Scan barcode
jengoertz's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.5
Started out interesting, quickly became bloated and boring. I did not enjoy the trudge through the second half of the book.
Ajay's story was intriguing and tragic. Neda's story could have been interesting, but it was part rehash, part unnecessary filler. By the time I got to Sunny's chapters, I no longer cared about any of it.
The dialogues were difficult to parse. Several times, i had to go back through half a page track down who said what, which killed any immersion i had in the story.
The whole thing was just frustrating and exhausting.
Ajay's story was intriguing and tragic. Neda's story could have been interesting, but it was part rehash, part unnecessary filler. By the time I got to Sunny's chapters, I no longer cared about any of it.
The dialogues were difficult to parse. Several times, i had to go back through half a page track down who said what, which killed any immersion i had in the story.
The whole thing was just frustrating and exhausting.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Drug abuse
Moderate: Addiction, Alcoholism, Gun violence, Rape, Violence, and Trafficking
ebonwilde's review against another edition
2.0
2.75 ★.
i hate how the povs are structured in this book. instead of switching povs chapter by chapter like it is typically done, it's a single character's pov for multiple chapter long sections. this makes it jarring when there's randomly a pov switch, and as soon as you get used to the current pov, it switches again, which made it difficult for me, personally, to become connected to the characters. i understand why this was done, as it makes sense narrative wise—i guess even more than a chapter by chapter pov switches—but it just wasn't for me.
it was also quite slow to start off—it only becomes interesting after 80 pages or so. this may be unfair because it was mostly background information quite necessary to the plotline, but i just didn't care for it. parts 4 and 5 are bizarrely paced—somehow both slower and much faster than the first three sections, making the read somewhat awkward. as for the ending, it feels very rushed—as though everything was haphazardly thrown in during the last 50 pages.
despite everything, it was still an enjoyable read. i'm just being nitpicky here because age of vice has been on my to-read list for almost a year, and it just didn't live up to the hype i created in my head. so this has less to do with the book itself and more to do with me.
3.25 stars
i hate how the povs are structured in this book. instead of switching povs chapter by chapter like it is typically done, it's a single character's pov for multiple chapter long sections. this makes it jarring when there's randomly a pov switch, and as soon as you get used to the current pov, it switches again, which made it difficult for me, personally, to become connected to the characters. i understand why this was done, as it makes sense narrative wise—i guess even more than a chapter by chapter pov switches—but it just wasn't for me.
it was also quite slow to start off—it only becomes interesting after 80 pages or so. this may be unfair because it was mostly background information quite necessary to the plotline, but i just didn't care for it. parts 4 and 5 are bizarrely paced—somehow both slower and much faster than the first three sections, making the read somewhat awkward. as for the ending, it feels very rushed—as though everything was haphazardly thrown in during the last 50 pages.
despite everything, it was still an enjoyable read. i'm just being nitpicky here because age of vice has been on my to-read list for almost a year, and it just didn't live up to the hype i created in my head. so this has less to do with the book itself and more to do with me.
3.25 stars
mstormer's review against another edition
dark
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.0
livcollings's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
eflatkey's review against another edition
challenging
dark
mysterious
sad
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
vanessacav's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
maddischro's review against another edition
2.0
This was very disappointing, especially considering all the praise it has been getting.
Summary: The story of three different individuals living in India in the early 2000s. Each character has a large chunk of POV and the book is essentially split accordingly (Book 1: Ajay, Book 2: Neda (?), Book 3: Sunny). Crime, greed, lust, etc. Exciting, confusing, confusing, prose-y, boring.
My main problem with this book is that the most fascinating character (Ajay) is the first POV that we get and this segment is so exciting that it makes the rest of the book unbearable. This could've been such a great book if the whole thing was devoted to Ajay's story (and his life is complex enough to fill all 500 pages). Unfortunately, the author decided to throw in a romance between two bland characters. The woman, Neda is clearly a y/n author insert. Both the author and the character were/are journalists and both are too smart for their own good. Wow. But don't worry, she won't fall for Sunny's rich boy charms! She's too smart and aloof and badass. Oh wait, shit, she's in love
After nearly 200 pages of unnecessary pining and romance, Neda and Sunny get together (surprise surprise). The author self-insert gets the charming and douchey guy. Wow. Inspiring.
ALSO, DURING THIS ROMANTIC SEGMENT AJAY IS IN FUCKING PRISON??!! (and this aspect is completely unaddressed by Sunny and Neda even though they have "relationships" with him). I think we're just supposed to forget that Ajay's POV (Book 1) ends with someone getting gang r*ped. Seriously. GANG R*PED and then suddenly the reader is in happy-happy romance land. And then nothing from Ajay for 300 pages. Just radio silence. The reader has to wade through sticky prose as Neda and Sunny dance around each other, completely oblivious to the world around them.
I did not want a romance and I did not get a romance. I got something worse: an uninteresting slow burn in which nothing happens. Where is the vice??????? Where is the crime???? SHOW IT TO ME
The last chapters were all written like poems and I'll be honest, I don't even know what happened. I skimmed 100 pages and only read paragraphs with the word "Ajay" in it.
If you're going to write a multi POV book, please make all the characters equally interesting. And CLOSE THOSE LOOSE ENDS. Should've been a book solely about Ajay. I would've eaten that up. I loved this book until I abruptly didn't. I don't know what genre this book fits into and clearly the author didn't either...
Summary: The story of three different individuals living in India in the early 2000s. Each character has a large chunk of POV and the book is essentially split accordingly (Book 1: Ajay, Book 2: Neda (?), Book 3: Sunny). Crime, greed, lust, etc. Exciting, confusing, confusing, prose-y, boring.
My main problem with this book is that the most fascinating character (Ajay) is the first POV that we get and this segment is so exciting that it makes the rest of the book unbearable. This could've been such a great book if the whole thing was devoted to Ajay's story (and his life is complex enough to fill all 500 pages). Unfortunately, the author decided to throw in a romance between two bland characters. The woman, Neda is clearly a y/n author insert. Both the author and the character were/are journalists and both are too smart for their own good. Wow. But don't worry, she won't fall for Sunny's rich boy charms! She's too smart and aloof and badass. Oh wait, shit, she's in love
After nearly 200 pages of unnecessary pining and romance, Neda and Sunny get together (surprise surprise). The author self-insert gets the charming and douchey guy. Wow. Inspiring.
ALSO, DURING THIS ROMANTIC SEGMENT AJAY IS IN FUCKING PRISON??!! (and this aspect is completely unaddressed by Sunny and Neda even though they have "relationships" with him). I think we're just supposed to forget that Ajay's POV (Book 1) ends with someone getting gang r*ped. Seriously. GANG R*PED and then suddenly the reader is in happy-happy romance land. And then nothing from Ajay for 300 pages. Just radio silence. The reader has to wade through sticky prose as Neda and Sunny dance around each other, completely oblivious to the world around them.
I did not want a romance and I did not get a romance. I got something worse: an uninteresting slow burn in which nothing happens. Where is the vice??????? Where is the crime???? SHOW IT TO ME
The last chapters were all written like poems and I'll be honest, I don't even know what happened. I skimmed 100 pages and only read paragraphs with the word "Ajay" in it.
If you're going to write a multi POV book, please make all the characters equally interesting. And CLOSE THOSE LOOSE ENDS. Should've been a book solely about Ajay. I would've eaten that up. I loved this book until I abruptly didn't. I don't know what genre this book fits into and clearly the author didn't either...
emmapicaro4's review against another edition
dark
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
inkwitchery's review against another edition
4.0
AGE OF VICE by Deepti Kapoor
Books in this genre don’t usually pique my interest, but I was hooked by the first page and quickly became fully invested in the lives of the characters.
The story revolves around the ruthless and corrupt Wadia family and people within their obit. They have the power and means to infiltrate, influence and manipulate all areas of business, society and government. In short, they rule all of Delhi, India in one way or another.
As you may expect, (and be forewarned) the plot involves a lot of crime, violence, brutality and other sensitive/triggering topics. It highlights the horrors and realities of the lower caste, juxtaposed with the extreme wealth of the people in power.
Overall, this was a solid, well crafted crime drama and family saga worthy of all the hype it’s getting. I don’t really want to compare it to The Sopranos or The Godfather because the story is more than that, but it definitely has that feel.
Rating: 4.5/5 ⭐️
#AgeOfVice #DeeptiKapoor
Books in this genre don’t usually pique my interest, but I was hooked by the first page and quickly became fully invested in the lives of the characters.
The story revolves around the ruthless and corrupt Wadia family and people within their obit. They have the power and means to infiltrate, influence and manipulate all areas of business, society and government. In short, they rule all of Delhi, India in one way or another.
As you may expect, (and be forewarned) the plot involves a lot of crime, violence, brutality and other sensitive/triggering topics. It highlights the horrors and realities of the lower caste, juxtaposed with the extreme wealth of the people in power.
Overall, this was a solid, well crafted crime drama and family saga worthy of all the hype it’s getting. I don’t really want to compare it to The Sopranos or The Godfather because the story is more than that, but it definitely has that feel.
Rating: 4.5/5 ⭐️
#AgeOfVice #DeeptiKapoor