Book Review: The Best Seller She Wrote by Ravi Subramanian

‘A best seller he attempted to write’

 

Let me start by stating the obvious – the story about a successful middle aged man falling for a younger beautiful woman ( and no I am not giving the plot away , its stated on the cover) is quiet a cliché .  

Ravi Subramanian in his 8^th offering brings  in an almost semi-autobiographical (!) ‘romantic thriller’  for  indian fiction readers . Having read and reviewed his earlier novel, I was really excited to read this book , however I am left with very mixed emotions at the end of it . ‘The best seller she wrote’ falls short from earlier works by the author.this is a slightly different genere attempted by author and at best seems like half hearted, nothing in line with his previous work. Having said that cant really say this is a total washout, there are some redeeming points as well/

So what works for this novel  ?

The characterization is real , we all know these Aditya , Maya , Sherya ,  and Sanjay in real lives . All of us have come across such characters in real life , a highly successful, the devoted wife , the ambitious next gen and a best friend. Characters are clearly sketched and helps you visualize the narration very well.

 

The world of contemporary Indian literature, where every book is a ‘product’ that needs to be marketed. From the right celebrity endorsement to encouragement on social media, this book gives you a good insight into how a book is really ‘made’.

There are references to real places , persons and events , helps create a mood for the book.

The ‘twist’ in the story is unexpected and manages to retain reader’s interest in the book

What doesn’t really work?  

The story drags around middle , about 20 odd pages are quiet predictable and adds absolutely nothing to the plot

There are some no so subtle  pot shots on  his contemporary Indian writers  – dance reality show judge,   !!

The sex scenes in authors own language is quiet ‘thanda’

The banking background , we all know the writer background in banking and he has leveraged his knowledge beautifully in previous novels, however for this book it seemed forced . The drama around layoffs due to financial pressure occupies much of novel space but doesn’t really serve any purpose. The characters and the plot could have  in any setting and it would have worked.

The ending , too Bollywoodish for my liking, everything works out nicely , Adiyta manages to rise above everything because the other party was scheming and plotting against him.  Given the book is going to be made into a movie I am not really surprised at the happy ending , but not the way it’s been portrayed .

All in all, it’s a good one time read but given the past record you would expect a little more from Mr. Subramanian . The question now really is who would be playing the protagonist in Bollywood version J

I am reviewing ‘The Bestseller She Wrote’ by Ravi Subramanian as a part of the biggest Book Review Program for Indian Bloggers. Participate now to get free books!

Spa Review - Four fountains de stress spa

Of all the guilty pleasures of modern life , there is nothing i enjoy more than the pleasure of good spa. So when Maithili from Four Fountai ns De-Stress Spa in Bangalore reached out to me for a session , i ofcorse was delighted with the opportunity. Four fountain De stress spa is a national chain with  they have 6 operational centers and the Sarjapur one is walking distance from home :) :) 

Okay so first up, the spa is located right on the outer ring road so definitely very easy to locate. However  i was not too impressed with the fact that's on first floor with some car spare part / garage type of shops on ground floor,  but once insider the Spa facility it transforms itself a soothing place with dim lights and right relaxing fragrances, just how a spa should be.

Once inside, you are asked to share some details about your lifestyle and little bit of medical history basis which the therapists decide what sort of treatment would suit you best. Very professional !!

Packages are for housewives, Car commuters, Travelers etc etc , basically depending on what your body might be going through on day today basis and consequently what kind of massage will suit you best. One can obviously chose out from their range of services on offer. 

I was recommended to go for a deep tissue massage and a facial and i can assure you those two hours was very very relaxing my therapist , Nirmala (I think, I am really bad with names), made sure i was comfortable and the massage and facial was great. 

The best part was the foot massage she gave after she applied face pack in facial, which was first in my experience and total bliss.

All in all i really liked the place and would surely recommend checking it out. Although my massages were complimentary in general the prices are more reasonable than other places and you have all sorts of membership programs & weekdays offer that make visiting this completely worthwhile.

Tantra - A book review

Some time ago , I received a copy of Adi's new book 'Tantra', however the rush that life is , it took a while for me to actually write a review for the same.

So on nice breezy bangalore morning, finally the review for the book, but before i begin a huge thank you to blogadda for giving all the new authors a great platform to share their work and for "bookaholics" like me a chance to read these new authors and new genre of work .

Now on to the book, i would admit superhero / fantasy thriller is not really my fav genre (i am THE queen of chick lit) and have not even read / seen any of the harry potter / twilight series till now. So this was an exciting new adventure for me. 

Most of the book revolves around the world of 'Tantra' - supernatural , a world where there are vampires  both good and real evil.Yes the author has done some good research, there are pages describing the world of tantra mantra of good power and evil power, maha ratri, Krura ratri, Moha ratri & Kala ratri (apparently the four most super powerful nights)

And in middle of all this there is a delhi aunt doing every thing to ensure our heroine marry a nice rich dilli da munda and settle down happily ever after, and our heroine even has few make out sessions with this hot dilli guy .

So its a super natural with a twist, a very 'common' girl Anu aggarwal who is supposed to be a paralegal by day is actually a vampire by night and is back in India (delhi) on a mission to kill. 

Coming to what i liked about it - the author clearly knows its subject well, the level of detail about all thing occult  dark and mysterious is commendable. There is little or no recent popular literature about Indian mythical stories, so attempting to write this genre requires some guts and author should be complimented for the same.

Also personally i liked the fact that the story is not all about super heroes , super power and fight of right vs wrong, there is a dose of 'real life' via all the non vampire character like the aunt , cousin etc.

And now onto the part which clearly needs focus - Editing, like a said earlier the book has lot of details on tantra that keeps you engrossed for a while but after a point  it gets a little much, this 330+ page book could easily would have been edited smartly to about 270 odd and probably would have tighter , more interesting plot.

And the author is clearly working on this as a series (there is a link to fan site which gives codes to unlock scene from next book in the series at the end of the story) so most of the character are left 'hanging' there is no closure on the reason why she came to delhi from Newyork, all the smaller tracks of stories that developed during this story,it would have been better if some of them were closed

My rating : 3.5 stars (extra 0.5 for constructing a credible super heroine) , definitely worth a read

Book: Tantra

Author: AdiPublisher: Apeejay StyaPages: 335Price: Rs 195

This review is a part of the biggest Book Reviews Program. for Indian Bloggers. Participate now to get free books!

Sc(h)airy Experiment !!!

Remember how excited i was to recieve the all the sample couple of days ago. Well i tried the first one i recieved TRESemme Shampoo & conditioner. I was happy that i sample i recieved was Smooth and Shine meant for dry and rough hair like mine these.

I had mostly seen this range in salons and i was looking forward to this experiment, hoping i would finally find a solution for all my hair woes. But Alas ! much to my dismay and disappointment , this one fails to deliver. My hair didnt turn sleek and shiny per the claim on contrary, it felt rough and dry. I was not at all happy with my first experiment but i still gave it a second chance thinking it might turn around the next time (and i dont know why i would think that !) but it didnt.

My hair feels rough and lifeless but since i cant really throw anything out just like that , i would probably use the remaining shampoo to clean my combs and brush (yeah that bad !)

All in all quiet a disappointment, I expected a lot given all the claims and fact that they have been around for 60 years in hair care market :(


So for now in search for better hair care continues , next experiment the Sunsilk range :)

Haaave you met the new Carrie ?

I chanced upon this new TV series few days back and I can say i am hooked for now. After watching Gossip Girl series for nth time, i was looking for something new which has the right mix of drama, romance and ofcorse beautiful clothes and fashion.

So this is The Carrie Diaries - a series about Carrie Bradshaw in 18 year old avataar and as the introduction line says its before the 'sex' and the 'city' and how Carrie became 'the' carrie Bradshaw. Quoting the makers"Carrie Bradshaw is in her junior year of high school in the early 1980s. She asks her first questions about love, sex, friendship and family while navigating the worlds of high school and Manhattan."

Hats off the writer who thought of this, bunch of marketing geniuses i must say. The formula is so simple : 

1) Everyone knows about this character  Carrie Bradshaw from the hit series Sex and the city (and rather disastrous movie , especially part II )

2) Its set in 80's.. which is so in ,the fashion, music everything is so in right now it feels fresh.

And  3) while Sex and city was a bit too adult too appeal to larger set audience, this one is sweet , flirty and sexy enough to appeal to generation of 15 to 50. 

Special mention to Anna Sophia Robb for playing the lead role, she is gutsy and fits the to the T 

So incase you have not started watching , start now ..here is the link 

Weekend Getaway - OOTY

Last weekend we took a quick road trip to Ooty...
 

The route we took - Bangalore - Mysore - Bandipur - Gudalur- Pykarra - Ooty , Road is mostly good except for few mega size bumps around Bandipur (unforgiving to Civic) and a stretch of 5 km after Bandipur to Gudalur .

Since we started early around 6 am from Bangalore we reached Ooty by 1:30 pm with few breaks.

While on our way forward we didn't have much excitement , way back was a different story altogether ..we saw plenty of 'wildlife' on either side of the road. I am so taking my next weekend trip to Bandipur. This definetely would be better than the trip we took to Jim corbett park where the only wild thing we ever spotted was 'junglee murgis'  ..thank god it was a trip with great friends and good drinks, we had fun nonetheless (what would be life without friends eh ??) Well anyways , check out the pic below for all that we spotted on state highway 

Amazing ..No ??

Well so back on track on about THIS weekend, since we hardly ever ventured out of the hotel for any sightseeing , would not be fair to comment on the pleasures of city ..but we did spend a lot of time in our hotel, so a detailed review comes up next.


Ok, so  little background..i stayed at this hotel for a night almost 7 years ago (part of my extended honeymoon trip......more on that later) and i always had this really thought it was cute and quaint the way english cottages are.

Taj Savoy Ooty is a heritage hotel from Taj group of hotels. Built in 1834 , it was meant to be a school but later in 1845 was converted into a hotel and has been running as a hotel ever since then ..that almost a cool 175+ year old heritage.

Its built in cottage style with plenty of green coverage for lawn and beautiful gardens.

and some super charming features like ...this pretty postbox at the entrance

and trees that a 100 year old (well almost)

have rabbits & bunnies to play around with !

Comfy rooms..

with cozy crackling fire

My only compliant here was this place needs a bit of TLC from Taj group, it is as if they are almost apologetic about putting their name on the hotel

See what i mean ..you would really have to search to see Taj written is small letters on top !

My husband says my standard have really gone up in last 7 years (all due to HIM) hence i am nitpicking and he may be right. After having stayed in all the wonderful places by Taj , i do expect a certain standard for the price i am paying.. and that includes carpets in the room to be spotless clean and not smell musty and a functioning icemaker in bar !

Minor niggles aside, this is a wonderful place to stay , special mention to food & staff. Food is  great my father - in - law who cant stand anything spicy or oily loved the food here so much so we had our all meal here and not really ventured out for any meal outside.

Staff like all Taj staff are wonderful wonderful people who go out of their way to make you feel comfortable.

And i totally loved the bar, music is simply perfect, and setting so cozy and nice ..its the kind of place where you would spend the whole night talking to friends over random stuff.

And yes we did do one touristy stuff ..went around to the lake for quick photo session..

Restaurant Review - Thai Pavilion (Mumbai)

The issue with first love it  never lives up to image when you meet later in life. I was in a similar predicament when I was visiting thai pavilion again this time almost after five years . This is the place where my love for Thai food started and I still remember every morsel of  dinner I had. 

5 years later and countless Thai meals including multiple times in Bangkok I was sceptic that l would be disappointed . So  we went and ordered the exact same thing prawn  & chicken soup , Chicken wrapped in Pandan Leaf and green chicken curry.......and ah bliss again, same amazing flavour bursting through the mouth,every bite brought back the flush of first love. 

It's a must visit place if you love Thai food and even if you dont, try it,  you just might start a new love affair ! 

The September Issue

Despite my apperance to contratry i LOVE  fashion...so that when i took a day off today (runny nose & eyes ,horrible sneezes etc etc)  i spent better part of day making me feel good by  indulging in this love. I watched 'The Devil Wears Prada" for 1000th time and still enjoyed it, there is already reams and reams of pages written in praise about the movie and Meryl Streep and fresh faced and rosy cheeked Anne Hathaway so i wouldn't even attempt doing that, but what i really wanted to share was the 'Original' version of the movie in the documentary The September Issue. If you have not watched it as yet do watch, although the description said its a documentary on the life of Anna Wintour the editor in chief at Vouge America.Like the movie the editor in chief takes ALL the decision and has amazing fashion sense and knowledge but unlike the movie it just doesnt deal with the chief protagonist but more around creating the biggest and the most fashion forward Vouge September issue (September issue for any fashion magazine is a big deal as it heralds the beginning of new fashion or trend era). What i really like about this documentary was how it  shows all the hard work and preparation required for creating that big issue, all the people involved and their genuine emotion and frustrations. Also in large part it covers Grace Coddington - the super genius creative director for Vouge America, she is the reason all those fabulous photo shoots and hates with passion the use of celebrity as models on Vouge' s cover page - which i learnt from this documentary is a trend started by Anna Wintour.

This documentary attempts to show the more 'human' side of editor in chief especially after the dramatic image created by Meryl Streep in the movie. Yes she is dictatorial but she is working for the good of magazine and is shown is spend some good quality time with her daughter and knows how to smile if only rarely but i guess you need all that if you are the most influential person in a $300bn industry. The only part i really didnt like and thought was bit artificial when she talks about how her journalist family looks at her work as 'amusing',  I thought it was  a very forced statement to show how 'humane' she is.

But all in all do watch the documentary, its fun and informative about life at Vouge, all the sweat and hard work that goes around creating that 100+ pages of super glossy fun magazine.


On a side note also watched 2 days in Paris a cute indie movie with a  bit of too much french for my clear understanding but worth a watch nonetheless. As the name suggests its shot throughout in Paris (my current second fav city) and from my point of view an excellent satire on the decadent culture of france and in some strange cute realistic way a nice romantic movie.


P.S. incase anyone is interested my fav city is NYC and my third favourite city is London and i would love love to work and stay in any of these three cities for a year (with a salary to afford all the good bits , ready to work my a** off for that) ..if ANYONE  is listening 

Pondy Diary : Resturant review - Villa Shanti ( a slice of food heaven - must try !)

I was to do this review couple of days back but i am glad i waited till today, coz now i am writing this basis two meals, a lunch and a dinner and after tasting both thier continental and indian offerings.

Villa shanti is the kind of place most of us dream of owning (beside ofcorse a shack by the sea:) ), it is situated in one by quiet bylanes of the french side of town.  We read about this resturant in the tripadvisor review and thought of trying it for lunch on sunday. Once we reached the place it was love at first sight ...the resturant is actually a coutyard of a villa (which is now a functioning hotel by the same name) and is done in all white. The space is cozy, i think not more than 30-40 ppl max and has the best blend of homestyle yet chic decor. ( will upload the pics later, not able to transfer from the camera)

 

 

 

 

the decor ..pic taken from phone..check back later for more

 

 

 

 

Now the best part...food...simply heaven. The choice is not too extensive (5-6 meat & polutry dishes and 6-7 fish / sea food dishes) but most of them taste out of the world. Day one we tried continental, husband tried the orange chicken course and I went for prawns with safforn rice (best rice ever ...just the right mix of garlic butter and herb...heaven !!!) Day two we had papaya salad, butter chicken garlic naan and jeera rice. Butter chicken was perfect, reminded us of some of the best butter chicken we have had in delhi, naan was good, rice as always was out this world. I wonder how they get the right texture and fluffiness. If i really have to nitpick papaya salad was slightly below expectation ( and i am comparing here to ones we have had in bangkok..may be wrong comparision) ..but over all such an amazing meal that we polished off every grain of rice & last drop of gravy even though we both were bursting at our seams.

A must try place in pondy ...if you there for even one meal, try this you 'll not be disappointed.

 

Pondy Diary - Resturant review : Cafe Xtasi (Overhyped !!)

We have been visiting pondi very often esp around year end time, while in our previous visits we limited ourselves to places in and around auroville, this time we plan to spend some time in city also and try out new places to eat.

Our first day yesterday we visited three new places, Villa shanti for lunch (excellent place, will review next), St. James beach resort (for evening drinks, good view , cheap drinks ....average finger  food) and Cafe Xtasi for dinner (major recommendation from trip advisor)

Most of the comments on trip advsior hailed this as a must try destination for wood oven pizza and given the fact of our great experience at villa shanti, also on recommendation from tripadvisor our expectation was really high. So when we reached there and were made to wait for table for almost half an hour we didnt mind,considering most of the review mentioned the same ..we were prepared for it. Now what we were not really prepared for was an average pizza, yes it was thin curst ,yes it was baked in wood oven (the oven is right in the entrance so you cant miss it) and yes the portion was generous (one small pizza & garlic bread was sufficient for two) but it lacked taste, the pizza was heavily underseasoned and had very gooey base. I love cheese and can eat it in any form and shape, but even for people like me it felt a little too chessy and base a little underdone. Even the 'garlic' bread had too much cheese on it. It was essentially a normal bread roll cut into bite size pieces topped with lots of cheese and bit of oregano ..again under seasoned.

All in all I felt the place was overhyped, yes it does have its plus points but it being the best pizza ever (as recommnded by most), i seriously doubt it. Its okay place to have pizza ...it will not mean end of world if you miss it.




P.S. : I am sitting in the shadow of big banyan tree  on the sunny terrace of  'Solar kitchen' , while a gentleman is playing flute in background ...Auroville surely is an experience !

 

 

 

 

 

 

Pondy Diary

So, we are in pondicherry for our year end break. Staying at our usual place, Athiti Grih in Auroville. As i try out some new and some old stuff, will keep you updated with all that we do. Coming up ..reviews, photos and more !!

The Bankster - Review

Who knew retail banking could be so thrilling ?

Well, Ravi Subramanian in his latest writing "The Bankster" makes it so. Touted as 'John Grisham' of banking, Ravi does spin a intricate web of fraud and deceit with indian banking background. An IIM B alumnus, Ravi has spent around two decades in banks and it shows in the novel, he paints a realistic picture of indian baking in today's context which is extremely competitive (healthy & unhealthy) and most of the character employs both fair and unfair means to stay on top. Ravi has gone into detail of retail baking Greater Boston Global Bank (GB2) and explains the nuances of banking in detail for common reader to understand how things work in bank.

There are three subplots in the novel which happens in different part of the world, Angola, Kerala and Mumbai and  are seemingly unrelated. How these three stories starting with trading of blood diamond in Angola , a new bank account opened at  a branch of global bank in Mumbai and a nuclear power plant in Kerala  and people in it cross each other's path and are part of a bigger plot is the story. The Author has kept the suspense level high till last few pages and as a reader i was trying to guess the real culprit till very end when all gets  revealed (some might complain a little abruptly) 


The story dealing with a global bank, NGO is real and the incidents are typical of what you would read on daily basis in newspaper. Its to authors credit that he has used simple incidents to spin a story which is intriguing and engaging.

I really liked the characterization, all character appears real, their languages and mannerism, makes it easy to visualize. The plot is tight and relevant to today's world. Ravi's research and ease of writing makes it an interesting an easy read. there are certain quirks (like looking for free wi-fi in europe:)  ) and the 'hinglish' language which you and i use on daily basis helps you relate to the characters. Although some of the character could have been better developed, there are characters walking in and out of plot and are key to the storyline for  a while and then simply disappear in background.

All in all an entertaining read. If i really have to nitpick, could have edited tighter (358 pages currently)  and reduced 30-40 odd pages (in detail explanation of how ipad functions & syncs with other apple products is not really required) and some of the character could have been better developed or there was no need of introducing them but it really doesn't take anything away from the story. My recommendation do pick a copy it will keep you entertained for few hours.

Indian fiction has really come of age and it shows in this novel. The plot  is tight and dialogues and characters are very believable. This was my first novel from Ravi Subramanian, i am definitely going to read rest of his previous work and look forward to what he writes next. Overall i would rate this book 4 / 5. 

P.S. - Thank you blogadda for sending this author signed book for review, absolute pleasure being part of your book review program  :)

P.P.S. - If any movie producer or writer is reading this, please pick this book, there is a 'hero' girlfriend, drama , suspense and good dose of glamour, enough twists and thrill to make it an    interesting bollywood story :) :)

If you want to know more about the author, you can check him here

Website: http://www.ravisubramanian.in/index.asp

Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/Authorravisubramanian

Twitter: https://twitter.com/SubramanianRavi

The book is now available at flipkart @ 40% discount , grab a copy !

This review is a part of the "http://blog.blogadda.com/2011/05/04/indian-bloggers-book-reviews" Book Reviews Program "http://www.blogadda.com"BlogAdda.com. Participate now to get free books