A case of exploding mangoes by Mohammad Hanif

"A case of exploding mangoes" by Pakistani writer Mohammad Hanif. This book received two prizes (Commonwealth book and Shakti Bhatt) in first book category and was long listed for Man Booker prize in 2008.

The book has been advertised as Indian and Pakistani best seller.

General Zia was killed in a plane crash along with his top generals. Conspiracy theories have been making rounds ever since. Hanif has used this incident to write this fiction by adding Hanif another conspiracy to the mix.

It is a story of Zia, his security chief TM, chief of ISI Gen Akhtar and two young officers Ali Shigri (whose father was Colonel Shigri, found hanging from fan) and Obaid Ul Lah.

Author has used his observations well to highlight the contradictions in the Pakistani society in general and army in particular. Gen Zia is portrayed more as a buffoon than a capable general.

It is not clear whether author has tried to write a satirical thriller or sarcastic comedy or comical  suspense. Since the approach appears confused, so is the flow of story and ability to keep readers interested. You often wonder what exactly is he trying to convey?

I had to use a lot of will power in order not to abandon the book, hoping for something interesting in subsequent pages. Alas! it did not come.

I was unable to find what the judges / jury of these prizes could find in the book.

Avoid.

Gokhale - My political guru by M.K.Gandhi

"Gokhale - My political guru", by M.K.Gandhi (Mahatma Gandhi). This is a small book of 60 pages and was published in 1955.

We all know that Mahatma Gandhi considered Gopalkrishna Gokhale as his guru, he even refered to him as Mahatma Gokhale. Gandhiji had written a number of articles about his time with Gokhale, Gokhale's legacy, his place in Gandhiji's life and delivered speeches on Gokhale, mostly in Gujarati. This book is compilation of these writings and speeches extracted from Gandhiji's literature.

The book portrays Gokhale as a scholar, compassionate towards plight of Indians, one of the best English speakers (even better than native English speakers), a thinker, reformer and a person with crystal clear thoughts. Gandhiji sights Gokhle's delicate health as an impediment in his work. Probably this was the reason for Gokhle not resorting to frugal living, penance and fasting. He donated all his allowances and lived on allowance of 40 to 75 rupees per month.

Gandhiji narrates Gokhle's trip to South Africa to review situation of Indian laborers in detail. He was the first Indian leader to visit South Africa. He also affectionately talks about Gokhale and how he helped him personally and guided him in his work.

Gokhale was proponent of compulsory and free primary education to every child. In his times it was unusual foresight. His idea of doing the right thing with public opinion on his side, if possible; if not, doing right thing anyway, is exemplary. His idea of creating young political Sanyasis to take up politics as duty towards society is ideal but seems impractical in today's world.

This book, however, is curiously silent about Gokhale's rivalry and differences with Lokmanya Tilak and resultant breakup of congress.

The main difference between guru and disciple is that Gandhiji tried to change the establishment by non cooperation whereas Gokhle tried to change the establishment by being part of it.

Read this book if you want to know about one great man from another great man.

Kill list by Frederick Forsyth

"Kill list", latest thriller by Frederick Forsyth. Forsyth turned 75 in August.

America maintains a list of terrorists to be eliminated covertly, without arrest or trial. A new name 'The Preacher' is added after a series of assassinations of american public servants, inspired by Preacher's sermons. No one knows the identity of the Preacher as he wears a mask while delivering sermons. The job is given to a person called 'The Tracker'.

The story is about how tracker tracks the preacher. Story takes us to Pakistan, England, Djibouti and Somalia. Does he identify preachers real identity? Can he stop the assassinations? Does he find the preacher?

All thought from the advertisements of this book it appears that the real name and identities of Preacher and Tracker are the suspense of the story, in reality their true identities are revealed to the readers early in the story.

Reader gains a good knowledge of the gadgetry, hardware and technology used by America in fight against terrorism. Although the book is rich in content and technical details, it is short in action by standards of a thriller. The story is evenly paced and does not let you abandon the book.

Although the book is good on its own, Forsyth's previous books (The day of the jackal, Fist of God, The icon, The Afgan, The cobra.. to name a few) were better.

An OK read.

A short life of Shri Ramakrishna by Swami Tejasanand

"A short life of Shri Ramakrishna" by Swami Tejasanand. Actually this book is the life of Shri Ramakrishna in short, not his short life.

Author has covered life of Gadadhar and then his transformation to Shri Ramakrishna in 132 pages.

Born in brahmin family, he started taking steps to break rules of casteism in 1845, at the age of 9. Ramakrishna, as you all know, was a yogi and tantrik of highest order. He was a supreme bhakt of Kali and Ram.

The book gives details of his attaining samadhi on number of occasions, how he used to talk to mother Kali, people he  encountered, people he learned from, his male disciples (this includes Narendra Nath alias Swami Vivekanand), his female disciples etc.. Actually the book gets boring later on.

It is obvious from the writing that the author is in awe of Shri Ramakrishna. It is also apperent that the author is more a disciple than a writer. Writing does not follow timeline. Author goes back and forth on a couple of occasions.

Although this book has very little literary value, one may read it to understand the life of great yogi, his philosophy and his teachings.

Wikipedia may give a crash course on life of Ramakrishna in fewer words. Avoid this book.

Interpreter of maladies by Jhumpa Lahiri

"Interpreter of maladies", a collection of short stories by Jhumpa Lahiri. Jhumpa won 'Pulitzer prize for fiction' for this book.

The stories are typical every day life stories mostly involving expatriate Indians. These stories look for meanings in the lives of common people. Events in these stories happen every day, but only a good writer can see through the obvious and present the same event in a different perspective. Jhumpa has done this job very well.

This book contains 9 stories. All of them are good. 'Sexy' and 'A real durwan' are very good stories, but the ones I liked most were 'Interpretor of Maladies' and 'Mrs. Sen's'. Jhumpa demonstrates keen observation, adds right amount of emotions and yet presents them in an impersonal manner.

The message in these stories is very subtle. A casual reader may easily overlook it and hence may not like the book.

For the first time, I liked an award winning book.

BTW: Very recently Jhumpa lost the booker prize 2013 for 'The lowlands'. Hard luck.

Do not miss this one. A must read.

Rarang Dhang (रारंग ढांग) by Prabhakar Pendharkar

"Rarang dhang" (रारंग ढांग) a Marathi novel by Prabhakar Pendharkar.

I chose this book for reading because of it's strange name. Sheer cliffs in Himalaya are called 'Dhang' in local language and 'Rarang' is name of one such cliff, through which a road is to be built, by 'Border Road Organization' of army.

Vishwanath Mehendale, a civil engineer and civilian, is recruited for the job. He is the only civilian between army personnel. This book is the story of building road through Rarang Dhang. What does he experience? Does he succeed? Can he complete on time? Are his efforts acknowledged?

The difference of thinking and approach between army and civilians is nicely portrayed by the author. Civilian logic and army discipline are always at loggerheads.

Vishwanath, his humanity, his rebellion and his thought process are portrayed beautifully. The books ends on a turn that keeps you guessing wheather justice was served.

A few things could have been done better editorially e.g. when narrative changes from 3rd person to 1st person sectionalization should have been there, dialogues should have had quotations etc.

Considering the backdrop of Himalaya and Sutlej river and the dare devil activities, this can become a spectacular movie.

It's a page turner. Don't miss.

The shadow throne by Aroon Raman

"The Shadow Throne", debut novel by Aroon Raman. 

There is a sinister plot, code named Shadow Throne, to assemble nuclear war heads in Afganistan and launch them using Ghauri missiles from Pakistan, destination India.

A journalist, an Inspector and a History professor with support of a bureaucrat must stop the world from nuclear WW III. Story takes place mainly in India & Afganistan.

Who is behind the plot? ISI, RAW, Taliban, Shia Hazaras, Kushans (8 feet tall giants of indo-greek origin) who are believed to be extinct? Can this madness be stopped? What is the damage? What are the repercussions?

The story seems somewhat far fetched (but thats what thrillers are supposed to be, isn't it?). The pace is not even, bit jerky at times. However the seed is good & narrative is fine. Climax is abrupt. Current political situation in India is used as apt backdrop. Considering that this is the debut novel of the author we can expect more good novels from Aroon in future. 

A new age has dawned where english fictions of Indian writers are being widely accepted. This story provides a fresh perspective & a different landscape if you read too many western novels. One should read such novels to support Indian writers.

Towards Zero by Agatha Christie

"Towards Zero", a murder mystery by Agatha Christie. 

This is one of the rare Agatha Christi novels where neither Hercule Poirot nor Miss Marple appear. The detective is Superintendent Battle.

A man visiting a widow at her estate dies and the widow is murdered. A number of guests, relatives and accomplices are in the house and everyone seems to be a murderer. Story goes through ups and downs, twists and turns and reaches climax to reveal the killer.

As typical of Agatha, a number of small clues scattered around the book like bread crumbs converge in the climax. A classic whodunit.

This story has a lot of characters; as is usual for Agatha novels. You have to concentrate hard in the beginning till all the characters are introduced and their relations to others are established.

Although the name has modest relevance to story, it has all the characteristics of usual Agatha mystery and keeps you interested till the end.

Although '10 little Indians' or 'Murder on orient express' are better, recommend reading this one.

The Karachi deception by Shatrujeet Nath

"The Karachi deception" , a debut novel by Shatrujeet Nath.

Indian army has an ultra secret special ops group called 'Unit Kilo'. They undertake a commando mission (Project Abhimanyu) to assassinate Irshad Dilawar (An Indian living in Pakistan and wanted for a number of terrorist activities; definitely based on Daud Ibrahim) in Karachi deep inside Pakistan. Another group has already made an attempt on Dilawar and failed, but they too have not given up. However Project Abhimanyu is compromised and ISI knows everything about Indian commando mission. Indian commandos and this unknown group converge in Karachi to kill Dilawar.

Will 'Unit Kilo' deliver? Is there a traitor within Indian intelligence organization? Is Dilawar killed? Is there another international conspiracy? How will it end?

This is an intriguing story where you can not make out a friend from a foe, where hunters become hunted and killers become protectors. There are double agents. Friends of India inside Pakistan and vice versa. Although the book is short on action, it is compensated by the story and narrative. Writer manages to keep you interested till the end. There are two major twists to the story to rekindle the interest.

I purchased this book on impulse, without knowing the author and without having any feedback about the book. This was a big risk of disappointment. But the book has come out very well. It doesn't appear to be a debut novel. Shatrujeet's writing is of professional quality. Indian writers are often found short when they discribe a portion of story in other country, Shatrujeet is at ease in Indian as well as foreign setup. He describes Pakistan as if he has lived there.

The only thing that I found odd was that the characters use their names and details of their locations while talking on phones. In the business of spying this is always avoided in enemy territory in order to avoid detection of SIGINT and code names or aliases are used.

Shatrujeet's writing style is factual, riveting and non melodramatic. I liked the writing style and his way of story telling. The book keeps you interested and on the edge of you chair till end.

A very good read. Recommend reading. Looking forward to Shatrujeet's next book.

Good thief's guide to Vegas by Chris Ewan

"Good thief's guide to Vegas", by Chris Ewan.

Charlie is a mystery novel writer, who writes novels of his detective Michael Fox. However Charlie is also a thief. Good thief's guide is a series and this is the 3rd book where he comes to Vegas (first 2 being Amsterdam and Paris) with Victoria, his literary agent. They are accused of stealing money and something important from a casino by teaming with an illusionist. There is a murder as well.

Can Charlie and Vic repay the money? Can they find the illusionist? Who is the killer? How does Charlie's secret trade help?

Unlike previous 2 books, the story is slow and low on drama. There is hardly any twist in the tale. No surprises. In short the book is not enticing.                  

I did not enjoy. Obviously do not recommend.

Now you see her by James Patterson and Michael Ledwidge

"Now you see her", by James Patterson and Michael Ledwidge.

A teenager, Jenine, is angry at her boyfreind & drunk and accidently kills a person. But she is not arrested. Jennine then marries a cop to find out that he is a bad cop. She runs away, changes name to Nina and becomes a lawyer. Not even her daughter knows her past.

Nina is a successful lawyer and very happy. Her daughter has turned 16. Everything is going fine untill she is assigned a pro-bono work (lawyers work for free) by her law firm.

She is torn between fear for her life and saving an innocent man. If she tries to save him, she may loose all that she has. Who is he? Will she try? Does she have the courage? Who is she afraid of? What does her daughter think? Are there more skeletons in the closet?

Most of the book is narrated by the character of Jenine alias Nina. Authors have an easy writing style. On occasions when it was possible to sensetionalize or spice-up things, authors have missed it, intentionally or unintentionally. The book just about keeps you interested. You don't get bored.

Read it if you have time and nothing better to read.

Night probe by Clive Cussler

"Night Probe", by Clive Cussler. This is a Dirk Pitt adventure.

There is a secret treaty by which one country had SOLD another country to America 75 yr ago. Unfortunately persons carrying the copy of treaty met with accident and their respective vessels went under water. The sale and transfer never took place.

American president wants Dirk Pitt to salvage the copies of treaty so that he can claim the country. There are forces of the 'seller' country trying to stop Pitt. Can Pitt salvage the copies of treaty? Who wants to stop him? Will the 'sold' county mearge in America?

Story happens in 1989. The back drop of Qubec independence movement is used for the story.

Novel is lenghty & becomes boring. The title has little significance to the story. However entry of James Bond adds spice at the end.

Although I am a fan of Cussler, this one does not qualify to his usual standards.

First of God by Frederick Forsyth

"Fist of God" by Frederick Forsyth. Saddam's invasion of Kuwait is used as the basis of the story.

Israel has a traitor, Jericho, in Saddam's cabinet but has no one to 'run' him. America decides to pay for his services and UK decides to send in a british operative called Mike Martin, who can pass as Arab, to 'run' Jericho.

He finds out about the existance of 'Fist of God', a WMD, which is hidden with genius disguise. Attempts are made to locate 'Fist of God' and destroy it.

Does he find 'Fist of God' ? Is it destroyed? Does Martin survive? Has it anything to do with the outcome of Gulf war?

Idea of using an operative who can pass as local was also employed by Forsyth in his later book 'The Afgan', though I read that first.

Forsyth has deliberately kept the narrative simple and neutral. He has used real life figures like Thatcher, Bush, Netanyahu, General Shawrzkopf as characters in the story. His objective of blending fact with fiction and making it difficult to make out one from other has suceeded beautifully.

A long and detailed book but a good read.

The man in the brown suit by Agatha Christie

"The man in the brown suit", by Agatha Christie.

Anne Beddingfeld, a beautiful young lady, is orphaned and comes to London to look for a job. She sees a frightened man die accidentally by stepping on railway track. A man in brown suit approaches him, posing as doctor, and declares him dead. He also removes an important document from his pocket.

Anne decides to find out the truth. She also finds that a women is murdered. To solve the mystery she decides to take a voyage on a ship to South Africa, spending all her savings. There she meets a number of people but does not know their intentions.

Can she find the murderer? Can she find the man in the brown suit? Are they one and the same? What is the mystery?

The story is slow. Characters appear to be shallow. The novel does not end, for a long time, even after mystery is revealed.

Unlike other Agatha novels, this novel is drab. Agatha Christie hallmarks are missing and suspense is not enticing.

Give a miss to this one.

Act of terror by Marc Cameron

"Act of terror", a novel by Marc Cameron. This is his 2nd book after 'National Security'.

America faces strange attacks. The attacks are perpetrated by seemingly American citizens having no link to terrorism and working in reputed institutes like Airforce, FBI, CIA etc.

Who are these people? Why are they doing this? What has it to with an orphanage at Tajikistan -Afganistan border? Who is behind this? Will America survive?

Jericho Quinn is tasked to find out. There is an attempt on the life of his daughter and ex-wife. A new character of Veronica Garcia, an American with Cuban mother and Russian father, is introduced. There is a hint of romance between them at the end.

Story takes place in USA, China, Tajikistan and Afganistan. This book also has motorcycle chases. In the climax Quinn jumps from a chopper riding bike. Little too far fetched.

Pace of story is not uniform. Reader tends to loose interest a couple of times. Although the book is not bad, the raised expectations after first book, are not fulfilled.

Kill shot by Vince Flynn

"Kill Shot", a novel by Vince Flynn.
This book is a prequel to Mitch Rapp series. The story is set up mostly in France and tells us story of Mitch Rapp in his first year at CIA. This is second prequel of Flynn (after 'American assassin') and he has used these two prequels to bridge some gaps of Mitch's character, explain some interpersonal relations and bring in new characters and a love interest.

Mitch is sent to kill a person and result is 9 dead bodies including 3 innocents. Mitch has screwed up big time, or has he? His old enemy raises head. There is CIA politics to not let Thomas Stansfield become director. How do the 2 things relate? Is this a setup? Who is behind it all?

Flynn's writing style is dynamic, we live the story through his narrative. Pace is good and keeps us on the edge of chair. You do not get bored and do not loose interest.

Although there are a couple of loose ends, they may have been left intentionally for another prequel.

 Needless to say that I liked the book & recommend it. Now I have read all Vince Flynn books of Mitch Rapp series and have to wait for the release of new one.

Doomsday conspiracy by Sidney Sheldon

"Doomsday Conspiracy", a novel by Sidney Sheldon.
I have read 9-10 Sheldon books earlier and what I like most is that he doesn't write series books. Each book is a standalone book.
                                         
Commander Robert Bellamy is recruited from Navel Intelligence by CIA to find out the witnesses of a weather ballone crash. He later finds out that it was actually a UFO crash. Unknown to him a secret multinational oganization, headed by mysterious Janus, is killing the witnesses he found.

Why did CIA lie to him? Why the killings? Are there aliens? Things take a nasty turn and he is on a run. Police and intelligence agencies all round the world are hunting him. Who is behind this? Has it anything to do with his ex-wife, who he still loves. Who is Janus?

The story takes place in Europe and USA. Robert Bellamy is portrayed as emotional secret agent, but his past is shown as an efficient and hard sleuth. A bit of contradiction because sometimes he seems naive.

Since Bellamy is on run a large portion of book is dedicated in describing his travels. Story is not revetting, but one does not abandon the book either. The climax and end is abrupt.

The book promotes environmentalism. This book is not in the same class as some other Sheldon novels.

The racketeer by John Grisham

"The Racketeer" a novel by John Grisham.

Grisham is well known for his legal thrillers. This one is a borderline legal thriller. It has no court room drama.

Malcom Bannister, a black lawyer and ex marine, is sentenced for 10 yrs for money laundering. He claims to be innocent, his only fault being choosing wrong client.
A fedral judge is murdered with his girlfriend. His locker opened. Why was the judge killed? Banister may or may not have some vital info about the murder and killer.

Does the FBI get the info from Banister? What is the price? Is the murderer found? Who is the racketeer?

The story takes place in America and Carrebien. The pace is good, although it slows down in a couple of places. Writing style of this book seemed to be different from the previous Grisham books. Moreover this book is written in present tense (but not continuous present), which is a novelty.

There is a big twist to the story towards end that I did not see coming. It changes all the equations.                      

Its a good change from hard core Grisham legal thrillers. Although this book is not in the same league as 'The runaway jury' its a good one. If you don't like legal thrillers but would still like to read John Grisham, this is your book.

Dead or alive by Tom Clancy

"Dead or Alive", a novel by Tom Clancy. This was 2nd book I read after 'Againt all enemies'.

This is a novel about a terrorist plot to detonate nuclear bomb in USA alongwith multiple coventional bombs in various locations at the same time. The mastermind is 'The Emir', a character based on Osama bin Laden.

A covert organization 'The Campus' who works without congressional oversight. (In short does not exist) is trying to stitch the pieces and fragments of information to find out the actual plot via SIGINT (electronic
 intelligence) & HUMINT (human intel)    

USA searches Amir in Pakistan. But where is he? Afghanistan? Saudi? Or close to home? Does he suceed? How many bombs go off?

The novel starts with 18 to 20 unrelated stories. All of them incomplete. Slowly they start to converge into a mega plot. Untill then it is a difficult task to remember the names and their story.
                                   
This novel is from Jack Ryan series and doesn't have one protagonist but rather a team.

Tom Clancy's writing style is different. Too many parallel stories. Each one in multiple pieces. Feels discontinuous. A lot of detailing. Mention of someone parking the car appears at least 20-25 times.                          

Should read the previous novels of the series to understand some references.

Read if you have time but not a must read.

Lost city by Clive Cussler

"Lost city" a novel by Clive Cussler with Paul Kemprecos.

This is a Numa Files adventure and the protagonist is Kurt Austin, director of Special Assignments team of NUMA (National Underwater & Marine Agency - underwater equivalent of CIA) alongwith his sidekick Joe Zavala.

A frozen body of an aviator is found entoumbed in a glacier with a strange helmet. Its the body of a person from one of the most powerful families that has thrived on arms business for centuries. Scientists on a deserted island may have reinvented elixer of life and horrible mutants. What links the two? How does Numa get involved? What is the relation of all this with the Lost City (a field of hydrothermal vents in atlantic ocean)?
                   
Clive Cussler thrillers are all centered around the theme of water. I wonder how he can write so many novels. This is 6th in Numa series that I read and I have read another 16 of Dirk Pitt adventures, Oregon files, Isac Bell adventures & Sam Fargo adventures. And there are more to be read.
               
Clive Cussler is a master story teller and keeps you transfixed to the book till the end. This book is no exception. This thriller enters into science fiction zone.
                               
If you like Cussler read it. However this is not a book to start reading Cussler.

National security by Marc Cameron

"National Security" a debut novel and thriller by Marc Cameron.

There is a terror attack on America, 1st time after 9/11. A bio wepon, a deadly virus, is unleashed on an American airplane. Are these 2 incidents all or is it the tip of proverbial iceberg? Who is behind this? What is the plan?

Jerico Quinn is recruited from airforce as OGE (Other government agency-for black ops) alongwith a Marine. Will they unearth the mega plot? Can they stop it?

This book has the usual ingredients of terrorists, a hateful Iraqi, beautiful bio wepons scientist, our protaginist and a lot of action. Author has gone in a convoluted way to bring in high adrenaline motorbike chase in the climax. What's absent in this thriller is double cross and traitors. This story is a straight fight between good and bad.

Cameron's story telling style is simple, story hasn't got too many complications or twists. I liked his writing style. We can expect more in his recently released 2nd book.

The Christmas wedding by James Patterson and Richard Dilallo

"The Christmas Wedding", a short novel by James Patterson & Richard Dilallo. This was my 2nd Patterson book after 'The postcard killers'.                                      
As a matter of fact, this is neither a thriller nor a murder mystery. Its a family novel. This was a welcome change for me.

Gabby, a widow in her fifties who has always put family ahed of her, decides to get married. She invites her 3 daughters and 1 son alongwith their families for 'The Christmas Wedding' of hers but does not declare the groom. There are 3 suitors and even they do not know who will marry Gabby. The setting is American countryside.
                         
Each of Gabby's children have one problem or another and they approach the problems based on their upbringing. There is a cancer patient, a drug addict, a useless husband and so on. However dispite the problems everyone comes home for Christmas.    

The book portrays the intricate relationships very well. Dispite the differences, the oneness of family and friends is depicted nicely. Needless to say emotions run high in this novel withot getting melodramatic.

Interesting to note that not one family member opposes the marriage. Everyone supports Gabby wholeheartedly.

Who does she marry? One of the 3 or someone else? The book gives all the answers at the end.

This novel looks at the positives rather than negatives. Those who like simple novels should read this.

Inferno by Dan Brown

"Inferno", latest thriller by Dan Brown. This is his 4th book of 'Robert Langdon' series.

Dante Alleghieri wrote an epic poem called 'Divine comedy' @ AD1320, where he describs his journey through Inferno (hell), ascent to Mount Purgatory and passage to Paradise. This book revolves around the theme of his depiction of inferno.

Robert Langdon wakes up in a hospital bed in Florence-Italy with all his memory of last two days wiped out due to a bullet grazing his head. . An attempt is made on his life in hospital and a lady doctor (Sienna) saves him. Then a game of cat & mouse begins. Robert does not know who is trying to kill him and why? He posseses an artefact that everyone is after but whats so special? Its a map. Of what? In the course of action enemies become friend and friends become foe.

A mega plot is unearthed. WHO is involved and so is a mysterious organization and a brilliant scientist. Can Robert save the day?

This is a thriller alright. However Dan Browns USP is the theological and art backdrop, his vivid description and meticulous detailing. In addition to the story you want to visit the places and verify the details described. I had this urge after reading Da Vinci Code, Angles and Demons & The Last Symbol.
It has become a standard feature of Dan Brown books that when you think that the book has reached plateau, a major twist is unearthed.
This book is no exception on both the counts.

How does the book end? Well you will have read it to find out. If there's a sequel to this book in future, it would be a SciFi.

Dan Brown fans will definately read it. Others should do so as well.

The last man by Vince Flynn

"The last man", latest thriller by Vince Flynn (2012). This is his 13th book of 'Mitch Rapp' series and now I have read all but one.

Mitch Rapp is a top CIA operative who has little regard for authority & rules when national security is in question. He is difficult to manage but is best at what he does that is killing tge bad guys.

One important CIA operative (Rick) goes missing in Jalalabad. Rapp goes to find him and an assassination attempt is made on him by a killer from his past. In the fight for his life Rapp sustains head injuries and has a short term memory loss.

Will he find Rick? Is he alive? Is it the doing of intelligence agency of another country? Is there a bigger plot than what meets the eyes?

There are multiple layers of deception & misinformation is difficult to segregate from fact. The plot is full of subplots. Story takes place mainly in Afghanistan, USA and Pakistan. Its a real thriller.    
                             
Loss of nemory and recovery brings a new dimension to Rapp's personality. The end also sows seeds for the next book that is expected this year.

Vince Flynn's writing style is very good. It is very difficult to put the book down. Story is well paced and keeps you on tenterhook. (It is hard to believe that Vince Flynn was a dyslexic.)

All in all worth spending the time.

Those who like thrillers should read Vince Flynn.

Battle for Bittora by Anuja Chauhan

"Battle for Bittora", by Anuja Chauhan during vacation.
   
This is the story of Sarojini 'Jinny' Pande who's grandfather was a freedom fighter + ex-MP and grandmother an 3 x ex-MP. Jinny is hurled from her job as animation specialist (making kitanoo of Harpic) to fighting election on Pragati party (read Congress) ticket for Bittora, a constituency in Pavit Pradesh ( Read UP). Her opponent is Zain Altaf Khan of IJP (Read BJP), an ex-royal of Bittora and her childhood sweetheart, who she still lusts.

Will she fight the election? Will she win? Do Jinny and Zhain become enemies? The story has twists, real politiking, horse trading, betrayal and magnanimity.

Jinny's state of always being in two minds, being torn between politics and love is portrayed well. Her love-hate relationship with Zhain is the base of the story. A number if characters are based on real life figures like Sonia, Varun, Modi etc.

The pace of story is slow.Zhain seems to be always 2 steps ahed of Jinny. Sometimes you wonder wheather Jinny is really smart. Although the election is for Loksabha, the canvas seems smaller and appears like a Vidhansabha election instead.

This is Anuja's 2nd novel after 'Zoya factor' where she has depicted emotions of modern day young Indian lady very well. (It has become her USP).
Although it is an OK read, this novel does not raise to the heightened expectations after 'Zoya factor'

Paangal (पानगळ) by Prof. Milind Joshi

"Paangal", a Marathi 'Katha Sangraha' by Prof. Milind Joshi during vacation. This is a collection of 14 short stories.

All the stories are interesting. Some of them like 'Samadhi' are too good. This book has a bouquet of stories. 'Krishnarpanamastu' is a tragedy, 'Sathi' is a comedy, 'Paangal, is a tale of sorrow, 'Eka sahityikachi diary' is a parody, 'Jimi ani me' is aashawadi, 'Dattak putra' depicts complex family relations.

Death seems to be the central theme of the book as 9 out of 14 stories have death in it.

Details of human emotions, human nature and interpersonal relations are captured very well. However it seems that ,in order to make the stories short-n-sweet, sometimes writer has been miser in allocating enough words to create the background that explains the behaviour of a particular character or an incedent.

The editing and proof reading of the book leaves lot to be desired. In addition to the grammatical errors, there are some descripancies and contradictions that could have been easily avoided by a watchful eye.

Overall it's, really, a good book. A nice Marathi read after a long time.

Thr oath of Vayuputras by Amish

"The oath of the Vayuputras", much awaited, 3rd and final book of Shiva triology by Amish.

Destiny of Neelkanth is to identify the evil & take the evil out of equation without offering any alternative. Shiva identifies the evil and declares a holy war.

What is the evil? Who are the enemies? Does he meet the chief Vasudev? Where are the elusive Vsyuputras? What is the oath of Vayuputras? Is it fulfilled?

There is some very good philosophy in this book and its explained in very simple language e.g. overuse of good makes it evil, objectives of institutions of Mahadev & Vishnu etc. Amish has an amazing writing style. The story keeps you on tenterhooks.

You are glued to the book for 480 out of 565 pages. Then it starts going wrong. The great war turns out to be a damp squib. It becoms personal rather than based on principal. Mahadev, the living god breaks his promise. Vayuputras only make a guest appearence.

From a beutifully constructed epic by a master story teller, that captivated India for 2-3 years, Amish suddenly looses interest after page 480 & decids to end the book abruptly, leaving many errors & contradictions. It's wrapped up hurriedly. An anticlimax. Seeds of Mahabharat series are also sowed at the end.

Read it for first 480 pages. Read it bacause you can not 'not read it' after reading first two books. But I was disappointed.

You are here by Meenakshi Reddy Madhavan

"You are here" a debut novel by Meenakshi Reddy Madhavan.

This is a book of modern day young Indian working woman called Arshi, who has a catholic father and kashmiri mother who are divorced.

The book takes us on a journey through Arshi's world, her mind and love life. There are few people she can call 'close'.

Emotions of today's young Indian girl are presented vividly. Mind of a woman is beautifully unfurled. Meenakshi's writing style is expressive. The book can be categorized as 'bold' and caters to urban and metropolitian readers. The chapters are titled innovatively.

Downside of the book is the story or rather the lack of it. This is one major handicap of the book. Not much happens throughout the book. The book appears like a beautiful lady without a soul.

It's a good read for those who like expressive writing. Those who do not look for a story in the book, may even like it.

The Bankster by Ravi Subramanian

"The Bankster", by Ravi Subramanian, who is dubbed as John Grisham of banking, by Wall Street Journal. This is his 4th book, although 1st one I read.

Three stories run in parallel. A CIA agent works as arms supplier. A nuclear power plant is built in Kerala and locals oppose it. Three employees of a multinational bank are murdered.

Who has done it? Is it related to money laundering? Is there any connection between 3 stories?
How does it end?

This book has all the ingredients for a thriller. Corporate politics, governance issues, ambitious managers, extra marital affair, use of good looks to further ones clause, NGO's controlled by external powers, nuclear politics, religion, murders and investigative journalists.

Character of Indrani appears to be inspired by Chanda Khochar of ICICI. All characters are sufficiently developed. Inner workings of banking industry is used as background for the story. How bankers run after business, how protocol is overlooked, how rules are bypassed and how things are influenced is shown in detail. I liked the title. By calling it Bankster, author has simultaniously raised curiosity and made it look sinister. Full marks for the title.

Story keeps you interested. Pace is even.You do not get bored. After reading this book, I do not mind reading other 3 books by Ravi.

Although it is not a 'wow' book, it's a good read.

Asura - The tale of the vanquished by Anand Neelakantan

Mandar's book review                             
"Asura - The tale of the vanquished", by Anand Neelakantan.

This is the story of Ravan, as the title suggests. But it is not Ramayan narrated by Ravan. It is the story of how Ravan became who he was and also includes war with Ram. And it is written in Asura perspective.
                                   
Story is narrated by Ravan and Bhadra (Servent cum advisor cum man friday cum non entity for Ravan). He may be invention of author. The idea, presented in this book, of Asuras being black but cultured and Devas being fair but barbarians is not new for well read. Author has tried to present mythological landmark incidents as they realistically happened e.g. lanka dahan.    

Writing style is factual but little bland in 1st half. Author has covered some major events just by mention rather than making them colourful narratives. Love-loath-hate-pity-trust relationship of Ravan and Bhadra is the soul of the book. Bhadra is participant in all the important events of Ravan's life. Character of Ravan is portrayed as human rather than rakshas. He seems clueless, often enough, to doubt his capabilities. A mere mortal.

Real twist in the tale is the revelation of Ravan-Sita relation and reason for Sita's abduction. It gives a new and unchartered perspective to the story & you start thinking on different lines. The war is good Vs evil, against castesim and untouchability.

Although 1st half of the book is slow and becoms boring at times, 2nd half is gripping. There are twists like Mandodaries abduction, Meghnad's blunders, agni pariksha, Ravan's death, 2nd vanvas to Sita that are presented in Asura perspective. Author binds you till the end. There were 2 incidents in Ramayan that I did not like when I was a child. One was the way Ram killed Vali and other was Sita's agnipariksha. Author has exploited these two incidents very well to put forth his theory.
           
The book is more than 500 pages long and size is larger than pocket book. If it was a pocket book, it might have been close to 800-900 pages. Reading needs time and patience.

At the end you can not help wondering that may be, just may be, it happened like this. History is always written by victors. This is the tale of vanquished told well.

A good read. Recommend reading.