Review: The Reluctant Detective

Yes I am guilty of not putting up reviews at the same speed as I read books. So there were a couple of books which I read and did not end up reviewing, two of them happen to be of good friends’, hence more so the review worry! How to write a review without sounding biased. But the blog was started with the intent of sharing genuine reviews and that is what will be maintained!

I read Kiran’s (good friend no.1) debut novel The Reluctant Detective last month and honestly all through the book I kept looking or waiting to catch her on something where she went wrong with the story but there was absolutely nothing I could come up with. The book was near perfect. The book kept me in splits throughout, right from the word go. Much like her blog, that’s the only minus point I’d give her book, that it is an extension of her blog. Some parts of the book had a sense of deja vu. But then there is a twist in the story, then also her blog is more personal.

The book starts off with Lady Kay aka Kanan Mehra who is the main protagonist of the book. Her curiosity keeps getting her into all kinds of incidents in the book except for when she finds herself involved in not one but two murders that take places in her vicinity. This is when her curiosity turns to her advantage and helps her find out the whys and the whats and the whos behind the murder.

Now wait if you thought this is only yet another whodunit no dear friends that this book is not. This is also the tale of every mum; yes Lady Kay is also a mum to an adorable son and a wife to a macho man! So read her hilarious exchanges with her son and her husband. The best is her exchanges with her self.  It will have you laughing right through the book.

If you have been planning to read this book or wondering whether you should pick it up I’d say go right ahead! A hilarious look at life after mommyhood. A laugh riot from start to the end. Like I had tweeted this has got to be one of those books which I wish wouldn’t end because every page made me happy, made me laugh out loud. Most importantly made me go- hey this is so me!

I have been telling and asking Kiran every time I meet her when do we get a chance to read about Lady Kay’s next escapade and she ends with you will, soon. So, eagerly look forward to the next laughathon from Kiran.

Rishad launches his book at Mocha Mojo

Here are some pictures from the lovely session with Rishad Saam Mehta. He not only launched his book 'Hot Tea Across India' at the event but also shared some of his fascinating travel experiences with the guests present at the launch. His book presentation along with the stunning photographs he has clicked of the places he has travelled to, made this event truly an interesting one. 

He spoke about his bike trip to Ladakh, his dream to do a bike trip from Mumbai to London. His favourite travel destination to his interactions with people he met during his travel. His love and passion for travel came across clearly during his conversation with Mrs. Heena Munshaw of Beacon Holidays who launched the book. 

All in all a Saturday afternoon well spent. Here's wishing Rishad all the very best for his debut book. A book which has been garnering good reviews from every quarter! 

We at The Book Lovers would like to thank everyone who took time out to come and attend the event. A very big thank you to Spicy Sangria (http://spicysangria.com) and Shaan S Khanna for partnering with us online for this event. 

Book Launch Invite!

Q&A with Rishad Saam Mehta author of Hot Tea Across India

You are an avid traveler and a photographer, was writing a book always at the back of your mind?

Yes it was. Because my travel stories were restricted by word count and only relevant information about the place. The book allowed me to bring in the humane incidents, funny stories that were more personal and people based.

  

Tea as a conversation starter, how did this idea germinate?

Tea stalls are an Indian highways institution from the machine dispensed tea at fuel stations to the thatched roof and woodfire shack where the tea is being brewed in a blackened vessel, tea is an integral part of Indian road travel. It starts conversations, refreshes and relives fatigue. And at tea stops on lonely highways you almost always meet fellow travellers and conversation just seems to happen.

Who are your favourite travel writers? Any writer whose work inspires your writing?

I just loved 'One Year In Provence' by Peter Myle, the way the English language has been used to describe and bring in subtle humour is fantastic. Then I like Wilbur Smith's books because they bring about visions of such vast adventure and wild lands.  

What are the qualities that one needs to be able to effectively communicate to the reader through travelogues?

I like my travelogues to encourage and entice. To be able to convince even the most lethargic of readers that there is fun and adventure to be out there. Take a break from routine, unshackle yourself from the daily grind and go out there and live life as it is meant to be lived. 

I would like my readers to belive that travel is not an indulgence, rather it is an essential investment to a fuller and more wholesome life.  

 

The book has been much loved, going by the reviews, must be a satisfying debut for you! Tell us about your future plans; are you working on your next book already?

Yes it has been, the idea was to tell people that India is such an adventure to explore by road and to give them a really good belly aching laugh and I am glad it has served the purpose. Maybe my next book will be on travel or something else, but it will definitely contain humour for sure since I just love making people laugh. 

This was a very India-specific book; while you are quite a globe trotter do you recall any interesting incident during your travels that you would want to share with your readers?

There was one incident recently in South Africa when I was in Kruger driving a little i20 and it was charged by an angry rhino. I remember the first thought that went through my mind was what I would write in the insaurance claim form...Wrecked by one angry rhino.

Then there was that incident in California when I stepped out to stretch my legs on a lonely highway in a forest and a bear came and went to sleep near my door. I had to climb into the car carefully from the boot.  

Any travel tips, photography tips and writing tips for your readers?  Most importantly how do you manage to balance the three roles so well?

All three are co-existent. I travel because I love to photograph and write, I like to photograph hence I travel and I like to tell stories so I travel and photograph.

Do join Rishad Saam Mehta as he launches his book at Mocha Mojo, Bandra on 14th April Saturday, from noon-2pm. Look forward to seeing all you book lovers there!

Book Launch Invite!

WESTLAND LTD, THE BOOK LOVERS and MOCHA MOJO
Invite you to the launch of
HOT TEA ACROSS INDIA 
By Rishad Saam Mehta
on Saturday, 14th April 2012 between 12 and 2 p.m. at
Classic Corner Building, next to Holy Family Hospital, Hill Road, Bandra West,Mumbai 400050

The Event:
Mrs Heena Munshaw of Beacon Holidays will be in conversation with Rishad. Beacon Holidays is a destination marketing company based in Mumbai (Bombay), India, established in 1996.
About the book:
On Rishad Saam Mehta’s journeys — and as a travel writer and all-round road-trip junkie, he’s been on many — there’s a particular thing he noticed. There’s not a highway, road or dirt track in India where you can’t find a cup of chai whenever you want it. And with those cuppas come encounters and incidents that make travelling in India a fascinating adventure. In this riveting book, which includes stories of honey- and saffron-infused tea shared with a shepherd in Kashmir, and a strong brew that revives the author after almost getting lynched by an irate mob in Kerala, Rishad takes you across the length and breadth of India, from Manali to Munnar, from the Rann of Kutch to Khajuraho, with a wonderful combination of wit, sensitivity and insight.
The Author:
Rishad Saam Mehta Rishad Saam Mehta graduated as an electronic engineer from Bombay University and is a travel writer and photographer. He lives in Mumbai and is especially fond of road trips, adventure sports, history and food, all of which tend to feature in his travel stories.

Guest Review: By Nightfall

Author: Michael Cunningham

Reviewed by :  Purvi Shah

There are some stations in life where you want to wait a while longer and some where a short stop is all you need, and some stations where you just don't want to stop but life's train won't allow you to move forward. 

A long boring middle aged marriage could be one of those, especially if you are a beauty lover and an art critic and are looking for that perfect piece of art or that artist which can make history. To add to the musings of the mysterious mind, there's also the case of confused sexual preference.

In a story of lost and found self identity, a middle aged Peter ( though I don't follow why 44 is so passe) with his not so old, not so young wife ( somewhere in her late thirties) move around life in general. Peter finds his wife to have lost her youth (?) and busies himself in mundane everyday tasks, contemplating every now and then on the whys and hows of his life.

Enter his brother-in-law and his search for a lot of things end here. Be it in beauty or art or even love. He initially see-saws between a hate love relationship with the new found object of his desire.Yet being the so called society man that he thinks he is , he still cannot make up his mind as to what it is.

 If you are looking for a story or a plot or something to actually happen, your search is futile. Although, the frivolities of the mind are portrayed well by the author.

Set up in the suburbs around New York, and showcasing a rich vocabulary Michael Cunningham takes the reader to a joy ride of a lot of places in and around. For the uninformed it is also a window into the world of art and gives you an exact picture of what an art curator does, and how the world of art functions, along with the array of wealthy and eccentric art collectors. You would also get an insight into the lifestyle of the rich and the very rich Americans and their idiosyncratic behaviors.

Though it does nothing to the soul of the poor central character who finds himself a failure as a father, curator, art expert, and to top it up as a husband and lover by the end. All in all, a one-time read on a lazy afternoon.

Guest Review: Scarecrow and the Army of Thieves

Reviewed by: Vishal Kale

The Plot

Dragon Island is a Russian Outpost in the Arctic Sea region housing one of the most diabolical advanced weapon laboratories devised by mankind. Unfortunately, Dragon Island is also the home of one of the deadliest weapons ever devised. And even more unfortunately Dragon Island has been captured by a renegade group of thugs calling themselves the Army Of Thieves. Their Agenda: World Destruction, which the thugs prefer to call the revenge of the disenfranchised and the downtrodden. The weapon is set to destroy everything in a matter of five hours – and the good guys have 5 hours to save the world. A small matter of travelling several thousand miles in 5 hours, overcoming the “gentlemen” and disarming the weapon. Enter Scarecrow – the hero. Scarecrow is Captain Shane Scofield, a battle hardened marine who is ideally placed a few hours away from the target. With him is a motley collection of people – a few soldiers and a few civilians. The rest of the book deals with how these handful civilians and soldiers save the world. There are more than a few twists and turns along the way that fundamentally alter the way things proceed, which makes for interesting reading.

The Characters

The book has only 2 real characters that have been properly developed: one directly and the other by inference. The direct one is Scofield, whose rugged nature, tough outlook and character is well brought out by references to the ugly past as well as by his actions in the novel. He comes across as frankly too good to be true, almost a superhero. His quick thinking abiities, toughness are all believable in that he is a highly decorated marine, and a battle hardened veteran. The disbelief is only in the exploits described in the novel, which leave you shaking your head in utter disbelief. The second character is the chief villain, who reigns over this novel by sheer brilliance and brutality. This is in keeping with the intentions of the novelist, who wanted an antagonist who was a match for the main protagonist. In this, the author has achieved success.

There are several other characters – Gena Newman, who has been reasonably well developed as a tough sergeant, Zack Weinberg, Corporal The Kid Thompson, Lance Corporal Puzo, Emma Dawson, Vassily Ivanov, Veronique Champion and Bertie the robot. Among all of these, you end up remembering only Bertie The Robot, who turns out to be a useful companion thanks to his armaments. Among the others, Emma, Zack and Newman share space occasionally with Scofield as supporting cast in various scenes.

The Analysis

First,  the good. The book is a good read, written in a fast and racy pace – almost hectic, a page turner. The lack of character development is in keeping with the story, which is only about 2 people. Further, the constraints imposed by the time-span as well as the need for a racy speed meant the character development had to be sacrificed. The entire plan of Scofield's party has been described well, making their progress almost believable. It is almost like reading the graphic, shot – by – shot description of a battle, which is only to be expected if one is travelling a few hundred miles on arctic ice to save the world. Not only that, if you have also managed to hold reader interest while you are describing the battle, then you can pat yourself in the back. And most important is the cliff-hanger climactic scene, which is a real humdinger and a genuine surprise, and totally in keeping with the quicksilver thought process of Scofield.

Next, the bad: at times, it gets a bit monotonous – battle after battle. Next, the entirely avoidable use of profanity which takes a bit of the fun away. Third, the needless torture scenes which could have been avoided.

In summation a good novel, a racy read. Ideally suited for journeys as it is a page-turner!

(Vishal Kale is a mid-level sales professional - an MBA in marketing with a passion for reading assorted fiction and Indian history / development. He blogs at www.reflectionsvvk.blogpsot.in )