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3.6 AVERAGE
3.6 AVERAGE
This was an extremely cinematic reading experience - this book was made to be a movie. It hooked me in with the first narrator, Ajay, and once we switched to Neda and Sunny's perspectives, the book lost me a bit.
That cliffhanger it left us on though, phew! I'll be reading the next one.
That cliffhanger it left us on though, phew! I'll be reading the next one.
medium-paced
There was a stretch in the middle that I found somewhat interesting and page-turning, but the last ~100 pages undid any interest that had built. I didn't really enjoy it or get anything out of this very long, winding, and depressing saga, which ultimately felt very voyeuristic, nihilistic, and simply unpleasant.
dark
emotional
sad
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
challenging
dark
emotional
informative
sad
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
This book is a chonker. I quite enjoyed parts 1 and 2 (pages 1-359) of this book. I fell in love with Ajay as a character and enjoyed following his trajectory. Parts 3-5, the last 200 pages or so, were tough to finish. The plot moved away from Ajay and got messy while jumping between POVs and years. New characters were introduced and only around for a short period of time, leaving me confused about their importance and wondering if I missed something important. Powered through because I loved the first part of the book and wanted resolution.
challenging
dark
emotional
sad
medium-paced
Hard to give stars here - I think the author did exactly what she intended, and so it gets 5 stars for that, but I did not enjoy it because it was so harsh. Really a hard book to read regarding content. Dark, dark, dark with no real redemption.
Most of the book was fine, with a strong start wanting to figure out who Ajay is and how he got there, but the last 1/4 was really hard to get through. Pretty much no characters are likeable or have any redeeming qualities, and I get that that’s probably the point, but regardless everyone was such a piece of shit and did terrible things
Really don’t think this genre of like family crime drama is for me lol. So many terrible terrible things happened but at the same time literally NOTHING happened in the book, no progression, what was the point of all of that
Really don’t think this genre of like family crime drama is for me lol. So many terrible terrible things happened but at the same time literally NOTHING happened in the book, no progression, what was the point of all of that
At first, this book felt like a retelling of David Copperfield, with the poor kid and his reversals of fortune. Then seemed more like Chinatown, with the all the building projects and the rampant corruption. Then I saw an article comparing it to The Godfather, as the story of the descent of an optimistic hero and I saw the sense in that. (Or was it maybe Citizen Kane vibes I was getting?)
But it is unfair to compare Age of Vice to other works of fiction because it is its own thing, notwithstanding all the archetypes it employs.
It's mostly a fun read. I didn't enjoy the long, droning autobiography delivered by Sunil Rastogi near the end of the book. He's completely venal in a not-fun way (if his fantastical tale is to be believed... and even if he's lying his tits off), has a mystical experience involving one of the other characters... and I hate hate hate extended monologues in novels. (Scarred by Atlas Shrugged I think.) Also, some backstory was added to the story very close to its end and it was more disruptive than informative. Another complaint I have about it is that Kapoor chooses not to tie up some of the loose ends she leaves. Loose ends are for short stories and novels with sequels planned.
But it is unfair to compare Age of Vice to other works of fiction because it is its own thing, notwithstanding all the archetypes it employs.
It's mostly a fun read. I didn't enjoy the long, droning autobiography delivered by Sunil Rastogi near the end of the book. He's completely venal in a not-fun way (if his fantastical tale is to be believed... and even if he's lying his tits off), has a mystical experience involving one of the other characters... and I hate hate hate extended monologues in novels. (Scarred by Atlas Shrugged I think.) Also, some backstory was added to the story very close to its end and it was more disruptive than informative. Another complaint I have about it is that Kapoor chooses not to tie up some of the loose ends she leaves. Loose ends are for short stories and novels with sequels planned.