Ramayana- The Game of Life - Shattered Dreams

While I was reading the book - Ramayana - The game of Life - Rise of the sun prince, there was a small sneak peek into the next book -Ramayana- The Game of Life - Shattered Dreams. Just a few pages were enough to kindle my appetite for this book.I was overjoyed when the author sent me this  book for review.


Shattered Dreams is the sequel to the Rise of the Sun Prince in the spiritual and motivational series Ramayana- The Game of Life. This book talks of the happenings after the wedding of Rama and Sita. The story is set after 12 years since the Royal Wedding.

As the title suggests, it portrays the episodes that take place after Dasaratha decides to Crown Rama as the King.What were the circumstances that led Dasaratha to crown Rama in haste, what happens when the decision is made, the reaction it causes in various strata of the society including inside the palace walls, Rama's banishment and how everyone handles this is the gist of this part of the series.

Read the entire review here


Happy Browsing....

The Aryavarta Chronicles Book 3: KURUKSHETRA

Earlier this month I had signed up for 52 books in 52 weeks reading challenge. In the introductory post, I mentioned that I will be posting reviews categorically.

The category that I have chosen for January is Mythology....

I have a soft spot for Mythology. It is interesting and fascinating at the same time! So when The Aryavarta Chronicles Book 3: Kurukshetra came along for review @ Blogadda, I signed up for it without hesitation.


This book is the third in the series - The Aryavarta Chronicles by author - Krishna Udaysankar.

 

 I must admit that I have not read the previous books in this series but I was sure it wouldn't matter that much.It is the well known story - Mahabaratha and the author did not leave the reader in mid air. The Dynasties of the Aryavarta and the cast of characters is clearly mentioned in first few pages.

The Author's note starts with  a gathering of scholars in circa second millenium BCE where this story / epic was narrated to the gathering by Sanunuka Kulapati as ithihasa / history.It was narrated under the assumption on what would have happened if all the characters walked the earth as we know it today.

And in the same authors note is also a  statement - The Aryavarta Chronicles are neither reinterpretation nor retelling. These stories are a construction of reality based on a completely different set of assumptions.The author has told the story in a contextualized and rationalized manner.


As the title suggests the story is all about the 18 days long epic war. It occupies the center stage obviously.The peace proposal brought forth by Govinda is rejected by Duryodhan who is called Suyoddan in this story.The lengthy war ensues as the peace talks fail and the brothers fight against their own family who are on the opposite side.

Read the rest of the review here...

52 Books in 52 Weeks- Reading Challenge 2015

The New Year is here and once again I am signing up for the 52 Books in 52 Weeks- Reading Challenge 2015.More details here. This challenge has many mini challenges as well .

Unlike last year, this year I am  diving in with a plan!I seem to be more efficient when there is a clear plan on what I need to do or what has to be done.So I have decided to do a theme a month.[Please note that this is the theme that I intent to follow and not the rule for the reading challenge].

Updated:

I have the names of the books written beside the theme for which the reviews are posted in this blog. To read the reviews click on the genres in the header....

1. Classics
2. Indian writers  - The Mug of Melancholy, Gulabi,From Where I See
3. Collection of short stories
4. Historical fiction
5. Foodie read - Books with a culinary touch , not cook books
6. Books that were turned into a movie
7. Mega Books[More than 500 pages in length]
8. Philosophy / Religion / Mythology - Kurukshetra , Ramayana
9. Humor
10. Robin Cook's books
11. Danielle Steele's books- Journey,Daddy
12. Jeffery Archer's books

So this is the plan.I may or may not follow this order though!

I have even written down the books that I am going to read for each category.But since it would spoil the fun , I am keeping that list to myself. Join me in traveling through the world of books along with all the other book lovers out there....

Happy browsing....

7 Secrets of the Goddess

Last month, before Diwali, I was browsing through the shelves of one of the famous stores in the mall. I chanced upon this book and wanted to pick up a copy as I found the book to have some interesting facts. But since it was past the billing time, I could not pick up a copy.But I was very lucky to receive this from Blogadda for review!

This book authored by Devdutt Pattanaik, attempts in unlocking the secrets of our ancestors by bringing into light the meanings of the stories,symbols and rituals of the Goddess.

There are seven chapters titled

1. Gaia's secret[Greek Goddess]
2. Kali's secret
3.  Gauri's secret
4.  Durga's secret
5.  Lakshmi's secret
6.  Saraswathi's secret
7.  Vitthai's secret

In each of these chapters, the author talks about the balance of male and female entities in the society. It flows through each society, through the Gods and Goddesses and through various cultures and countries.

And with that the book talks of how the women were in the prime position in the society long back and how men emerged to come to the forefront though the ages.


What I liked the most is the pictures / paintings and sketches on each page. For every topic on the page, there is a reference pic on the left hand page.

It was so interesting to see some rare and unusual pics and photos and it impressed me a lot.There are no stories actually, but something more of facts from the various scriptures and other sources.


Read more about the book here...

Happy Browsing....

God is a Gamer

When Blogadda sent me this book for review, I had very high expectations. I have already read and reviewed Ravi Subramanian's Bankster and it was a very thrilling and 'hard to put down' read.I expected nothing less from his current novel.As I started reading this book, I was convinced that the book would live up to my expectations.

The story line starts with a prologue -the the meeting between the President of Master Card International and the CEO of Visa International.And this happens in  2009 in New York, where some important decisions are charted out.

l story starts with the murder of Gillian Tan in Washington DC while on his way to meet the President who also happens to be his pal. From there the story travels to New Delhi,Mumbai, Goa,New York,Rio and back and forth between these places and more.

The story revolves around the world of bitcoins, a relatively new term for many of us.It is a sort of digital currency that was founded in 2008 by Satoshi Nakamoto. And more importantly it can be transferred from one person to another at the click of a button without the intervention of any financial institution.

The book has quite a few characters all playing a powerful part in sculpting the story.



Read more of the story which has a whole lot of twists and turns here....

Happy browsing....

Certain Prey

This is a very old book that I picked from a used books sale. This is the first book that I read in the 'Prey series' and it is certainly a good one.

Clara Rinker is a hit women, the smartest and best in her job plus is going to business school!. She is hired by a defense attorney - Carmel Loan as she wants to eliminate Barbara Allen and Clara gets the job done. This is unwittingly witnessed by a cop and so starts a series of shootings and killing.

Clara and Carmel get together to wipe out the evidences and want to be about without a trace. But things don't go as planned when officer Davenport takes on the killing case and finds a thing or two about both these women.

The ending is most unexpected and one of these women dies.Read this book to find out who it is...

This book is a fast paced thrilled and after a while you feel sorry, sad and happy for the characters..

I would recommend this book to anyone who loves a thriller..

Happy browsing...

Catching the Departed

Last month I received a copy of the book - Catching the Departed,from the author for review. The author - Kulpreet Yadav,is the founder -editor of Open Road Review,a literary journal with  global footprint.He is also the founder of the Asian Pacific Writers and Translators Association.This book was shortlisted for the Hachette - DNA 'Hunt for the Next Bestseller'.

When I saw the title, I was sort of intrigued. I wondered if it would be something to do with supernatural things or a mystery solved after someone departed to the other world.Well, read on to know what it is all about!

Read more of this review in my other blog...

Happy Browsing...