the meaning of soul mates and he realizes that she is his soul mate. The metaphor used is awesome.

12. The Yellowed Diary: Words of a girl dipped in pathos are trapped in her diary. The anguish of the girl is beautifully captured.

13. You, me and love: Another of my favorite story of this book. This story is exceptionally romantic and will make you want to fall in love. The line of this story "No..she isn't my soul mate. She is my soul...the one who keeps me alive." gave me goosebumps.

14. Unlocked: A simple story about how a guy who kept his relationship concealed from all decides to unlock it finally. The poem at the end is beautiful.

15. Memories: Very soulful story. The way memories associated with a photograph has been described brings tears to the eyes.

16. A message of love: The girl in the story finds an anonymous letter inside a book she purchased. That letter made her realize the value of love. Beautiful narration.

17. Her: A simple and sweet story about a boy madly in love with a girl.

The collection of stories in this book is marvelous. Special mention for story no. 8, 9, 11, 12, 13 and 15. Readers won't feel bored even for a second and will yearn to fall in love all over again after reading the stories of this book. There are a few editing glitches in the book which could have been improved. The poems used after most of the stories are the best part of this book. 
Highly recommended for all the romantic souls out there!