The Bestseller She Wrote!

The Bestseller she wrote is a sure shot Bestseller 'he' has written! How beautifully he has connected the dots, every now and then, every time there's something new you understand the relevance of a particular incident a few pages back. A complete page turner it is.
Although the first thing that comes to mind after starting a book by Ravi Subramanian is that the story would be something on banking - perhaps a thriller? He may depict the various things that goes on in a banking setup. However this book has a completely different plot and that's what surprises you. Though, the protagonist is a banker, as are a few other main characters but that's where the connection ends. It's the story of a master and his apprentice. Aptly put by the author himself it is a combustible cocktail of love, betrayal and redemption!
This could have easily been just another romantic novel by an Indian author where a fan girl falls in love with the star, but how effortlessly Ravi Subramanian has made it into a complete masterpiece. All the characters are so well defined and has a personality trait that I can easily identify a real life Shreya, Maya or for that matter even a Diana for that matter. Such strong female characters, who are not just a 'somebody' in the story but have a very very strong presence. Aditya Kapoor has a enviable life, a perfect one that everyone dreams of. A successful career as a banker, the biggest fiction writer, the paperback king of the nation, an amazing and a loving wife in Maya, who supports him and a beautiful son who loves both his parents dearly. Sounds like perfect, right?. But then, what's the fun there. Enter, Shreya Kaushik, a student at IIM, Bangalore, same institute from where Aditya Kapoor graduated. Beautiful, intelligent and passionate, someone, who can make any man go weak in his knees. And guess what, she also wants to be an author! She finds the easy way out by being in news with the famous Aditya Kapoor. For her, any publicity is good publicity. Her lust for success is such that she doesn't care about right and wrong. Only success matters to her, irrespective of the cost it comes at.
The book has a lot of references to the actual world with the likes of Chetan Bhagat, Ashwin Sanghi, Anurag Kashyap, Nirav Sanghvi finding mentions in it, which makes the book believable. His tips to Shreya on marketing a book, the inside story of what it takes to be a first time publisher, gives you some perspective into the world of publishing. The recent Ebola crisis also finds mentioned. Hence a lot of actual facts are added to the story making it easy for the readers to connect with the characters.
I love the way how believable he has made the story to be. The realization that the lock codes are the same, or the scribbles on Diana's book, all are perfectly realistic, which made me fall in love with the writing.
Overall, a nice read, with simple language which helps in keeping the flow. I finished it in straight 6 hours, close to the time Shreya took to complete Aditya's book ;)

- Signing Off

Nirvaan

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!

Ramayana - Shattered Dreams!

This book portrays the episodes that take place after Dasaratha decides to Crown Rama as the King.What were the circumstances that led Dasaratha to crown Rama in haste, what happens when the decision is made, the reaction it causes in various strata of the society including inside the palace walls, Rama's banishment and how everyone handles this is the gist of this part of the series.
As in previous book, this book too has its share of thrills and chills.The story moves smoothly and kept me hooked on to it. It had my heart pounding in so many places even though I knew what would come!
There are also the footnotes that add a nice reading experience.Several of these notes bring into light the subtleties of the scriptures / like reading between the lines and the others bring out the background story / reason behind a happening. I thoroughly enjoyed reading them all.And there are also some parallel stories that add beauty to the story.
And then as with the earlier title, this one too makes an honest account of the Ramayana without too much interpretations by the author. This part I liked the most.
Heart touching are the places where Dasaratha pleads with Kaikeyi to change her mind after he realizes her ploy while she just stands there unmoving-like a stone, Sita, happily joining Rama into banishment, Dasaratha's passing away, etc.
All in all this is a book that I really enjoyed reading. I recommend this book to everyone who loves the epics. Not only is the story retold in a nice manner, the narration is so touching that it will make you a part of the audience witnessing the epic in person

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Signing Off!
Nirvaan

God is a Gamer!

When Blogadda sent me this book for review, I had very high expectations. I have heard a lot of rave reviews about his books. I expected nothing less from his current novel. As I started reading this book, I was convinced that the book would live up to my expectations.
Touted as the world’s first bitcoin thriller, Ravi Subramanian’s novel God is a gamer is woven around the lives of a few politicians,bankers,crooks, gamers with ‘Bitcoin’ and an anonymous online market place for shady deals called cotton trail playing a crucial role in the story. The plot moves from Washington's congress to Delhi's finance ministry, the beaches of Goa to the corporate boardrooms of Mumbai.
Unlike his previous books, banking does not play a major role in this book, instead the book is high on online gaming on facebook and “Bitcoin” which is touted as the currency of the future. It is very clear from the book that the author has done extensive research on facebook games/online games, bitcoins etc.,After reading the book, many gamers will understand why they are stuck at a particular level in certain online games. I had never known so much went behind a gaming console.
There are so many twists and turns thrown along with many emotions like romance, revenge, greed that the pages turn by themselves. As one reads the book,the investigator in you comes to many conclusions only to be proven wrong in the climax. Another plus in the book is the narration divided into many small chapters and most of them end in cliffhangers which maintains the suspense and whets the appetite of the reader. Setting some small differences apart, this is a really good read and I recommend this to anyone who loves thriller!
This review is a part of the biggest Book Review Program for Indian Bloggers. Participate now to get free books.

Signing Off,
Nirvaan

A pleasant visit!

It was probably one of the best starts to the day; a few hours spent with some great kids residing in the outskirts of the city. The first thought when I reached there was 'Not bad!' Not at all bad for what is supposed to be an NGO for 68 AIDS affected kids. To be frank, I never expected it to be such a well maintained place and with so many nice people to take care of these children. The kids dressed in bright yellow School uniforms and with a smile on their face were all so disciplined, it would put even the students from the bestest of the private schools to shame! (not exaggerating) 

At this point when I go back and think about them, surprisingly I don't feel sorry for them. In fact, when I think of my visit to them, my mind takes me to a world where there are thousands or maybe lakhs of Sushmitas and Karans starving and maybe just waiting for death to come to them, or maybe something even worse, something I cannot even think of! In fact these 68 are the very few lucky ones who have the privilege and opportunity to live a normal life, study in normal schools, watch movies, have proper nutrition throughout the day and maybe, a chance to stand on their own feet someday!

Not that that they were living a luxurious life and the caretakers were having no troubles meeting the expenses but then they were definitely not deprived of the essentials. They loved to dance and sing, celebrated their birthdays by cutting cakes, had computers to work on, watch movies, had a small playground for themselves, soft toys and moreover they had plenty of empathetic visitors who really wanted to help these kids and make their lives better. 

Surprisingly, some of these kids didn't even know the deadly disease they have received in legacy, and those who knew, probably didn't know how fatal it was, or maybe they had just learnt to deal with it.

Usually such visits are bound to take you to a state of despair and sadness, but for me it was more pleasing and reassuring and more about restoration of faith in humanity.

P.S.: For those who want to help these kids, please visit this. Desire Society. 

Signing Off,

Nirvaan

Book Review - Private India

Private India written by James Patterson and Ashwin Sanghi is the eighth book of the private series. But the best part is to read through this book you need not go through the previous ones. This book has nothing to do with the previous one. However, there is a prequel to this book, but then, even that book is not going to affect your reading in any way.The book will really be liked by those who love reading mystery novels and this one is really good. It can easily be converted into a motion picture soon. I pictured it in my mind as a movie only with so much of detail around everything. This is certainly a masterpiece by Ashwin Sanghi and a lot of research has been put by the writer into the crime world and ideas to do the crime & leaving small clues behind.Women are being killed in different parts of Mumbai and what make the murders more mysterious are the different props which are placed near the dead body. Apart from these props there is nothing left behind by the killer, not even a slightest clue to unveil his identity and then to crack the case, steps in Private India led by Santosh wagh, who himself is troubled by a haunting past. The biggest task in their hand was to find the meaning behind the random props and to find the pattern of murders. Busy with the ruthless murderer the member of Private India fails to see the dishonest one among them, who along with Indian mujahideen is planning to give a fatal blow to Mumbai.The story line is intriguing and racy. As a reader even I was forced to think about the common links between the murders. The character of Santosh wagh, the leader of Private India was mighty good. He was just a man with a brave heart and intelligent mind not a super detective or a hero. He was haunted by his past which came as a big shock as the story progressed. Nisha’s character was sharp and clever. She knew how to get her work done. At times her character was on a bitchy side. She was one of the most prominent characters of the book. Hari, the tech-sevy member was bang on. His character was very intriguing and was very integral part of the story. Every member of Private India was properly used and they all had their share of limelight. The character of Rupesh and Munna were also very good and impactful.There is nothing wrong with the book but if you read it critically then you may find that in the concluding part of the book some more explanation were required. No wonder because James Patterson is always in a hurry to finish one book and start the new one and then to finish it as soon as possible.The authors have yet again managed to pen down a novel which will force the reader to turn pages one after another or should I better say “The pages turns themselves.”The characters in the novel are slowly revealed and as what happens in murder mysteries, we think of everyone as a suspect. This novel arouses that kind of emotions in your mind and heart and instantly connects with it's readers to solve the crime themselves. I don't want to reveal the thing as it would be injustice to all the readers and lovers of the book. But it's definitely worth your time and money.
This review is a part of the biggest Book Review Program for Indian Bloggers. Participate now to get free books!Signing Off,Nirvaan