Reading Time: 4 minutesPrivate equity can sound painfully dry if explained badly. Buy a company, fix it, sell it. In the wrong hands, this can become a sleeping pill.
The Protégé by Stephen Frey: Book Review Read More »
Reading Time: 6 minutesGorky Park is a Cold War thriller, but it never feels like a history lesson. Instead, it creates a world of tension, loneliness, and quiet corruption, where every conversation seems to carry hidden meaning. At the centre is Arkady Renko, a detective whose stubborn decency makes him admirable and vulnerable.
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Reading Time: 5 minutesThe pacing of the novel also deserves appreciation. It is detailed, but never too slow. There were parts I enjoyed more than others, but I never felt that the story needed to move faster. In fact, the detailed approach helps the ending. By the time the final revelations arrive, you understand why Goddard had taken his time.
Into the Blue by Robert Goddard: Book Review Read More »
Reading Time: 5 minutesRating: 3.5/5 The idea of reading another Hercule Poirot novel is exciting. No matter who writes it, the name Poirot carries a certain promise. You expect elegance, arrogance, impossible clues, polite conversations hiding ugly truths, and finally, that grand moment where the great detective explains everything while everyone else quietly accepts intellectual defeat. That is
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Reading Time: 5 minutesRating: 5/5 Reading good literature is a joy. It often brings a smile on the lips or a teardrop in the eye. But sometimes, it makes you ill. It causes your gut to curl, heart to break, and destroys your spirit for a few days. That’s what One Hundred Years of Solitude by Gabriel García
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Reading Time: 6 minutesRating: 5/5 Righteousness. The word may have lost its true meaning in the contemporary age, when mass murderers have a right to defend and killing children is a strategy. The past was not as smudged. Socrates, no less, emphasized that righteousness must be the supreme priority. So did Dr. APJ Abdul Kalam, the missile man
Things Fall Apart by Chinua Achebe – Book Review Read More »
Reading Time: 5 minutesReading a novel about crimes leading up to Christmas just a couple of days before Christmas was the perfect match. I thoroughly enjoyed Holy Island and can easily recommend it to anyone and everyone.
Holy Island by LJ Ross – A (late) Book Review Read More »
Reading Time: 3 minutesComing up with such contrasting stories is not possible when you haven’t seen or done extraordinary things. His days in the army and his current life as a corporate troubleshooter have created a man with the most unique combination of experiences. That’s what you get from the book.
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Reading Time: 5 minutesThe most interesting twist is the creation of a separate state for women. The new state is for women and by women, where men would have special reservation rights, and live to play reverse traditional gender roles. It’s like a utopia of sorts for women, and the initiator of the movement to create it was a fisherwoman from Colaba. All in all, The Illuminated is a dull story that falls short of what it promises to be.
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Reading Time: 5 minutesThe Nigerian Mafia Mumbai is a very familiar story, especially for viewers of The Goodfellas or The Sopranos. But the Onyeka manages to keep it fresh with new flavours and characters.
The Nigerian Mafia Mumbai by Onyeka Nwelue – Book Review Read More »
Reading Time: 6 minutesTo Kill a Mockingbird is narrated from Scout’s point of view, but the novel’s true protagonist, in my opinion, is Atticus Finch.
To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee – Book Review Read More »
Reading Time: 4 minutesRating: 3/5 To be honest, I enjoyed reading A Dark and Shiny Place. But enjoying the novel cover to cover was a challenge. It has more than a few flaws, which consistently distract you. Nonetheless, A Dark and Shiny Plan is not the worst book I’ve read recently. Unlike other stupid books from new others,
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Reading Time: 5 minutesAncestral Vices is strong enough to kick the capitalists as much as it does the communists. And that’s what makes it a must-read for those who love political satires.
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Reading Time: 3 minutesThe first that struck me when I got my hands on Richa Lakhera’s Contamination was actor Manoj Bajpayee’s comment: “Brilliant. Standout. Richa Lakhera writes vividly of the wicked.”And that set a lot of expectations from the book. After all, very few play wicked better than Mr Bajpayee himself. To be honest, the book met most
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Reading Time: 5 minutesThe Muslim Vanishes is probably the most political fiction since Jinnah: India, Partition, Independence. Saeed Naqvi brilliantly captures the underlying crux of the growing Hindutva extremism in the country. While the author propagates more than a few controversial viewpoints, the primary objective of this unique play is right on the button.
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Reading Time: 3 minutesThe story of Jaishankar Krishnamurthy’s and Krishna Udayashankar’s Farside is as simple as the title sounds. The book is what a good eight-part Netflix series could be about. It’s got it all – greed, gambling, blackmail, escorts, and politics. If you’re looking to spend a chilly winter Saturday at home, Farside could give you good company. Here’s
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Reading Time: 4 minutesThe Delicate Storm is a beautifully written novel and I would easily recommend it to someone who’s just started reading. The novel is simple in its language for a young reader to comprehend, and the 450-page length assures that it has enough depth to quench an enthusiast’s thirst.
The Delicate Storm by Giles Blunt – Book Review Read More »
Reading Time: 6 minutesJohn Grisham may have written The Painted House in 2000, but the book will make people cry or at least choke even a hundred years from today. It’s that good! After reading Calico Joe a few years ago, this was the second Grisham novel, and I totally understand why he is counted among the best
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Reading Time: 4 minutesAbout a year ago, if someone would’ve asked me what makes a good story, I would talk in detail on the subject. However, now I can simply answer, “Whatever Sir Arthur wrote was a good story!”, a great story, in fact. After completing The Valley of Fear, the last in the famous Sherlock Holmes novels,
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Reading Time: 4 minutesReading The Perfect Wife was like arriving at a natural haven without ever realizing that it existed. In short, I am speechless. That’s how good Blake Pierce is, and I still cannot fathom that I never heard of him before. I found this book for free on the Google Store, and I cannot thank God
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Reading Time: 5 minutesJeffrey Archer is one of the most popular authors alive, with hundreds of millions of copies sold around the world. However, I haven’t had a chance to get my hands on his works until recently. That said, I’d heard high praises for him from my colleagues and friends. Hence, I always had an interest in
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Reading Time: 3 minutesWhere the Condor Flies by Curt Longbow is a good read for those interested in American Western thrillers. Sadly, I am not one of them. To be very honest, I did not like the book, and can never recommend it to anyone. For a book published in the year 2000, the book feels quite outdated
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Reading Time: 3 minutesThe Hound of the Baskervilles by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, third in the Sherlock Holmes series, is one of the best mysteries I’ve ever read. It’s like running a 400-meter race. You run the first hundred meters quick, then subsidize and maintain a sustainable speed for the next 200 meters, and then dash and sprint
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Reading Time: 5 minutesThe year 2020 has been the most disastrous for human life across the globe since the turn of the millennium. With the Coronavirus Pandemic tightening its grip on mankind, the future looks quite dark and uncertain. While most of the human race was under lockdown, living in continuous fear and anxiety, some souls like debut
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Reading Time: 3 minutesIt was only yesterday that I finished The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho for the third time, and I think it is the right time to discuss what I feel about it. There are certain books which need no introduction, as almost each and every one of those who like to read novels have heard about
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Reading Time: 3 minutesDetective novels are something that I am not familiar with, but I seem to like them the more I read. While I read a couple of James Hadley Chase novels a few years ago, Sir Doyle’s Sherlock Holmes series was my true exposure to the genre. While I’ve been in awe of Sherlock Holmes, Amar
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Reading Time: 3 minutesTo simply say what The White Tiger is, I want you to read the below excerpt from the novel: ‘One day a cunning Brahmin, trying to trick the Buddha, asked him, “Master, do you consider yourself man or a god?”. The Buddha smiled and said, “Neither. I am just one who has woken up while
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Reading Time: 2 minutesI read the first Sherlock Holmes novel, A Study in Scarlet, last month, but did not find it as interesting as people portray it to be. However, The Sign of the Four has changed my perspective completely. So, I admit, Sherlock Holmes in a great character! And more than anything else, Sir Arthur Conan Doyle
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Reading Time: 3 minutesDuring my childhood, when I had no clue about novels, I heard a name that some of the teachers would say at the school library – Ruskin Bond. Though I knew nothing about the man until a few years ago, the name fascinated me. And the more fascinated was I when I realized that he
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Reading Time: 2 minutesIn this world where injustice is a part of common life, revolution, and rebellion are a dream for millions. Be it Palestine, Kashmir, Cuba, or Brazil, the oppressed want to rebel in any way possible. Enter, politics, the cruellest and most inhuman aspect of human life. Politics is a dirty game, and nothing exemplifies it
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Reading Time: 3 minutesWhenever I walk past my school, the DPYA High School in Dadar Parsee Colony, my heart aches. Every single memory from the good old days comes to life. I feel sad that I can’t bring back those days. And yet, there’s a big smile rather than a tear in my eyes. That’s the feeling you
A Collection of Short Stories – Munshi Premchand Read More »
Reading Time: 3 minutesIn all of the English novels written in the past couple of centuries, very few characters have gone on to become as popular and iconic as Sherlock Holmes. Sir Arthur Conan Doyle’s imaginary detective gained legendary status much before Robert Downey Jr. portrayed the character in blockbuster movies. Written way back in 1887, A Study
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Reading Time: 3 minutesWar is Peace Freedom is Slavery Ignorance is Strength These are the words that send chills down your soul on several occasions while reading George Orwell’s magnum opus, “1984”. It is a book that will change you as a human being. It is a book you will never forget in your life. To begin with,
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Reading Time: 2 minutesVeronika Decides to Die by Paulo Coelho is easily one of the best novels to read for the most part until the last 5 pages ruin it completely. A young girl named Veronika decides to commit suicide for one of the most bizarre reasons, and that’s that she has a “perfect life”! Plot Summary of Veronika
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Reading Time: 4 minutesFyodor Dostoyevsky wrote The Idiot in the late 19th Century, and it continues to be one of the best novels ever written in the world, across all languages and genres. Dostoyevsky, inarguably one of the greatest novelists ever, authored the book originally in Russian, in 1869. David Magarshack translated the book into English in the
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Reading Time: 2 minutesJohn Grisham is a world-renowned author known for gripping legal thrillers, and with this expectation, I bought Calico Joe. However, what it turned out to be is one of the most uncomfortable books I’ve read, and I loved it. If you like to go deep into the dark failures of relationships, especially between parents and
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Reading Time: 2 minutesThe Emperors Riddles is one of those books which will keep reminding you of Dan Brown’s “The Da Vinci Code”. It adds a breath of freshness and uniqueness to it, though. The story brings to life the colourful and holy streets of Varanasi and takes you to an unprecedented cultural journey. Satyarth Nayak successfully encapsulates
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