Book Review: The Bestseller She Wrote

Book Title: The Bestseller She Wrote
Author: Ravi Subramanian

Published in October 2015 by Westland
Reviewed for: BlogAdda
Someone has rightly said - Success has its own side-effects. Aditya, a successful banker cum author (popularly known as the Paperback king), falls into the trap laid out for him by a young lass (20 something trainee) who uses him to publish her first novel. His journey to romance, adultery, loss, realization and redemption is what this book is all about.
.

The Premise: "The Bestseller she wrote is a romance thriller where loyalty is traded for adultery, success is borrowed, best friends betray each other and realization comes on death bed."

Aditya, the protagonist of the story is an Alumnus of IIM Bangalore and is a very successful banker and desirable author. He visits his college for a guest lecture where he is interrupted and derided by Shreya, an ambitious student and wannabe author, over the concept that a book is not a product.

Shreya is headstrong on becoming an author like Aditya and patch up with him after the debacle so she reads his book and is absolutely impressed by him. She writes to him and plans to join his book event. Aditya is mesmerized by her young fresh beauty and pushes his best friend, Sanjay, who is also an HR at his bank to hire her as a trainee.

Adiya and Shreya cannot seem to have their eyes off each other at office and one thing leads to another, they enter a romantic relationship. Maya, Aditya's wife is a simplistic and mature woman who has been loyal to him. She has also left her job because of her family and is involved in some social work. The relationship between Aditya and Shreya grows intense and Maya is ignorant about it all the way. Soon, she comes to realize about their relationship (via phone messages) and feels broken. She then encounters Ebola, and is almost dying when Aditya realizes he loves his wife and Shreya was just a passing phase.
Their elicit affair comes of fore when media publishes their stories blatantly. Aditya wants to go back but Shreya threatens him with proof of plagiarism in Aditya's book, which she had planted when Aditya was busy fu**ing her.

Will Maya recover from death and give Aditya another chance at their relationship? Will Shreya come to terms with her relationship with Aditya? Who was the actor behind the scenes watching Aditya screw his life?
I do not want to reveal the answers as it will be a spoiler for those who want to read it.

All these questions unfurl as we reach towards the end of this novel.

My 2 cents worth: First of all, I am glad to receive an author signed copy of this book by Ravi Subramanian. Earlier I had read his book "God Is A Gamer" and became his absolute fan. He writes amazing thrillers but this is his first attempt at romance thriller genre.

The Bestseller She Wrote is a fast paced, well written book which surely is a page turner. The chapters are small (2-3 pages) which keep the reader engaged. The language is simple and easy to read and so it doesn't take too long to finish it. I started reading it one fine evening on Saturday and was done by Sunday afternoon, and I had good sleep and my kid bugged me every 10 mins. So I am sure voracious readers can finish it in few hours.

Normally in most of the books, the protagonist is the hero who want to fall in love with. However, at places I felt that I disliked the protagonist and was somehow unable to justify his actions. Attraction to a young lady in office who is your fan is understandable and even giving in to the pleasure and excitement of falling in love all over again is acceptable. But sleeping with her and thinking that it in no way reduces his love for his wife and justifying those actions in your brain - not acceptable.
Also becoming an author after you've gone through the humdrum of corporate life is okay but if someone (in this case, Shreya - lead female protagonist) is so head bent at becoming an author, why not take up some literature courses, why waste a seat at precious IIM institute.

The character sketch is very good, focusing well on the lead roles, their thoughts and emotions. Descriptions of Aditya's work life, publishing industry, Maya's work, Shreya's sex appeal are vivid and add to the overall good feel of the book. The dramatic twists as we turn chapters are engaging and fast. There are different people with small roles and they have been given due footage in the script with good descriptions and backgrounds.
 All in all this is a good, fast paced read, a little too filmy I feel, but then what good is a book which doesn't entertain to the core.

Good one time read. Keep writing and good luck.




My Rating: 4/5 stars

I am reviewing ‘The Bestseller She Wrote’ by Ravi Subramanian as a part of the biggest Book Review Program for Indian Bloggers. Participate now to get free books!

Book Review: Hifi In Bollywood

Book Title: Hifi In Bollywood

Author:  Rishi Vohra

Published January 15th 2015 by Jaico Books
Reviewed for Author

The boring life of aspiring film maker who is a finance graduate in the US and planning to go for arranged marriage gets a Bollywood twist when he comes to Mumbai to follow his dream. A fully filmy masala book which is surely a page turner. The characters are etched out neatly connecting through the story and moving towards a happy ending, just like our HiFi, I mean Bollywood.

The Premise: "AN ASPIRING FILMMAKER. THE DIZZYING HEIGHTS OF BOLLYWOOD. AND A STRAINED FATHER-SON RELATIONSHIP."
Rayhan, the protagonist, is an aspiring film maker and has always dreamt of being a director in the Hindi Film (HiFi) industry. The terms Bollywood and HiFi have been interchangeably used in the novel to signify the Hindi film industry. Rayhan's father, a middle class service man living in a flat in Mumbai wants his son to settle in the US and marry Vanita, his friend's daughter who is a medical student in the US. But Rayhan, has different plans, and to chase his dreams, he secretly comes to Mumbai to try his luck in Bollywood. His friend Shady lands him a job as an assistant to a famous director Saajan B by lying that he has experience in Hollywood. Mumbai takes him on a roller coaster adventure ride where he encounters different characters - Peter, the local don who vies for a role as villain, his maid who tries to make a move on him in anticipation of a role in films, a local politician who wants to marry his domestic help, Voila who makes him fall in love and film stars and their ego. 
Will his father go berserk when he sees him in Mumbai? Will he have a future in Bollywood? Is his lie of being a Hollywood return a big ticket to success or will it backfire? Will Rayhan realize his dreams in Mumbai or will he have to go back to US just like millions who try their hand in Hifi? Will he get his love Viola or will he go back to arranged marriage with his father's choice?


My 2 cents: The book is an interesting casual read with good narrations and character built up. It is narrated from the eyes of Rayhan, the lead character, a young, hardworking guy who is serious about his dream. The story flows seamlessly, the language is easy to read and twists keep coming as small surprises through the book. From page 1 itself the story grips you and it is unlikely to leave the book midway once you start it. I started reading casually one night, and I couldn’t keep it down until I had finished it by morning. 
The title is apt and the cover page design is interesting. The end though seems to be a little too filmy but then, it is about bollywood, so all is well that ends well :)

There are narrations about the lanes of Berkeley, Mumbai, movie sets, studios, filmstars, and many others which could be virtually explored through the book. The writing style is lucid and I must say, I see another Chetan Bhagat in the making. 

All in all, the book is a good read. Read it for some good humor moments, powerful narrations of film sets, seamless flow and lucid language, some magical twists and to visit the HiFi.. I mean Bollywood virtually.

My rating : 4 out of 5 stars.

Book Review: God Is A Gamer

Book Title: God Is a Gamer

Author: Ravi Subramanian

Published by Penguin Books India 2014
Reviewed for: BlogAdda

Power corrupts and absolute power has a dark side. Multiple characters, interweaving stories and mysteries untangling themselves beautifully towards the one end is something I loved about the book.

The Premise: "God Is a Gamer is a world where money means nothing, martyrs are villains, predators are prey, assassination is taught by ancient Greeks, and nothing is as it seems".

Intelligence agencies are tracking the murderer of Gillian Tan, a senator with close relations to the White House. Meanwhile in India, a phishing scam in a reputed international bank causes lots of turmoil at high level management. A gaming company launches a Facebook based gaming app but gets involved in illegal bots to bring up on no.1 downloads list. Former CEO of the bank, a very powerful women, who is said to have liaisons with the finance minister, is found dead. Is her death just an accident, a suicide or a well-planned murder?

In the mean while an ATM heist takes place which loots people with millions of money. Who is involved in the scam? Does he have any relation with Cotton Trail, a website with dark intensions, where anything can be bought from drugs to prostitution, using virtual currency bitcoins and that too anonymously.

Somewhere else in the world Laptops are heating up and blowing when in sleep mode. Does it have any connection to any event sabove?

Is there one mastermind behind all this or many?

All these questions unfurl as we read page by page of this awesome novel.

My Review: Awesome is the word for Ravi Subramanian. God Is A Gamer is the thriller revolving around bitcoins, the virtual currency, while running around multiple dimensions of banking, money laundering, gaming industry, internet trade, political lobbying and so much. It is fast paced and surely a page turner. The illustrations are good and it does seem that the author has put in a lot of meticulous effort in interweaving stories of different characters in Mumbai, Washington, Goa in multiple small chapters. The character background is not that elaborate but they are well crafted. From page 1 itself the story grips you and it is unlikely to leave the book midway once you start it. I started reading casually one night, and I couldn’t keep it down until I had finished it by morning. The first half of the book keeps you guessing as new surprises turn up every now and then, but I had somehow guessed the eventual culprit in the second half so climax did not come as a surprise to me.

I do not normally enjoy reading thrillers, don't have many on my bookshelf, but I am thankful that I got a chance to read this one. It opens up a whole lot of revelations about virtual money, fraudulent practices and virtual world. It’s a dark world out there and I had never imagined the way banks could be involved in money laundering, gaming apps using bots to increase popularity, TOR networks for anonymous dealings, whistle blowers dying anonymously, charades of powerful faces... lots of new stuff for people like me who live in their own world.

Lots of new jargons, but explained seamlessly in layman terms.

Awesome Fabulous Fantastic. Keep writing and good luck.
My Rating: 4.5/5 stars
 



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Book Review : Baramulla Bomber

Book Title : Baramulla Bomber

Author : Clark Prasad
Published August 2013 by Niyogi Books, India
Reviewed for : The Tales Pensive

We all love challenges in life (at least we say so), but exactly how many have the strength to take a blow on its face, to take hard decisions, to seek the truth. Multiple stories, weaved beautifully on the canvas converging towards the one end which you wouldn't guess until you finish is something I loved about the book.

The Premise : "AN ANCIENT WEAPON FROM THE VEDAS & BIBLE ONCE HUNTED BY THE NAZIS POWERED BY THE SOUND OF UNIVERSE REBORN WITH HELP OF QUANTUM PHYSICS GOING TO BE UNLEASHED ON TO THE WORLD AND KASHMIR HOLDS ITS SECRET Multiple intelligence agencies are tracking Mansur Haider, a god-fearing aspiring cricketer from Kashmir. His girlfriend, Aahana Yajurvedi, is trying to locate her missing mountaineering team, who vanished after a mysterious earthquake strikes Shaksgam Valley. Investigating Mansur and the Shaksgam Valley incident is Swedish intelligence officer, Adolf Silfverskiold, whose only relationship to god consists of escorting his girlfriend to Church. A dual China-Pakistan battlefront scenario facing the Indian Home Minister, Agastya Rathore, whose ancestors carry a prehistoric secret linked to the stars. He is faced with the challenge of finding a lasting solution to the Kashmir crisis. Which Biblical Weapon was Tested in Shaksgam Valley? Why is Mansur Haider Important? Is There a Solution to the Kashmir Crisis? Can Destiny be Controlled? Does a Cosmic Religion Exist?"

My Review: Baramulla Bomber is the sci-fi thriller revolving around the Kashmir crisis while running around multiple dimensions of quantum physics, Vedas, Hindu religion, cricket, films, politics  and so much. One might relate a bit to Da vinci code, but I must say India has found its own Dan Brown in Clark Prasad. The illustrations are good and it does seem that the author has put in a lot of meticulous effort in designing the details through the diagrams and maps. The characters are serious and well crafted. The story moves at a fast pace, though it does take a few 50 pages to get a grip of it. The first chapters seem very complex and heavy as the writer tries to give too many details while still concealing the plot, but eventually you start enjoying the story as it races to its climax.

I must say there that I am more of a romance person and do not enjoy reading thrillers. However, I did like Baramulla Bomber. I would have loved to talk about a few characters including the lead Mansur, cricketer and the vulnerable politician Agastya, but the disclaimer of the author. He requested the reviewers to refrain from revealing any details of the plot or characters in the review. There are a few dabangg dialogues too which charge you every now and then.

This is the first part of the Swastik trilogy. I look forward to reading the Part 2 and part 3. I am glad that I was provided the reviewers copy, otherwise being a romance addict I would never have known that Indian writers are presenting such great work too.

A few negatives - I feel there was too much to absorb in the first few pages, which could be a turn off for new readers, though the story went very smoothly once we get a hang of the charecters.  Also, the cover page shows two fiery eyes of a terrorist, could have been a bit positive.
All in all, nice book. Keep writing and good luck.
 
My rating  - 4/5 stars

The book was received as part of Reviewers Programme on The Tales Pensieve.

Book Review : Tales From Firozsha Baag

Name of the Book: Tales From Firozsha Baag
Author: Rohinton Mistry
Published 1987 by Faber and Faber

The book contains 11 interconnected stories about residents of the Firozshah baag, a Parsi Community residential society. The book grips till the end, with brilliant story telling skills, the stories feel complete and partial at the same time. The charecters feel rich and poor at the same time and happiness intersects the lonely, sad hearts. It provides amazing insight into the Bombay style of living and the parsi community.
The charecters seem real, next door kind and so are the stories, though written in an extra-ordinary manner, capturing each emotion and providing enough food for thought.
Absolutely loved every bit of it. Though there are a few parsi terms, written in italics, which interrupt the english from time to time. All in all, a good read and I would recommend every person who associates with Bombay to read it :)
My rating 4/5 stars

 

Book Review : What They Don't Teach You At Harvard Business School: Notes From A Street-Smart Executive

 

Name of the Book : What They Don't Teach You At Harvard Business School: Notes From A Street-Smart Executive
Author : Mark H. McCormack
Published June 1st 1986 by Bantam

A bestseller, with a thousand rave reviews and a number of people recommending me, made me finally pick this book. I generally don't read business/management or self-help as it is better to learn yourself than some author tell you the do's and don'ts.
The book is about management strategies from the Marck which he had learnt during his career of working for various clients, starting his own firm and growing it. The tone of the book is prescriptive throughout and it makes you feel that someone is constantly nagging and teaching you the do's and dont's of business.
If you have spent a couple of years in the industry already, you would already know most of the gyan. The examples are from Mark's real life, who runs a firm dealing with sports marketing and stuff. But how many of us are in such kind of firms. I work an MNC, a big corporate giant where situations, processes and people think differently. Frankly, I couldn't relate to any of the examples provided in the book, though I did find some of the gyan-baazi useful for speaking up in meetings and using the terms over lunch :) it impresses people, trust me.

There are few things which are really striking and leave and impact on you such as -

• Its okay to not respond to mails immediately when waiting might result in a better outcome
• Tricks on negotiating a deal and creating a perception of win-win situation
• Why managers only delegate un-important tasks and keep the trophy for themselves, what should be the right approach to delegation and how you should keep your employee motivated
• We are not just managing people, we manage egos, personalities and eccentricities

Once we start working in Corporate environments, we deal with issues, egos, personalities, processes everyday. There is no right or wrong way out, there is no prescriptive method that will take us out, it is sheer common sense. We all tend to figure out eventually what works for us, not by reading few tricks or few books but by learning in the field. Probably, that's why they don't teach this at Harvard or any other B-school.

The book is a nice quick read, but very prescriptive, . My rating is 3/5

 

Book Review : Whisper of the Worms

Book Title - Whisper of the Worms

Author - Marcardian

Published by -  Cactus Publishers

Reviewed for - The Tales Pensive

All our lives we keep running to fulfill our basic needs and loose track of what we call "Life". Such is the story of Thobias Mathai (protagonist) who longs for life when it is about to end. He is a god-fearing and peace loving man who lives in USA with his wife and kids until he comes to know about his impeding lung cancer which has reached its last stages.

He decides to spend his last days in his childhood town and so travels back to India after 20 years. As soon as he lands in India, his passport is seized by the authorities claiming that he has committed a serious crime. But as a dying man, he doesn't really care and moves to his old house. The memoirs of a man on his last journey are inspiring but start to drag after a few pages. He thinks of his childhood, paddy fields, the big banyan tree, teachings of his father, his best friends and much more. The story only picks up after 60-70 pages when the frauds in Smile bank of Marcardia come to surface and Tobias is held for charges. Marcardia is a fictional place, which is true sense depicts India, but sarcastically. The amazing view of corporate world, culture of Banking Industry, carrot and stick approach given by the author keeps you hooked and craving for more. The usage of a term 'Asinisation' of an employee, basically meaning how an employee is made to work like a donkey, is relevant and enables the reader to draw analogies in real work space. The strategies that Smile Bank adopts to 'asinise' its employees, make them work tirelessly for the same money, lure them into promotions if they achieved targets (Carrot) and tire them with frequent transfers (stick) is showcased through short instances of Tobias' memory.

There is an inquiry against Tobias about fraudulent loans that he had issued as part of his service in Smile Bank. Tobias is shocked and determined to proove his innocence, but at the same time, he is detached as he knows that justice in Marcardia is slow and he may not be alive till then.

In his quest to find the truth behind his involvement in the case, he meets several of his colleagues from old days which leads to a series of shocking revelations.

 Tobias' chemistry with his childhood friend and his mother is on and off. The novel ends of an emotional note.

The title "Whisper of the Worms" and the cover design is not coherent with the story of the book, except for the last 2-3 pages where the worms talk about humans. I wish it could be better.

The key to reading this book is patience, the first few chapters are dry and will want you to quit, but later the story picks up pace and thankfully keeps it till the end. Strongly recommended for those in corporate jobs, especially banking.

 

My Rating:

The book was received as part of Reviewers Programme on The Tales Pensieve.

 

Book Review: A Date with the Bollywood Star

Name of the Book: A Date with A Bollywood Star
Author: Riya Lakhani
Published April 1st 2013 by Mills & Boon

In bollywood words, I would call this book "Filmy". Rani is a journalist and a big fan of Omar Khan, a bolloywood superstar. Rani gets a chance to interview this sexy superstar who is known as a bit of a casanova. Rani watches his movies till late in the night and ends up being late for the scheduled interview and hurting her ankle as she stumbled. Omar is handsome, smart and a true gentleman off-screen. Rani falls for him instantly and he also displays a kind of liking for her. The article is published next day and Rani's liking is clearly evident in her writing. Her parents behave protectively, being a typical Indian parents and question her on her relationship with Omar. Omar is too flattered by her article and offers her to ghost-write her auto-biography. She agrees to do the same but this would need her to move-in to Omar's mansion and understand him better. A series of revelations about Omar's personal life keep you gripped to the novel, the on and off feelings of Rani bind you with her emotional dilemma and a semi-passionate love making scene confuses you.
Omar puts all his money into some film production and feels devastated when Rani provides him strength and alternatives. Rani goes to her place for her Mom's birthday, when Omar realizes her misses her and cannot live without her. A lot of drama in the end, when he sends endless flowers and comes on an elephant to propose her. The parents agree and it leads to a happy ending.
The charecters are real but it is difficult to relate with the story. Omar is too good to be a Bollywood legend, Rani drinks too much tea, almost in every 2 pages. Everything is hunky dory with a happy ending.

It was too bollywood-ish for me... but a good read though. My 3 stars to the book.

Book Review: The Soldier's Sweetheart

Name of the Book: The Soldier's Sweetheart
Author: Soraya Lane
Published January 2nd 2013 by Harlequin

The book is a sweet romance, but I rather found it too simplistic. The protagonist, Nate Coulhan, a soldier who has just returned home after serving on the Special forces team, is emotionaly disturbed owing to the horrific memories of his friend on the Special Forces team. He is attracted towards Sarah (the female protagonist), his childhood sweetheart, whom he had broken up with because he wanted to join the army. Post breakup Sarah married his best friend, and broken up with him too. Despite Nate is a soldier, he doesnt seem to be strong or masculine in the novel. He is disturbed by some memory, but when you are done with reading 3/4th of the book and you come to know what that memory was, you feel pity for Nate's chareterization. Even normal people deal with much larger situations, this is kindo f . Sarah's charector is lovely, many women will identify with her, but she seems to be in love with the idea of companionship, not with Nate in particular.
The novel is a good read, though I belive it could have been better.

My Rating **/5