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3.07 AVERAGE
3.07 AVERAGE
Story of banker turn success best selling author Aditya Kapoor and aspiring writer Shreya kaushik. Then character or supporting role of Maya, Sanjay and Diana. Where successful men are loose character people as Sanjay is a charmer and behind every girl in the story. As having Diana by his side , he loses Maya and they for Shreya he cheated on Diana and that's what the end of him being alone.
The book may raise several debates as it has many themes Adultery, Mills and boons, bollywood drama , palgarism, backdrop of Publishing industry. Use or realism for giving story a better understanding and impression. that may not go well with the female readers as it demean hard working women and women who can do anything to be successful. BUt if the book is looked upon from a different perspective and read as a man’s point of view on extramarital affairs, then it will present another view on what men think about adultery and when a middle-aged guy falls for a woman is not out of adultery but to show themselves powerful and dominating against there wife.
What I liked in the book is reading it with the backdrop of publishing industry. The worst part author choose cheap romance and the sexual scenes instead of cozy love making . Also the story was pretty predictable at many places.
Overall, a light weekend read not much to offer for serious reading. Readers interested in romantic thrillers or easy read may give it a try to this.
The people who will watch Amazon series first and then going for reading the book then i say you are going for disappointment as series is totally different perspective from the book and revenge story not a story of ambitious character who want shortcut to become successful in life...
The book may raise several debates as it has many themes Adultery, Mills and boons, bollywood drama , palgarism, backdrop of Publishing industry. Use or realism for giving story a better understanding and impression. that may not go well with the female readers as it demean hard working women and women who can do anything to be successful. BUt if the book is looked upon from a different perspective and read as a man’s point of view on extramarital affairs, then it will present another view on what men think about adultery and when a middle-aged guy falls for a woman is not out of adultery but to show themselves powerful and dominating against there wife.
What I liked in the book is reading it with the backdrop of publishing industry. The worst part author choose cheap romance and the sexual scenes instead of cozy love making . Also the story was pretty predictable at many places.
Overall, a light weekend read not much to offer for serious reading. Readers interested in romantic thrillers or easy read may give it a try to this.
The people who will watch Amazon series first and then going for reading the book then i say you are going for disappointment as series is totally different perspective from the book and revenge story not a story of ambitious character who want shortcut to become successful in life...
I was over the moon when I received the author-signed copy of 'The Bestseller She Wrote' for review from Blogadda. Ravi Subramanian is one among my favorite Indian authors and I've already read and loved his previous books.
The title is followed by the tagline LOVE. BETRAYAL. REDEMPTION. So I've split my review based on these three as well.
Love..
Aditya Kapoor, an acclaimed writer and successful banker, is in love with his career - both writing and heading the Branch Banking division of National Bank. He marries his college sweetheart and has an enviable married life. Despite middle age creeping on him, he is still smart, handsome and fit. His wife Maya, a banker prior to marriage, gives up her banking job to focus on family. They lead a content life with son, Aryan.
During a lecture in IIM Bangalore, Aditya is interrupted by Shreya Kaushik who questions his choice of words for referring a book as a product and goes on branding Indian authors as rubbish. Though irritated, Aditya subdues her by requesting her to first read his books before judging him. Shreya ends up reading one of his bestsellers overnight and finds herself apologizing to him via email. When Aditya and his friend Sanjay from HR, interview her months later for National Bank, she charms him by expressing her desire to write a book. After joining the bank, her relationship with Aditya turns flirtatious and slowly they fall for each other based on their common interest towards writing.
Betrayal
So, here comes the betrayal part- extra marital affair - where Aditya goes behind Maya's back, breaks her trust by falling for Shreya. He helps her in fine tuning her first book and due to her constant push, seeks help from his publisher friends for publishing it. There is, ofcourse, yet another betrayal in the book that is revealed towards the end.
Redemption
What happens when Maya learns the truth? Why Aditya's life turn downhill all of a sudden? Will Shreya's book become the bestseller she wants to be? When and how the other betrayal is revealed? All these questions are answered in the final part of the book.
The book is written in very simple English and does not leave much to the reader's guess. Unlike Ravi Subramanian's other books, is different in the sense it revolves around a love story and has, maybe 20% suspense. There is no money laundering, murder, drug mafia or any of those essentials required for a thriller and maybe that's why I felt this book was different. So the author has a really tough job in keeping his readers glued (due to lack of above mentioned elements) and therefore felt justified in including in-detail romantic endeavors.
Ofcourse, i hated Shreya Kaushik, home breaker. :@
From the first few pages of the book, I had assumed she will be portrayed as the independent, sassy and career-oriented female protagonist. Which she was not. I wonder who will play her role in the movie.
My Verdict - Not the combustible cocktail as mentioned in book cover, but an easy, light read with more or less predictable story.
The title is followed by the tagline LOVE. BETRAYAL. REDEMPTION. So I've split my review based on these three as well.
Love..
Aditya Kapoor, an acclaimed writer and successful banker, is in love with his career - both writing and heading the Branch Banking division of National Bank. He marries his college sweetheart and has an enviable married life. Despite middle age creeping on him, he is still smart, handsome and fit. His wife Maya, a banker prior to marriage, gives up her banking job to focus on family. They lead a content life with son, Aryan.
During a lecture in IIM Bangalore, Aditya is interrupted by Shreya Kaushik who questions his choice of words for referring a book as a product and goes on branding Indian authors as rubbish. Though irritated, Aditya subdues her by requesting her to first read his books before judging him. Shreya ends up reading one of his bestsellers overnight and finds herself apologizing to him via email. When Aditya and his friend Sanjay from HR, interview her months later for National Bank, she charms him by expressing her desire to write a book. After joining the bank, her relationship with Aditya turns flirtatious and slowly they fall for each other based on their common interest towards writing.
Betrayal
So, here comes the betrayal part- extra marital affair - where Aditya goes behind Maya's back, breaks her trust by falling for Shreya. He helps her in fine tuning her first book and due to her constant push, seeks help from his publisher friends for publishing it. There is, ofcourse, yet another betrayal in the book that is revealed towards the end.
Redemption
What happens when Maya learns the truth? Why Aditya's life turn downhill all of a sudden? Will Shreya's book become the bestseller she wants to be? When and how the other betrayal is revealed? All these questions are answered in the final part of the book.
The book is written in very simple English and does not leave much to the reader's guess. Unlike Ravi Subramanian's other books, is different in the sense it revolves around a love story and has, maybe 20% suspense. There is no money laundering, murder, drug mafia or any of those essentials required for a thriller and maybe that's why I felt this book was different. So the author has a really tough job in keeping his readers glued (due to lack of above mentioned elements) and therefore felt justified in including in-detail romantic endeavors.
Ofcourse, i hated Shreya Kaushik, home breaker. :@
From the first few pages of the book, I had assumed she will be portrayed as the independent, sassy and career-oriented female protagonist. Which she was not. I wonder who will play her role in the movie.
My Verdict - Not the combustible cocktail as mentioned in book cover, but an easy, light read with more or less predictable story.
This was my first Ravi Subramanian book, and I must say that I am disappointed. The plot was predictable and the characters were not too well developed. The only good thing about this book is its style of writing. It's easy to read and I finished it in one sitting. Some descriptions were not necessary and I feel that the author could have done much better. Maya seemed like a too-perfect boring person, Shreya was the predictable bitch in the story and Aditya was pitiable, seemed to have no control over his emotions whatsoever, which I found pathetic.
But I'm not ready to give up on Ravi Subramanian yet, I'll give a shot at reading his thrillers. Maybe romance is not his genre.
But I'm not ready to give up on Ravi Subramanian yet, I'll give a shot at reading his thrillers. Maybe romance is not his genre.
Reviewed in detail on Rain and a Book
Lazy lazy lazy. Yawnfest.
Summary: Aditya Kapoor, nicknamed “paperback king”, “rockstar author” and other embarrassing (but seemingly glitzy) things is a 40-something banker and India’s # 1 commercial author. He gives a presentation at IIM-B, his alma mater, where he encounters is insulted by Shreya Kaushik, a student miffed by the fact that Aditya keeps referring to his book as a “product” (I echo her sentiments, by the way). Aditya’s gigantic ego takes a hit and he tells her to read his books before commenting. She does, and becomes an overnight fan. Shreya considers herself to be a voracious reader (she’s not; she only reads bestsellers, and she reads John Green only cos he’s “cute”) She also wants to become an author, and she seduces Aditya to help her become one. It is unclear whether she seduces him for her gain alone or if she is actually in love with him. (Actually, several things are unclear, but I am getting ahead of myself) Aditya is completely smitten, forgetting totally about his wife, Maya and 6-year-old kid, Aryan (could these names be more Bollywoodesque?). No, wait, he does not, because on every other page he tells us he loves his wife. And also Shreya. And also his wife. But anyway. Later, Maya comes to know of the affair and contracts Ebola at the same time. Aditya ends things with Shreya, and begs Maya to take him back. Shreya goes crazy, because of course.
The narrative is sparse, the language is rife with Indianisms, repeated stock phrases, slangs in content, and on the whole, it feels like a lazy attempt, like something written in a hurry. With respect to slangs, while they are accepted in dialogue, it’s just poor writing in narrative – unless the book is written in a first person narrative and the character in question needs to describe a certain sort of lifestyle, which isn’t the case here. Slangs when used incorrectly provide unintentional humour. The dialogues did not sit well with me on any level, because it felt – I don’t know what exactly, but the word that comes closest to describing it disjointed. Also, in dialogue when you want to stress a word, you italicize it, not capitalize it. There are also several inaccuracies in the book. For more detail and instances, please click on the link above.
This book has 84 chapters, and it’s 390 pages long. I have read books over 1000 pages that have, like, 19 chapters, filled with substance. This, on the other hand, is well padded out and airy. The characters are not likeable. Actually, no, I have read books where characters are outright evil, and I have had more emotion for them than I have had anybody in this book. This book is just an ego balm to its (dislikeable) protagonist. Everyone is a huge fan of his. There are scenes, which otherwise contribute nothing to the story, written only to show the reader how big of a boot-licking audience this man has. I can’t find myself caring for any of these characters, they’re so pointless in the world of literature.
On the whole this book is boring, predictable and highly “putdownable.” I can’t think of a single redeeming quality, except that it doesn’t take up too much of your time, 84 chapters notwithstanding. It tries too hard, and that just made me sad. Like the kid whose answers are all wrong, but has a neat handwriting. Although I have never “pity-rated” a book before, I am going to rate it a 2, instead of a 1 for this reason alone.
For more: Rain and a Book
Lazy lazy lazy. Yawnfest.
Summary: Aditya Kapoor, nicknamed “paperback king”, “rockstar author” and other embarrassing (but seemingly glitzy) things is a 40-something banker and India’s # 1 commercial author. He gives a presentation at IIM-B, his alma mater, where he encounters is insulted by Shreya Kaushik, a student miffed by the fact that Aditya keeps referring to his book as a “product” (I echo her sentiments, by the way). Aditya’s gigantic ego takes a hit and he tells her to read his books before commenting. She does, and becomes an overnight fan. Shreya considers herself to be a voracious reader (she’s not; she only reads bestsellers, and she reads John Green only cos he’s “cute”) She also wants to become an author, and she seduces Aditya to help her become one. It is unclear whether she seduces him for her gain alone or if she is actually in love with him. (Actually, several things are unclear, but I am getting ahead of myself) Aditya is completely smitten, forgetting totally about his wife, Maya and 6-year-old kid, Aryan (could these names be more Bollywoodesque?). No, wait, he does not, because on every other page he tells us he loves his wife. And also Shreya. And also his wife. But anyway. Later, Maya comes to know of the affair and contracts Ebola at the same time. Aditya ends things with Shreya, and begs Maya to take him back. Shreya goes crazy, because of course.
The narrative is sparse, the language is rife with Indianisms, repeated stock phrases, slangs in content, and on the whole, it feels like a lazy attempt, like something written in a hurry. With respect to slangs, while they are accepted in dialogue, it’s just poor writing in narrative – unless the book is written in a first person narrative and the character in question needs to describe a certain sort of lifestyle, which isn’t the case here. Slangs when used incorrectly provide unintentional humour. The dialogues did not sit well with me on any level, because it felt – I don’t know what exactly, but the word that comes closest to describing it disjointed. Also, in dialogue when you want to stress a word, you italicize it, not capitalize it. There are also several inaccuracies in the book. For more detail and instances, please click on the link above.
This book has 84 chapters, and it’s 390 pages long. I have read books over 1000 pages that have, like, 19 chapters, filled with substance. This, on the other hand, is well padded out and airy. The characters are not likeable. Actually, no, I have read books where characters are outright evil, and I have had more emotion for them than I have had anybody in this book. This book is just an ego balm to its (dislikeable) protagonist. Everyone is a huge fan of his. There are scenes, which otherwise contribute nothing to the story, written only to show the reader how big of a boot-licking audience this man has. I can’t find myself caring for any of these characters, they’re so pointless in the world of literature.
On the whole this book is boring, predictable and highly “putdownable.” I can’t think of a single redeeming quality, except that it doesn’t take up too much of your time, 84 chapters notwithstanding. It tries too hard, and that just made me sad. Like the kid whose answers are all wrong, but has a neat handwriting. Although I have never “pity-rated” a book before, I am going to rate it a 2, instead of a 1 for this reason alone.
For more: Rain and a Book
I always pick up a Ravi Subramanian book because his easy language and good grip on a financial scams. His new book is very different from his earlier writing of financial thrillers. I however do not recommend this one becoz of the following reasons:-
1. Length doesn't need 390 pages could have been shorter at least by 50 pages
2. The ending is predictable
3. This one is extremely filmi like all Indian authors
However all is not lost pace is good and language is simple and light to read. I finished this one day but I am not satisfied with this one.
1. Length doesn't need 390 pages could have been shorter at least by 50 pages
2. The ending is predictable
3. This one is extremely filmi like all Indian authors
However all is not lost pace is good and language is simple and light to read. I finished this one day but I am not satisfied with this one.
I've liked most of this author's books, and if you were or are a finance student you'd love his plots. This one is slightly different in it's shift from finance brigade. Good storyline, a little predictable, but okay for a beginner reader i guess.
Can you see from the blurb how this book can be construed as a thriller? At least that is what I did and ended up cursing myself.It started out leisurely but picked up the pace sooner than later.
I felt no connection between the title of the novel and its contents. Rather than dealing with the 'bestseller', the plot deals with an amorous love affair between Aditya, who revisits his college as a guest speaker and Shreya, a student and an aspiring writer. And thus starts the illicit affair between the mentor and the protege and Aditya's previously perfect life takes a nosedive kept afloat only by his conscience. The author does portray Aditya's dilemma eloquently- 'Nothing in life is more wretched than the mind of a man conscious of his guilt'.
Aditya's wife, Maya was the one relatable character in the book but the writer did not do her justice. It frustrates me when a character starts out with depth and complexity and yet, is ignored by authors to make way for irritable protagonists.
Shreya Kaushik, the career driven IIM-B student, is smitten by Aditya's charms and ends up using him to publish her book, as Aditya finds out later to his dismay.
Here are some of the hits and misses with the story.
The one redeeming feature of this book is that it provides the readers with quite a few catchy quotes like:
"Life is binary in many ways. There is no way that we can move away from each other slowly and painlessly. There has to be a complete exit."
"Without these bookstores, there will be no books, and without books, there will be no culture." Amen to that.
The chapters are short and the writing is crisp.
The plot is entirely too predictable.
The book definitely has its Chetan Bhagat moments. Let's keep it to that.
Character development was a nightmare. It was hard to sympathise with any of the characters in the book.
I expected a lot from this book and it fell flat. If you are looking for a coffee table book and want a one time read to get you out of your reading flunk, you can check this one out. But beware, it reads like a bollywood movie and you would be hard pressed to find originality in the way the story is told.
I felt no connection between the title of the novel and its contents. Rather than dealing with the 'bestseller', the plot deals with an amorous love affair between Aditya, who revisits his college as a guest speaker and Shreya, a student and an aspiring writer. And thus starts the illicit affair between the mentor and the protege and Aditya's previously perfect life takes a nosedive kept afloat only by his conscience. The author does portray Aditya's dilemma eloquently- 'Nothing in life is more wretched than the mind of a man conscious of his guilt'.
Aditya's wife, Maya was the one relatable character in the book but the writer did not do her justice. It frustrates me when a character starts out with depth and complexity and yet, is ignored by authors to make way for irritable protagonists.
Shreya Kaushik, the career driven IIM-B student, is smitten by Aditya's charms and ends up using him to publish her book, as Aditya finds out later to his dismay.
Here are some of the hits and misses with the story.
The one redeeming feature of this book is that it provides the readers with quite a few catchy quotes like:
"Life is binary in many ways. There is no way that we can move away from each other slowly and painlessly. There has to be a complete exit."
"Without these bookstores, there will be no books, and without books, there will be no culture." Amen to that.
The chapters are short and the writing is crisp.
The plot is entirely too predictable.
The book definitely has its Chetan Bhagat moments. Let's keep it to that.
Character development was a nightmare. It was hard to sympathise with any of the characters in the book.
I expected a lot from this book and it fell flat. If you are looking for a coffee table book and want a one time read to get you out of your reading flunk, you can check this one out. But beware, it reads like a bollywood movie and you would be hard pressed to find originality in the way the story is told.
Ravi Subramanian is one of the few Indian authors I prefer reading when it comes to fiction. His last book 'God is a Gamer' left me craving more from the author. When I heard that his latest venture would be different from his usual theme, I got pretty excited and hoped it would be as good, or better that his former ventures. I received this book on 19th Oct, and here I sit on 21st Oct trying vaguely to review it- on the day when it's actually released.
This 391 page book, which some might term as a definite page turner and some, like me, might state otherwise, is a simple read and does not contain a flattering language.
The story starts off pretty well raising the bar for an amazing end, but fails to capitalize. As the story progresses, it dips a bit in the middle leaving you to stride through the middle chapters ASAP and reach the final phase. The story, more or less, becomes conspicuous around the 69th chapter and strengthens your belief as to who the antagonist is on the 72nd chapter, provided only if you retain and recollect the starting chapters- thus helping you to figure out who the antagonist is. This book being a romantic intrigue surely ends as it was expected to.
In the end, I would give the benefit of doubt for this book to the author for penning down something totally different from his genre.Read it only of you are looking for a very easy read with a bit of thrill in it; else pick up some other book by this very author and give this one a skip.
This 391 page book, which some might term as a definite page turner and some, like me, might state otherwise, is a simple read and does not contain a flattering language.
The story starts off pretty well raising the bar for an amazing end, but fails to capitalize. As the story progresses, it dips a bit in the middle leaving you to stride through the middle chapters ASAP and reach the final phase. The story, more or less, becomes conspicuous around the 69th chapter and strengthens your belief as to who the antagonist is on the 72nd chapter, provided only if you retain and recollect the starting chapters- thus helping you to figure out who the antagonist is. This book being a romantic intrigue surely ends as it was expected to.
In the end, I would give the benefit of doubt for this book to the author for penning down something totally different from his genre.Read it only of you are looking for a very easy read with a bit of thrill in it; else pick up some other book by this very author and give this one a skip.
The flow and pace of the book was good for the most part. Did not quite like the way the end was handled though - could have been sharp.
Btw, I am not sure if it is a coincidence, but I felt that there were too many resemblances to the real lives of known Indian authors.
Btw, I am not sure if it is a coincidence, but I felt that there were too many resemblances to the real lives of known Indian authors.