Many times it happens to me that the book delivers completely different content than what you expected when selecting it. The same thing happened to me when I selected "The Panipuri Crimes", I was expecting short crime stories but what I found was completely surprising.
The protagonist of our story is Sagar. He had the idea of starting an online panipuri business. And so did few guys before him. But there was a danger lurking in dark, targeting people who wanted to digitize panipuri business. Read the book to know more.
The story was smooth and fast-paced. The presentation was new, and the idea was also different. The language usage was also easy. I finished the book in two sittings. The excitement that the author generated in the first half (my first sitting through the book) was not matched at the same level in the second half. Still an enjoyable read. It gave me company on a short trip.
"The Coast-to-coast murder" by J D Barker and James Patterson. It was my second read from J D Barker and the first from James Patterson. The first book I read by J D Barker was "4MK Killer". It was a completely new kind of experience for me. I may have read few psychological thrillers in past but 4MK had completely blown away my mind. So when I saw this book I gave a chance to Coast-to-Coast. Another reason was that James Patterson has written so many books and I haven't read a single book by him. So I wanted to explore his style of writing as well. I would like to thank NetGalley and publishers to provide me an early review copy of "the coast-to-coast murder."
As genre suggest it is a psychological thriller but one that you may not have seen or read yet. Our major characters are Michael Kepler, Megan Kepler, Michelle Kepler, and FBI agents. Michael Kepler got a call from his neighbor that there was water leakage from his flat and it has overflown from his flat to others' property as well. He came back running and found a body in his bathtub. He called LAPD and reported the death of a stranger. He also informed his sister Megan regarding this. Michael was a hundred percent sure that he saw that lady first time. Things that the LAPD team found were completely in contrast. The pieces of evidence they found were indicating that the murdered lady was the girlfriend of Michael. On top of it when Michael was taken to LAPD for questioning someone help him escape the jail. And from there detective Dobbs from LAPD joined hands with FBI agents to solve the case. FBI agent brought in new information that Michael might be the person behind not just one murder but more than 16 murders. Michael had asked his sister Megan to help him out and his sister was on the way to help Michael. They were both adoptive children of a psychologist couple and both had trouble passed before and after adoption. Read the book to know how killings happened and how it was related to human psychology.
I'll give you four reason why thriller genre lovers must read this book
1) Awesome plot building
2) Simple narration style and easy to read language usage
3) Minimal characters and maximum exposure to each character's to get a proper stage
4) Unexpected twist and turns to keep you engaged till the last page
Coming to the writing style, the book is written with multiple POVs making it more interesting as narrative jumps from one person to another. My only complain was cover design, I think a better cover may attract more readership.
Overall I will give 4.5 out of 5 to this wonderful thriller.
In 2016, I had read "Men and Dreams: In the Dhauladhar" by Shibu Kochery. Though the book was only 280 pages in length it was too deep in terms of technical information. I survived that book because of good character and story building. So when I came to know about "Faith and the Beloved", Shibu's latest book, I wanted to make sure that it should not cover lengthy technical information. I read the sample provided by Kindle and once I was certain that the author has given respect to the readers of the first book by avoiding unnecessary technicalities, I bought the book. And trust me 185 pages of "Faith and the Beloved" has more storylines and thrill then 280 pages of "Men and Dreams: In the Dhauladhar" taking twice.
To give you a brief of the story, a sleeper cell guy called Tony was killed in his apartment, while his wife Naithy was hospitalized due to head injuries. His body was found with two other guys who belonged to the underworld gang. Naithy's daughter Alice was on run from multiple organizations. Prem Rollands a Kalari expert, a hacker, and an intelligent strategist wanted to avenge his brother's encounter and people linked to the case. An underworld gangs were after rare diamonds that were missing from Tony's place. A CBI officer working on the case found a deep history of 10-15 years behind the crime. Are you thrilled to know these pointers? Don't worry I haven't given any spoilers. You will find way more than these points if you read the book.
Coming to the writing style
1) Pace - Fast
2) Language usage - Very easy. Even beginners can enjoy it.
3) Age group - preferably 15+
4) Plot Development - Complex style. Will discuss in the next paragraph
5) Character Building - Details to the core
6) Content Amount - 250% than normal thrillers
7) Cover - So so. Needs more attractive cover.
You might be thinking why I have given just pointers above, but why to waste more words when I can convert the same with just bullet points.
Now coming to what is changed from Dhaulandhar to this book. The author has reduced technicalities drastically. He focuses more on storytelling than engineering/technical discussion. The plot of this book is more interesting as we were unearthing new facts with each chapter. The reason I said the plot is complex is plot is divided between 6-7 major characters. You will get to know only the portion known to that character. You won't get a full picture without reading until the last chapter. The character building is still heavily information-driven, mostly dating back to the character's parents or grandparents' background. I enjoyed the information about the main characters but when too much information about someone meeting your characters just once (like a couple from the Gambia) was actually too much. I feel that could have been avoided.
Overall a wonderful read. One that can make a good visual content of converted in web series or movies. I may take a review on our BookTube channel as it fits our theme.
After romance, the second most loved genre would be a detective/crime thriller. In the last 6-7 weeks of lockdown, I have devoured a couple of such books. I was out of said genre book when a friend from the publishing industry sent me the blurb of "the Tech by Mark Ravine". I instantly got a liking for the book. I accepted the book in exchange for an honest review. I am glad that I accepted it, because it landed on my list of this year's favorite.
The story goes something like this. An FBI officer Alexandra, our protagonist, recently shifted to her new office with a recently transferred team. Her first impression when she checked her subordinates' files was that her teammates were either looser or victims. Being a workaholic she joined the office the moment she landed in the city. She solved the first case within 24 hours even before she went to report her boss about her joining office. Surprisingly, various cases kept coming in front of her team. And each case connected with the previous one. Her team kept solving these cases, though Alexandra found their success clouted, as in each case there was some kind of hidden help to them from unknown tips or mishaps. There are more than 7-8 cases to keep the reader engaged. I don't want to reveal much to avoid giving away spoilers.
The book is lengthy, more than 450 pages. Well it is bound to be a lengthy one, because it covers so many cases and linking between these cases. Having said that, you will not find a single page with tempo going down. The author has maintained a speedy pace while maintaining interest quotient. If you want you may read one case per reading, that is how I have taken the book. While reading the book, I was visualizing that a series was playing in front of my eyes. The language used is simple, written for an audience of 14+. The characters who got the maximum stage were Alexandra, Mike, Gabriella, Nancy, AD Khan, Hollywood. Other side characters have also served their purpose.
The technologies shown around Mike & Aisha were far fetched but gave the feeling of sci-fi along with crime thriller. Another complaint was cover and title. I feel the book can have better cover and title to match its content.
If I feel that chasing mythologies or romance is too much for time being, I take refuge in crime thrillers. Recently I had read too many mythologies and wanted to change the pattern. That is when Vandana from Vinfluencers recommended, "Victims for Sale". The title was interesting and I found the cover scary enough to boost my enthusiasm. The book reached my hands within 3 days and here I am to share my thoughts about the book.
You might read the title twice as I have done. Yes, it is correct, the title indeed is ‘Victims for Sale’! And if you give it a second thought, you may realize what the title refers to. It probably has something to do with exploitation. The protagonist of our story is Sandy, an Indian girl from a protective family, who wanted to pursue higher studies in London. Her family reluctantly agreed on the condition that she stayed in London with a protective family. Sandy selected the place of Sawant's. When she moved into the house, she started getting creepy feelings. Events that unveiled thereafter were far more sinister than she could have ever bargained for! She found the Sawants were in some way associated with human trafficking. And she just could not go out and declare to the world about the clandestine incidents that were going on. She used her courage and wits to resolve issues that could make a huge difference to vulnerable women and children. Read the book to know more. Coming to the author’s writing style, I found the pace medium. The author has taken the time to develop characters. Similarly, thrill and suspense also emerged as the story progressed. I like the way the author has avoided mainstream action. Sandy has been shown as a human with her own weaknesses when it comes to fighting. It is only by using her intelligence combined with an element of luck that she could work resolve the complex issues that are brought out in the book. One complaint I have is about the way the author has rushed the climax. I would give 3.5 out of 5 stars to the book.
I checked the blurb and cover of "Hungry Gods" by Richa Lakhera a few months back but I found it too bold for my taste, so I didn't approach it. But the book was discussed much in my social network and praise reached almost every day. On a special recommendation from author Kulpreet Yadav, I decided to give it a try. And finally, I got my hands on this dark tale of love, lust, and revenge.
Book Blurb
Beaten and brutally raped, her body is never found. However, the killers make one mistake. They leave a witness, a witness who has nothing to live for except revenge. And when he crosses the boundaries of time to make the guilty pay, a whole lot of dark characters come to light. There is Valentine, the superstar brand ambassador who sells anything for a price; there is Medici, a pharmaceutical company fraudulently manufacturing banned drugs; there is the perverted and sinister minded Dr Ranga and there is Este, the prostitute whose dark secret will blow up a daughter’s sanity. So, is there another murder waiting to happen? Will Police Inspector Dorab Silva be able to connect the clues to prevent another crime? Will these gods of greed be exposed? And yes, you will be surprised by who you will find there, finally. Deeply unsettling, Hungry Gods takes a hard look at greed for wealth and power.
The blurb is not at all exaggerating, the violence, sexual content, and description is really off the limits for anyone below 18 a strict adult genre. Frankly speaking, I have not read the story as dark and gruesome before. The nearest one was "The Unconquerable" by Shivish. But that was just 25% of this story.
Talking about the plot, a pharmaceutical giant Medici's was about to launch some new lines of drugs. The company had acquired mastery of marketing. Their products (no matter how much criticised by media or other pharma) were working well in the market. But things were not as simple, dark past of company (and some the high profile people) had started tracing them. Mysterious death with strange inhumane nature came into the light. The first death led to another and chain of events set in place.
The content of the book shows deep research and character mapping. It took me around 25-30 pages to grasp the nerve of the story. And almost 70-80 pages to accept the incidents described in the book.
So, call it a mystery or a revenge tale it is something you read once in a while. I heard sacred games is one such dark tale, if that's true then this one is 10 times stronger story.
Once in a while, we give chance completely new person to review the book. We have got this book reviewed in the same way. The book is read and reviewed by one of my husband's colleague's daughter and to my surprise, she has done a good job as her first trial. We are publishing her review as it is.
Book Blurb
Lakhs of devotees have gathered at the ashram to celebrate Swamiji’s shashtipoorti, his completing sixty years of age. Arrangements are in place for the many followers from all over the world who come to seek blessings, as also for those crooks who come with hopes of stealing the diamond crown – a gift of love from a wealthy devotee.
Balaram, Kumkum and their allies have waited for this day with bated breath. The crown would change their lives and give them a chance to start afresh.
Will everyone stick to the plan? Does greed for more let them succeed?
When despite strict vigil the diamond crown is stolen, and all clues lead to a dead end, the police officials call out to the man they trust the most – detective Tempo. With a sharp insight and a knack for noticing the unusual in the most mundane of things and people, he is the man who takes it upon himself to find the crown.
Will Tempo catch up with the thieves or are the culprits always a step ahead?
The diamond crown by V. S. Rao is a classic suspense story. The story gets a kick when Balaram, Kumkum, Parabrahma Rao and his allies planned to steal the diamond crown, amounting two crores which, was to be presented to Swamiji on his Shasthipoorti day. Loot of diamond crown and replace it with fake one was planned strategically. Would plan go as expected?
Improvement point for the author would be the way crime case was solved by Detective Tempo. He came in the midpoint of the story. And he solved the case in one day, that was too quick for crime fiction story. Its like he knew what had happened and what criminal's possible next step was. I was expecting action and some drama.
The narration of the story is simple. It was an average crime fiction story and not as expected thrilling.
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