Sunday, February 25, 2007
weekend in paris - robyn sisman
Sunday, February 18, 2007
cold flat junction - martha grimes
hope's highway - dorothy garlock
3 different families undertake on this journey, with trucks, caravans… camping along the way. Pretty, serious, neglected Margie, going to Hollywood to find fame, which offered her a way out of nowhere, meets brady, the tall dark handsome chap… who’s just witnessed his brother blowing his brains out after killing his wife and her lover. Sparks fly…despite both having sworn off each other for the sake of their own lives and goals.
Interesting story about how they mix and match up to each other on the trip, and of course, romance as well.
the rainmaker - john grisham
the lamorna wink - martha grimes
the street lawyer - john grisham
Following up on a particular family he met at a soup shelter, he finds they too, were a victim of fraud of his former firm… which engages his gears in action… and sees him the target of the police, his former colleagues.. till he gets to court and gets a decent judge to see things his way. Happy ending too.
a very gothic christmas - christina feehan & melanie george
The second, shorter story, is way too much of a cliché… beautiful girl finds herself in a haunted Scottish castle, and finds herself face to face with its handsome lord of 500 years ago… through some time travel. Facing battles and challenges… true love prevails. Yikes.
the inheritance of loss - kiran desai
More than that, it touches on times of strife and war, as the Nepalese gurkhas, more of outlaws, take over and impose curfews and laws. Not just the tale of India – Nepal, or the 16 year old girls tale, it is also about the cooks sons story, as, uneducated, he steps off to America, only to become a menial worker, turning from job to job, as an illegal, his struggle for survival there, and his journey back to India.
one for my baby - tony parsons
Life in hong kong is rather lonely, but different, till he meets the woman of his dreams, whom he marries, only to have her die on him a year later in a horrific diving accident. Her love for diving makes alfie learn how to swim properly and dive with her, and its on one of those diving trips they make, that is fated.
After being treated for decompression sickness, and then, leaving hong kong, as it has nothing to offer him anymore, alfie moves back in with his parents. He eventually starts teaching English as a second language at an international school. He ends up having a series of affairs with a range of students, much to the disapproval of the school. He only stops when he finds his last girlfriend pregnant, and going for an abortion.
Evil as he may seem now, he actually does try to be a better person, making friends with expats, immigrants, among them an older man from hongkong, who has a Chinese restaurant that he runs with his family. This older man, george, attempts to teach him a thing or two about life, through tai chi.
We see alfie learning many things in life, making mistakes as he goes along, as most of us do. His parents get divorced meanwhile, his grandmother dies…. The one student that he does not want to teach in the end becomes his next betrothed… and life goes back to normal, as he learns to accept change and live with it.
An engrossing book, as it is the story of life that could happen to any of us.
can you keep a secret? - sophie kinsella
Well, they end up going out with each other, only emma gets humiliated on national tv, as jack harper, her boss, doing a tv interview about himself and perhaps the launch of a new womans product, accidentally ( seemingly ) divulges all of emma’s secrets, all while talking about the target aim of his new womans product. In truth, he is in love with her and just couldn’t help talking all about her!
Emma, feeling totally used, has to face life as usual after that… no small thing! Refusing to talk to jack, she is eventually forced to, and turns out the day is saved in the end, after all…. :) a happy ending after all.
the vulture fund - steohen frey
Well after that, it was exciting enough a read, as a young partner in a wall street firm finds himself initially part of a high risk investment fund, then finds himself part of a big deceipt and his life in danger.
With help from a few different sources, namely, the beautiful young girl just out of her mba, his best friend from his own growing up days in the orphanage who is now part of the secret service, and most of all, the businesswoman he works with whom he finds is part of the betrayal, the fraud is uncovered, and the day is saved. Enjoyable.
the namesake - jhumpa lahiri
The kid will always hate the name, and even changes it, growing up in America. He only comes to appreciate it much later, after his father dies.
Its not just about a name, its about his life, growing up in America, the frequent trips back to visit nameless cousins and relatives in Calcutta… being an American of Indian descent. Not so much a typical Indian book, it is written from all aspects, from gogol’s dad’s viewpoint, ashoke, a brilliant professor, his wife, moushoomi, their daughter, sonali, and their relationships, and gogol’s coming to terms with life.
Wednesday, January 17, 2007
what memories remain - cait london
an amazing book. exciting, romantic... what else can i say. little molly claire is a 6 yr old with a secret... a secret so big & bad that even she can't remember it. she's now a stunning hot shot realtor working in her little village/town, despite nasty comments being passed around her background... her mother used to stay on the edge of town and take in male 'clients'. despite her success she is plagued by nightmares that date back to her six year old trauma... and she believes the answer is linked to her best friends brother.... the two of them, orphaned when their parents went down in a boating accident, have had to fend for themselves... well as secrets are unravelled, and relationships fostered.. totally enjoyable read. shall look out for more of her books.
the jester - james patterson & andrew cross
Unique combination by both authors… james patterson keeps writing different sorts of books! But has his own classic trade mark… entertaining and makes u want to read more!
Set in medieval England, its essentially a love story set in the holy crusade time with wars going on… a fiery headed innkeeper leaves his precious wife behind to take up arms and join the holy crusade…. To march till the holy land… and protect Christendom. Returning much later than anticipated… he finds his village in shambles…. And his wife believed dead.
Unable to accept this, he sets out to find her, and in the process, ends up in the middle of a war again, this time on local land. In order to protect himself and find his wife, he takes on various means of employment, namely, being a court jester… funny as it may sound, this gets him in all the places he needs to be.
Finding his wife ( after having lost all hope ) only to have her die on him, life takes its own funny courses… he ends up leading a war, falling in love again, and marrying into royalty.
Definitely a book to read… love, war, humour, history, is all mingled in one read.
bergdorf blondes - plum sykes
Entertaining chick lit set in uk, it tells the tale of couple of fun girls… including a brunette having fun and games in love and at work… i.e. not only blondes have fun.
Having just read 2 more chick lit books after this… coming back to write about this one… I am confused… oops! But, it was a fun read! ;)
chapatti or chips? - nisha minhas
Lovely, sexy, Naina, born & brought up in the UK, has known all her life that she is to have an arranged marriage. Despite hanging out with her girlfriends, working, pubbing, clubbing, she knows her inevitable fate is waiting. What she doesn’t count on is falling for a white guy who happens to be her best buddy despite all his sinning, womanizing bad ways. Straightforward as the theme of this book may be, its amusing to read about Naina, Dave and all their adventures, or rather misadventures, that lead to her wedding day with the perfect Indian groom.
shopaholic takes manhattan - sophie kinsella
Hmmm… couldn’t remember which ‘shopaholic’ books I’ve read and which I haven’t! gee… becky is up to her usual spending and shopping habits, getting into debt, and discovered notoriously by the press, all while on holiday in new york, causing boyfriend luke a lot of stress… she comes back to London in disgrace… minus luke… till she accidentally learns some facts which set luke up in business again. she leaves her old life behind… and goes to new york on her own, taking up an amazing job with barney’s there, where she becomes the perfect personal shoppers guide! What an amazing job for becky. With a happy ending too, of course, its chick lit! :)
a wedding in december - anita shreve
Describing a gathering cum reunion among 7 former schoolmates who have mostly not seen one another for 27 years, it brings them together at a wedding taking place between 2 of them, all the more unique as it is a second marriage for both of them, and the bride has just been diagnosed with breast cancer.
Set in a beautiful mountain inn renovated by 1 of the 7, a petite, widowed lady, it describes the strings binding them together, and how 7 would have been 8 had it not been for the tragic ( ? preventable ) death of 1 of them 27 years ago. It reexplores hurts, pains, and more importantly, love, and its possibilities in these brief 7 days that they find themselves together.
A different type of read altogether, it describes how life might turn out for most of us.
cradle and all - james patterson
Both innocent teenagers, we see Kathleen, a privileged, rich young socialite in the making finding herself pregnant, and Colleen, an impoverished, skinny, scared young girl picked on by thugs, even younger than Kathleen. The church has evidence that in this modern day era, a virginal birth will take place. When 2 and not 1 teenager finds herself pregnant despite being medically certified to be ‘intact’, Anne, along with a few smart priests, are sent out to do the necessary, as they are told 1 birth could be that of the saviour, and 1 the son of evil. Their presence at the births is necessary to stamp out evil.
Having met both mothers to be, Anne, the priest Justin & Father Rosetti have great difficulty convincing themselves that one of the 2 sweet teenagers would bring a great evil in the world, and that would have to be destroyed. Eventually, at the time of birth, Father Rosetti sacrifices himself along with the new evil one born, the only way he sees possible to save the world. The newborn had the face of evil with a thousand eyes looking back at him showing them true hell. On the other side of the Atlantic, however the other birth leads to…. A normal baby being born. Both girls were apparently molested and gang rape attempted, but ending with the perpetrators smearing their semen all over the girls which is how they got pregnant despite being virgins. As such, neither one was a holy baby.
Along the undercurrents of the story are Anne’s & the priest Justin’s deep love for each other with they had quashed dozens of years ago. Now, however, at age 30, still a virgin, in Rome, after the 2 highly anticipated births which did not grant them any saviour, Anne finds herself pregnant. She is the chosen one! She and Justin lead a happily married life and do not allow the birth of her special baby, Noelle ( a girl! ) to be public news, seeing the horrible effects of publicity that the 2 teenage moms suffered. Alls well that ends well, but the chilling words at the end of the novel shows that evil lives on…. “he watched her… with thousands of vengeful, bestial eyes”; yes, the baby that the Father had sacrificed along with himself, had actually survived… and was near the teenager, Noelle…
suzanne's diary for nicholas - james patterson
Wavering from his usual action-adventure-mystery game, this is a soppy romance. The diary in question lands in the hands of Kate, a lady who has been left by her lover; no explanation given. Suzanne is her now ex-lovers wife, writing about her past, daily adventures and life to her growing baby. Up till now, Kate had no idea that her lover was even married. Suzanne’s tragic story, as told by the diary, moves even Kate, and explains how and why her affair with her lover came to be. The ending is sad yet beautiful, as having started with Kate, we see Kate’s ruined life picking up the pieces.
Friday, January 05, 2007
the partner- john grisham
typical lawyer story... the lawyer cum thief who supposedly faked his own death and vanished with 90 million usd actually being innocent. when he is caught 4 years on ( yup he knew the day would come and so, each day was a difficult one ) the story actually starts there... with his reemergence into life in america after being tortured by the goons who caught him ( evoked similarities with the recent bond movie, casino royale... got confused, watching that and reading this at the same time! ) how he proves his innocence and catches the big guys behind the actual disaster is an interesting read.
children of the wheel- pamela scobie
after borrowing this book which seemed a different sort of read, only then i flipped it over and realised it was an oxford university press book... i.e. meant for schoolkids! haha.
well... interesting all the same. set in ancient times, it starts with a young green eyed girl, banished from her princess like existence to the netherworld, along with all the other scavenger children... how she ends up in a no mans land with all these other children, and how they survive on their own. having become their own colony, it shows how they survive and dream of things bigger and better and actually set out to make them, basic engineering skills which they figure out on their own. a painful confrontation at the end, with her father, and how they succeed at the end and lead their own lives.
public secrets - nora roberts
one of her older books, no longer on the shelves of the bookstores, this is an amazing read. it captures the essence of a rock group in california... without sounding cliched or boring.
the story actually starts with an abused 3 year old kid being rescued from her birth mother by her father, who just learns of her existence.... he goes on to become a rock star, and the story focuses then on emma, the little girl with a sweet temperament despite her abused background.
things go awry when she grows up, involving a botched kidnapping attempt of her younger baby half brother ( the dad is in a serious relationship ) which ends with his death... and its repercussions on all the main characters of this book.
she goes on to become a top photographer... and then gets into an abusive relationship with a hanger on type of guy... and shuns true love till the very end... after another brush with death.
with its commercial setting, this book still touches a chord with its focus on people and their lives, accomplishments and struggles. a great read.
Friday, December 22, 2006
the undomestic goddess - sophie kinsella
funny, hearty, endearing... boy do i wish that when i'm stressed out i could do the same as the hot babe here... she just walks out of her high powered job, and la de da..... ends up taking a job as a housekeeper? the girls who can't cook, clean or sew, learns with the help of gardener cum boyfriends mom... and has most people fooled for a while... till both her worlds clash.
entertaining... but personally i preferred the other books... shopaholic n sister...
lethal seduction- jackie collins
got this cheap in mph... served my bungled up journey well, finished it in... 6 or 7 hours. hehe ... does a good job of filling in the hours.
about 3 hot shot 29 year old ladies, the people they're involved with, and getting their own thing. part hollywood, party new york... not exactly funny, but as i said... fills in the hours pretty well.
hmm shall i get her other books going cheap? :)
Friday, December 15, 2006
gentle warrior - julie garwood
beautiful romance set in king williams time. the heroine is a golden haired beauty, who vows to avenge the murders of her entire family which she has witnessed. living out of doors, she stumbles upon a fallen lord, who needs her skills in healing, and lo and behold, upon recovery, he is the knight who vanquishes her enemy, though after he marries her, and both discover that yes! they do love each other. well alls well in this happy tale, enemy defeated, remaining family reunited, and hero and heroine live happily ever after.
nice to read a typical historical romance after a long time.
Monday, December 11, 2006
stonehenge- bernard cornwell
hmm.... set in ancient times where the sun god and moon god were still worshipped, and human sacrifices were still rampant,it tells the tale of rathrynn, ( the current location of stonehenge ) and its surrounding localites, the feuds and wars between the tribes, and how the temple dedicated to the sun god was built, the ruins of which make the stonehenge of today.
we see the daily lives of the warriors, priests, chieftains and builders, through the eyes of saban, a son of a chieftain, brother to a cripple who goes on to become a priest, and also a warrior brother who eventually murders his father for the sake of being chief. saban grows up, passes the rites of manhood, almost gets married but ends up a slave, and is then freed, to become a builder. the story goes through his life and shows how it ends. his loves, his struggles, hopes and dreams, and how he accomplishes the monumental task of building the great sun temple.