Book Review: 31 by Upendra Namburi

Title: 31

Publisher: Westland

Author: Upendra Namburi

Number of pages: 372

Price: 250

This one was a complete surprise. I was a tad bit apprehensive when this book came up in Blogadda’s review program. But I had gone ahead and applied for a review and I am glad I did so.

First and foremost, read this book!

It has been ages since I read a riveting corporate thriller. The genre has not been much experimented by Indian Authors and it is indeed heartening that Upendra Namburi has pulled this off his hat.

The book has you hooked from Page 1. It starts on a merry note with Congratulatory emails running back and forth! And then starts the chaos and the author has done a brilliant job of keeping up at it till the very end. I was slightly disappointed when I saw the timeline based narration (which has become quite common these days) but it has worked very well for Namburi.

The reader can relate easily with the main character, Ravi Shastry who knows that the shit is going to hit the fan soon but has no idea how to avoid coming to the streets. The book offers everything that is possible in a corporate thriller; sexual harassment, HR Manipulation, a boss who wants to save his own ass, forgery, internal audits etc etc. The book also has his moments of Humor and has been entwined so well within the story. You would have come across situations like this in your own office and you might have met most of the characters. The protagonist’s wife’s character has been etched out so well and realistic. All characters are distinctive and well thought out. Kudos

‘31’ is a riveting and a must read, if corporate thrillers are your genre. I am not willing to give away more on the plot as one really has to sit down and read this one!

The writing is elegant and keeps the story fast paced till the last page! The best part of the book is the twitter dose from an anonymous insider who keeps giving snippets to the reader and adds a different charm to the narration. Very well done indeed.

The ending is the icing on the cake. We have seen many thrillers where the climax spoils the entire book but this one has got the formula right!

Go get this book and finish it one go!

Mr. Upendra Namburi, we are definitely waiting  for the next one!

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

 

Book Review: The Krishna Key by Ashwin Sanghi

Book: The Krishna Key

Publisher: Westland Ltd

Author:  Ashwin Sanghi

Pages: 464

Price: Rs.250

Having read Ashwin Sanghi’s ‘The Chanakya Chant’ in one sitting from cover to cover, I was expecting a roller coaster ride with ‘The Krishna Key’. However the fast pace set by the author is dampened by a heavy dose of history and unwanted facts.

It is extremely evident that the author has meticulously put together a voluminous research manual and has wanted to include every possible aspect in the book!

The book starts on a very promising note, introducing a strange character called ‘Taraak Vakil’ who believes himself to be the tenth avatar of Lord Krishna. However the character loses importance through the course of the book. Another character Mataji alias Priya is a complete surprise package.

The one factor I totally loved about the book is the Mahabharata and the Kurukshetra War as narrated by Lord Krishna himself and makes for a very interesting read though it gives no connect to the actual story running in parallel. This is totally contrary to what we have seen in Chanakya’s Chant where the two stories blend together so beautifully.

The actual dose of history is extremely enlightening though it is a complete dampener to the pace of the story.  Of course, the comparison to a certain Dan Brown book is unavoidable though Ashwin Sanghi brings his own charm and style to the book.  Ashwin Sanghi has established a different genre of combining history and fiction and running two stories parallely in a novel. His writing is unique and simple and makes you turn the pages.

Coming back to the Krishna Key, Sanghi explores the myth of Kalki through a tale of murder and an ensuing chase that travels back and forth in time from Vrindavan and Mathura to a classroom in St. Stephen’s College in Delhi, across lifetimes. The characterization is not very Ashwin Sanghi types and could have been way better. It is just that you would expect more out of someone like Sanghi. This was a tad disappointing

The climax of the book was numd and too abrupt. And of course one could not ignore the obvious errors in the book. Anybody would notice a character mix up!

Give this one a read!

PS: I would like to read the Mahabarata, authored by Ashwin Sanghi. Please to take note J

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