Book Review: God is a Gamer

Book: God is a Gamer

Author: Ravi Subramanium

ISBN: 9780143421399

Pages: 310 

Ratings: 4/5

Price: 299

Something about the book: (Goodreads)

Aditya runs a gaming company that is struggling to break even. A banker slips off a highrise building, plunging to her death. The finance minister has made some promises that he is finding hard to keep. The LTTE has unleashed terror in America that sends the FBI on a wild goose chase, bringing them to Mumbai.

Enter Varun, parttime drug dealer and fulltime genius. He turns around the gaming company before disaster strikes. Meanwhile, the investigators plunge headlong into he shady world of bitcoins and the Dark Net, websites that only exist for illegal transactions—drugs, sex and money. God Is a Gamer culminates in a stunning climax where money means nothing, assassination is taught by the ancient Greeks, and nothing is as it seems.

Pop quiz – What happens if you have not read a good book for months?

Ans – You are literally going through literary withdrawal and would get high with even a small insignificant dose of good fiction.

Of late, I have been reading some really ‘not upto the mark’ books (totally my fault!) So when Blogadda sent me God is a Gamer by Ravi Subramanium for review, my expectations were below the zero mark but it had me from the very start - the prologue! The story starts with an intense conversation, between two corporate honchos, regarding Wikileaks. The story rushes straight into action with an explosion and from there on the book doesn’t really have any drop points. The story moves with parallel plots in multiple cities including Mumbai, Washington DC and Goa. Characters range from S senators, to Heads of Banks and Mastercard and Visa to drug dealer cum gaming genius and many more. The death of a US Senator was what sets the pace of the book but is not the only one and the way the story is weaved with phishing issues, Bitcoins and world financial drama is what makes it impossible to keep the book down.

Pros :

1.   Plot – When you use Wikileaks and Bitcoins in the initial pages and do a damn good job at it, half the battle is won. And when you get large plotlines together with such ease and in a convincing way, it means you can pat your back. The plot is not only intriguing, it is written in simple yet in a very engaging fashion.

2.   Characters – One of the major issues with thrillers with a lot of characters is readers tend to lose track of the characters and a lot of times some characters and under used or just appear as fillers. But with the short chapters and the constant plot swings of God is a Gamer, it is hard to lose track of the characters. And each one is important, or at least that is what I felt.

3.  Well Researched Matter – The content is not only fresh but is very well researched making it an enjoyable read.

4.  Ending – Oh didn’t I fall for the pseudo ending and say seriously before I got the mild attack! *Have said too much already!*

Cons :

1.   Logical Loopholes – Data transfer from a system that is shut down, that too cause of a malware! Is that even possible? There are quite a few logical loopholes but this one stood out glaringly for me (an IT professional). Another one was the phishing attacks – don’t they need cell phone access for the one time password or something? How do Account ID and Password give you total access of the account?

2.  Ending – Yes, I liked the fact that I almost fell for the pseudo ending, but the actual ending was a bit unrealistic for me to digest.

Overall, I really enjoyed the book and would give it a 4 on 5. The book would make a lot of readers hit Google for atleast a couple of hours. It is fast paced and fresh and totally justifies its sub genre of Banking Thriller. And this is confession time – after reading this book I realized what I have been missing for months. Totally recommending the book!

P.S. - This review is a part of the biggest Book Review Program for Indian Bloggers. Participate now to get free books!

Book Review - Me, You & Of Course Love

Book: Me, You & Of Course Love

Author: Himanshu Chauhan

ISBN: 9781630417772

Pages: 266 

Ratings: 3/5

Price: 150

Something from the book: (Nothing really stood out so it is going to be the blur this time)

"Every love story has something extraordinary in it."Well, it was a myth for Himanshu till he met Ishika online. Ishika is a nurse from Mumbai. But love comes with a "conditions apply" tag. Six years age difference, career & different cultures.

Anusha, is a girl who wears her heart on her cheeks rather on her sleeves. She was the little "extra" in Hims extraordinary love story. From her vodka to his favourite website they always share a little "extra"and become best friends.

Himanshu's career is on stake as he plans to destroy Ishika's marriage. Would he be able to save his love? Would he be able to get out of the best friend-zone?

A tale of love, emotions, betrayal and much more. It's not a cliched love story but a story they had both dreamt of.

For every new comer in the storytelling kingdom these days, Romance serves as the scrutiny free, immigration free gate and same is the case with Himanshu Chauhan, whose debut novel Me, You & Of Course Love was sent to me by BlackBuck publications for review. The story is of Hims aka Himanshu who falls in love with Ishika, a nurse from Mumbai and their roller coaster ‘something extra’ love story. The issue with Ishika and Himanshu was – A. Age difference of 6 years (Hims has a thing for a smart older lady); B. Career and Cultural difference C. Anusha. Anusha is Himansh’s best friend but not his love – so you can imagine! The story goes from simple love to full swing drama zone with Himanshu’s plans to wreck Ishika’s marriage. And then there is the side kick best friend zoned story line.

Pros –

1. Narration – The flow helps a reader connect well with the story.

2. Last Chapter – Glad it did not end with an over the top incident. The last chapter sums p the whole books feel pretty well.

3. Relatable characters – The characters of the story are people we would easily find around us, hence you tend to get in the tone of the story.

Cons –

1. Nothing New – The story is not a fresh one, nor is it the best version of this typical storyline.

2. Editing - There are so many places in the book where you feel 'this bit was not needed'. Grammar needs polishing, content needs brushing up and story needs to be crisp.

The story seems to go with a Chetan Bhagat flow with pages out of My Best Friend’s Wedding, Mere Yaar Ki Shaddi hai and many more. But the end of this total Bollywood material is on a very subtle human note. The story is nothing new and has been told and retold in a million ways before, but the book still somehow is refreshing and light for a one time read on a lazy day. I would rate this perfect chick-lit a 3 on 5. 

P.S.- This book was given to me by BlackBuck Publications for review and the review is completely my own view about the book.

Who Told Men Not To Cry - Book Review

Book: Who Told Men Not To Cry?

Author: Azar

ISBN: 9781630414306

Pages: 249 

Ratings: 2/5

Price: 150

Something from the book:

It gave me the happiness

It gave me the pain

When a book starts with wrong grammar, you know for sure it is going to be a disaster and same was the condition of ‘Who told men not to cry?’, by Azar. The story is of a boy with adjustment issues. Raj the protagonist of the book belongs to a middle class family and is termed unlucky from the very start because the day he was born, his father suffered a loss in business. The book then moves on to his school life where for Raj the whole world revolves around his friends, teachers and ‘his girl’ aka Keerthi his love interest.

 He was a topper and was loved by all till class tenth but life took a turn (like it does for everyone) when he had to shift to high school. That is when his real struggle started as he had to face the consequences of not being a topper – no more the apple of his teachers’ eyes, no more genuine and trust worthy friends and no more ‘his girl’. Raj then works hard and tries to overcome his adjustment issues in order to sustain the pressures of High School but one of his biggest concerns is if he will get ‘his girl’ back.

Pros –

1.   Funny moments and light jokes in the book keep you going to some extent.

2.  The end – For a book with a very week plot to end in a funny satisfying end, it is a big thing. I liked the quirky poem in the end.

Cons –

1.   Grammar – A full length novel that starts with – “My son, it’s again you are going to be late to your college,” shouted my mom as I was busy singing in my bathroom. – gives you the picture of the book and takes the rating of 5 straight down to 3. (Sorry I am a Grammar Nazi)

2.  Raj’s Character sketching – Why does Raj call his friends mothers mom? And how does a flirtatious guy become teachers’ favourite by literally being cheesy and flirting with them? Also Raj hardly ever talks about his own family; his friends’ families have been given more importance in the book than his own mother and sister.

3.  My Girl! – Keerthi is her name. I found myself saying this God knows how many times in the 3 hours I took to finish the book. The author addresses his girlfriend as my girl almost everywhere. It gave the book very non – bookish feeling.

The story seems like ranting of a teenage boy and the storyline is not something an avid reader would enjoy. This book is the debut of the 20 year old author, Azar; and for his age it is a decent work but as a book or story it is a big failure.  Unfortunately the book needs a hell lot of editing and serious revision in case of grammar. Except for the end – atleast it was realistic, tragic yet funny, I personally didn’t enjoy the book much. Might be a onetime read for many but I wouldn’t pick the book again. 

P.S.- This book was given to me by BlackBuck Publications for review and the review is completely my own view about the book.

Of Course, We are Best Friends : Book Review

Book: Of Course, We are Best Friends!

Author: Sonia Bansal

ISBN: 9781630412920

Pages: 200 

Ratings: 3/5

Price: 140

Something from the book:

A bond so strong

A longing so necessary

A feeling so precious

Here is one of the biggest advantages of travelling for almost 4 hours a day – You can finish a book! Yes recently I have finished 2 such books and this is the first of the two. ‘Of Course, We are Best Friends!’ by Sonia Bansal is a short and sweet tale of friendship and love. The story revolves around the protagonists Aditi and Aditya who are classmates in school. Even at the young age, and with absolutely no idea about the depth of the emotion named love, Aditya falls for Aditi. Aditi being, the free spirited girl, though naïve in her thoughts is more rational than Aditya and feels young love is nothing more than infatuation. Soon they become best buddies and are the target of every Tom Dick and Harry in their friend circle. Teasing, helping, making random jokes slowly pulls them towards each other and very soon they start dating each other.

Their love blossoms in school against all rationalities but fails with the first real challenge they have to face - long distance relationship in college. They meet after some years but the awkwardness of past haunts them. Aditya being more involved than Aditi, fights with every inch of his will to let go of the weirdness and in the end the friends do make a decision, saving their friendship from the dark clouds of immature love.

Pros:

1.   Point of views – The author gives you the point of view of both the protagonist throughout the story. The way the story is written is refreshing and keeps you going.

2.  Narration – Simple and effective, just like reading your regular day to day diary. Something light like every tired book person would want after a hectic day.

Cons:

1.   Nothing new – We hear these things, we know these things, and Durjoy Dutta and Chetan Bhagat have made sure we read these things too. There is nothing to take away from the story, nor does it leave you with a long lasting feel good effect.

2.  Editting – It is very important for a book to be free of grammatical errors and spelling mistakes cause if the reader is like me, it breaks the flow and gets irritating.

Over all it is a onetime read for sure, but that is all it is. It is a book you would pick to refresh yourself. When I got this book to review from the publishers, I thought it would be the same as any random teenage love story book these days and wasn’t wrong; but having said that it was a refreshing read thanks to the narration and the point of view writing style. To let go of the heavy life and hold a mirror at simplicities, that we seem to have forgotten these days, teenagers included. I would give the book a 3 on 5 rating and would really want the author to try some new and different genre because she sure shows the flair of storytelling in this book. The book manages to break the illusion that a girl and a boy can always be good friends but in a very conventional way. I would have enjoyed it more, had the story explored unconventional track to explore the emotions. For people who love chick flicks and teenage romance, this book is surely something you will enjoy.

P.S.- This book was given to me by BlackBuck Publications for review and the review is completely my own view about the book.

A Passionaate Gospel of True Love : Book Review

Book: A Passionaate Gospel of True Love

Author: Poonaam Uppal
ISBN: 9788192105

Pages: 1084 

Ratings: 3/5
Price: 595

Something from the book:
"I would wash your path with my tears of plea
My eyes are fixed on the road that brings you to me
Beholding the ocean of love in your eyes"

Shrouded by myths and reality, A Passionaate Gospel of True Love by Poonaam Uppal, is the journey of an ambitious Indian girl Moh Lal. The story moves through the corridors of glamour and desire as Moh has her mind set on becoming an internationally acclaimed Fashion Designer. And destiny lets her wallow in her yearnings too, until one day when not only it deceives her desire but changes her course all together. Moh gets a premonition, a sign from Goddess Durga that she would meet her ancient lover in 1997 and that sets her on the path of finding her true love.

The story takes you National to International and back and makes you her unseen companion through her journey which is donned by Deja vu, divine interferences, premonitions, idiosyncratic occurrences and past birth revelations. The journey makes her a believer of love, beyond the sexual and artificial meaning people have accepted for the word these days. And also leads her to misty terrains of Himalayas for a cryptic secret waiting to be unveiled.

Pros :

1.   Narration – The flow is such that it makes you feel you are reading a diary and keeps you intrigued about the next incident always.

2.  Descriptions – If one thing every reader would cherish in this book (whether the book is of his/her type or not), it is descriptions. They were intricate, vivid and literally pen painted every page of the book in front of you.

3.  The Himalayan and Khajuraho sections – Can’t reveal much here, but I really liked these bits and yes the book has pictures too!

Cons :

1.   Autobiography – Fact that it was an autobiography kept me distracted for a very long time. And I have to be frank and accept; only when I started reading it as a random novel did I enjoy tits and bits of it.

2.  Love Messiah – Moh to Messaih, the story I still can’t digest. Kama Sutra and Love the holiest of the religions! I don’t really believe any god would preach religion. They or their messiah preached principles and way of life and people segregated them in religions. If Moh really was dragooned by her destiny set by Ma Durga , Love can’t be the religion.

3.  Over exaggerated events. – Sorry, again it is a read to know more con, but I found that ruining the flow.
4. Grammar and Punctuation - The book is some serious need of revision where grammar and punctuation are considered. Repetitions and random sentences going on and on. For a 1084 page book, these factors do matter. It gets annoying!

The book is apparently the autobiography of the author, but I went on reading is as some fantasy novel and it had many sections where I felt the situations and happenings were gonzo incidents. And my review too is totally for the book as a novel and not an autobiography.  Nevertheless the flow of the book is such that it feels like you are reading someone’s diary and surely by the end of it, it leaves you with a new thought about love; a more mature and to be pondered upon thought. I would give this book a 3 star on 5 because I thoroughly enjoyed the descriptions else would have been a 2.5 for the content. Even though the story felt dragged it did make a sense and most of the points were tied up. It was a onetime read for me, given the fact that I don’t usually enjoy books related to romance and love. But for all the lovers out there, who knows this might be your kind of book.

P.S. This book was given to me for review by @share_books . The review is completely my own view and is unbiased. I do not intend to hurt anyone's feelings with my views but review is purely for the benefit of my readers.

Private India - Book Review

Book: Private India

Author: Ashwin Sanghi & James Patterson

ISBN: 1780891725

Pages: 447 (Excluding extract by Patterson)

Ratings: 3.5/5

Price: 350

Something from the Book

Yellow Garrote Killings, read the headline of the Afternoon Mirror.

And the Private Investigators are finally in India thanks to Ashwin Sanghi. Ashwin Sanghi teamed up with International Thriller King James Patterson to get Patterson’s Private series to India with a case brewing in Aamchi Mumbai. Murder, Investigators, Shady but not guilty characters and Twists – this is thriller 101 formula and Private India capitalizes on most of it. The story starts with the murder of Thai national and more women are killed rather strangled with a yellow scarf as the story progresses. Enter Santosh Wagh an ex police officer who is a rough image of Detective Spencer of True detective – Alcoholic and Dark past. He is appointed to solve the curious case of the yellow scarf by Jack Morgan, the head of Private worldwide. Mumbai police overburdened with their work, in awe of Private’s quick response to Marine Bay Plaza’s call and puzzled by the deaths and their frequency hand the case to Private India, the best “private” detective agency of the country and so begins the hunt for the psychopath.

The story is a typical crime/murder mystery, so some of you might be wondering why Mr. Sanghi, right? Well turns out the scarf and the murder pattern has cultural and religious linkage, so the expertise. The story however doesn’t restrict itself to the main track. ISI makes a special appearance so does Indian Mujahideen and the story maintains the drama punch thanks to the cop sidekicks and a Don. The book is fast paced and enveloped in the essence of Mumbai from Taj to Dharavi from Chowpati to Malabar but has many flaws that make it a onetime read and that too an unimpressive one.

Pros –

1.   Fast Paced – Classic James Patterson novel needs to be fast paced and this book doesn’t disappoint.

2.  The End – No matter how the story went I didn’t realize the mystery till the end which was somewhat satisfying.

Cons –

1.   Language – Bad editing or bad writing, still in a fix cause no matter whose fault it is the book has numerous flaws when it comes to English.

2.  Unimpressive Characterization – Sanghi makes all attempts to let his characters make a significant impact but fails terribly. Even the Main characters Santosh and Neha don’t really impress you at any point of the story.

3.  Research in terms of the Religious and cultural aspects – Poor, that’s the word and have to say it is so unlike Ashwin Sanghi’s works. The religious aspect of Thuggee cult seemed interesting in the beginning but lost the charm mid way. To portray any fact as historical stuff proper research and clarity on the topic is required and failing to do so is one of the biggest flaws of this book.

4.  Over cooked Tale – I sincerely want to ask Ashwin Sanghi why has he started writing stories with a Bollywood frame. There are so many things in the book that scream “this is such a Salman Khan Thing.” I am ready to let go of the flaw in the very concept of the book – Mumbai Police giving all authorities to a Private Detective agency; but other than that the cold war between old pals, the unwanted intimate breaks and the overdone climax, was all that really needed?

On the whole the book gets a tick as a thriller for sure but fails to impress as a novel on the whole. I would give this book a 3.5, would have been a 3 had I not found the pace fast enough to not spend time sulking over the logical errors. The story is a ready to hand over script for a Bollywood action movie but not a one to find its corner in any reader’s paradise. 

P.S. - This review is a part of the biggest Book Review Program for Indian Bloggers. Participate now to get free books! 

Rise of the Sun Prince - Book Review

Book: Ramayana: The Game of Life - Rise of the Sun Prince

                                                               Author: Shubha Vilas

ISBN: 9788184955309
Pages: 252
Ratings: 4/5
Price: 250

Something from the Book

Sweet, genuine words of gratitude are the best welcome drinks!

Ramayana is the way of life. Haven’t we heard this line a number of times? But do we believe it? Do we really see glimpses of our lives, our day to day challenges, our reverberating thoughts of what is right and wrong, in the versions of Ramayana that we know? I don’t know about all of you but till last week Ramayana was nothing more than a mythological story for me. Then what changed in a week? It was this book - Ramayana: The Game of Life #1 - Rise of the Sun Prince by Shubha Vilas.

There have been hundreds of renditions of this ageless saga but none have come this close to making me look beyond the tale. Rise of the Sun Prince is the first of the 6 books that have knitted the story from the poetic verses of Valmiki to the veiled analogies of Kamba Ramayana. The first book mainly focuses on Bala Kand of Ramayana but with a lot of insight to various aspects of the epic.

The book starts off with a gist of Ramayana in a very fundamental form but slowly delves into the era and the circumstances of the era. Ramayana that we have read till date runs on the high emotional quotient and the theme of love and sacrifice but this book makes you look at the book from the angle of society, struggles, and “not everything is black and white along with the emotional built up. The story starts with how Rishi Valmiki came to be despite of his sinister past and then gives you the whole insight to the great king Dasharatha. Did you know Dasharatha had 350 wifes other than his Prime Queens? You don’t believe me, it is ok, I didn’t believe either. But this book not only mentions that, it also gives the reason behind it. After that starts the journey of a hero in making and the journey of a spiritual teacher to find the true sense of the spiritual realms and the strength of the Guru Sishya relationship.

The protagonist of the story might be Rama but for this book it was Vahishtha – Flawed, Strong, Famous, Respected, Lost and on the journey of finding himself. He was the guru of the Suryavanshi Princes, but the short tempered sage was also on a quest of his own, to defeat the demons that were determined to spread the negative energy everywhere. But in his journey he tends to lose himself cause of his anger and spreads some level of negativity himself. The book connects to our very own lives with that of Vashishtha and the way he learns from the young princes all while teaching them. At the same time the story of Ahilya and that of Sita talks of Fate and dedication.

Pros –

1.   Narration - Powerful yet simple and crisp narration.

2.  Perfected Rendition - Logical, bit philosophical but very apt rendition of Ramayana and not just a direct rip off of the story in different words.

3.  The chapters – The way the story is written, it makes you think clearly and connect directly to the physical and metaphysical lines of the mythology.

4.  The footnotes – The give you all that you need to know but not enough that you would have wanted to know. For example The Author started with Ravana’s story, gave just a sneak peek of his beginning but it was the footnotes about him and his brothers and sisters that made me say – I want to read more about them!

Cons –

1.   If you are not a mythology fan, I don’t think you will enjoy the book.

On the whole the Book is a sure read for every mytho-fiction fan and is a soul stirring yet a very light read and re read version of Ramayana. More than the story you will end up learning a lot out the characters, era and about life. This book is a sure 4 on 5 book and am eagerly waiting for the next part.

P.S. - This review is a part of the Book Reviews Program at BlogAdda.com. Participate now to get free books!

Lady You're not a Man - Review

Book: Lady You're not a Man!

                                                               Author: Apurva Purohit

ISBN: 9788129129048
Pages: 184
Ratings: 3.5/5
Price: 195

Something from the Book

'I don’t think either morphing into a man or becoming a damsel in constant distress is the route to success today'

The book ‘Lady, you’re not a Man’ by Apurva Purohit was actually given to me by my office on Women’s Day and I am glad I got a chance to read this. Apurva Purohit is the CEO of Radio City 91.1 FM and the book is her insight on corporate bivouac and home life and the balance between the two. The book is divided in three parts - Accept, Adapt and Achieve with several chapters in every section with footnotes after each chapter and section. Chapters are short incidences of author’s life which I think every corporate women will surely relate to. The book is a perfect blend of comic sense and reality and in the end leaves you with a sure feel good thought.

I was going through my first Corporate Heat Phase this month and guess that is the reason I picked this book to read after a whole month of it decorating my book self. I am not a big fan of self help books but this book speaks of Work – Life balance in an unprejudiced manner and is humorous at the same time. There are times where the author makes you see husband as lazy TLT or bossy ones, to females being Sita or Geeta when time be in the work field. The book although is about females in work zone the author empathizes with male counterparts too; 3 days paternity leave – seriously?  Similarly she is blatant in stating facts about how females should not misuse the privileges given to them at work.

Pros:

1.   To the T reflection of a corporate woman – Every working woman will enjoy and relate to this book.

2.  Writing style – Self help books tend to be boring and have redundant matter while the way this book is written it won’t let you doze off even for a minute. It is witty and humorous and makes you smile at a lot of places, made me smile for sure.

3.  Unbiased view - She advocates her thoughts strongly throughout the book, urging women to fight for their working rights & amenities. But at the same time she supports male counterparts. She shows us two sides of a coin of which only one side is visible to us always.

4.  Corporate Mantras  - The end of each section, the pointers were something I totally loved about the book.

Cons:

1.   Work part is covered very well but same can’t be said about life.

2.  I still have so many issues and questions pertaining to corporate world, wish all of it was covered.

One of my managers had recently said – There is nothing called as work life balance it is just a gamble and your decision which one is more important to you when. You can’t excel in both at the same time but if we selectively excel in each, over all we would have won the battle at both ends. This book totally resonates with this thought. I would give this ‘candid excerpt of life’ a 3.5 on 5. It is a must for every working woman, working men would also get a much needed insight to their female colleagues’ issues. Not really a book for the others.