Rakhi Jayashankar's Blog, page 20

Jinnah A Life by Yasser Latif Hamdani

What better day than today to review the book. The biography of Muhammad Ali Jinnah. According to history, the man behind the two-nation theory, the communal fanatic. The author, through the book, tries to reason with the real facts and historical incidents about the role of Jinnah in the partition and the communal riots preceding the partition.
The book states the growing stages, academics, and professional life of Jinnah. The agility in his arguments is established with examples. The author distinguishes the professional lives of Gandhiji and Jinnah. All through the first half of the book, the author tries to bring light to the growth of Jinnah from lawyer to politician. His preoccupation with British style is depicted deftly and gives a clear picture of how he is molded to the picture that we see. 
It would be surprising to the readers that Jinnah has been the flag bearer of secularism. It's new information that the Muslim League which is often referred to as Jinnah's party was initially not his primary party but it was Congress which Jinnah supported initially. Jinnah always wanted parity and we Indians should be made aware of the reality.
However, the argument that Jinnah was unaware of the outcome of partition seems to be an inflated sense of perception. It is inconceivable that the man who is a connoisseur in law could not foresee the real intention behind a two-nation theory and that he expected the two nations-Hindustan and Pakistan- to come under one umbrella of India like USA and Canada.
The author has a magnetic style of narrative. The book is as thrilling as a fictional thriller- primarily due to the finesse of the craft and secondarily since Jinnah's life in itself is thrilling. It is commendable on the author's part to bring the other side of the coin to the readers. The perils of partition we're deliberately omitted as the readers would be always aware of it. Nonetheless, it would be interesting to see how Jinnah dealt with something he unknowingly started off.

Faith and the Beloved by Kochery C Shibu

It is one of the rarest reviews which I am posting in first person narrative. If you have been following my reviews, you might know that I reserve it to the last line. But there is a reason for taking up this style of review. Let's see why.
The books comes under my favorite genre. Thriller with mythological fiction . Author has maintained the suspense element throughout the book. With a back story of the historical background, I could learn more about the LTTE and their activities as well as history the Syrian Catholic Churches. A plot with immense possibilities.
BUT, BUT....THAT WAS IT
To see a grammar mistake in the first page is the most disappointing put off for a book. But we cannot blame the author for the same. It is the job of th3 editor, if at all there was one.
WHY DID I, WHO FERVENTLY OPPOSE SCATHING BOOK REVIEWS CHANGE MY STYLE HERE?
This is more of a protest against the half baked theories about female sexuality than book review.
Spoiler Alert ⚠️ sorry for the spoiler but I have to call it out.
1. A man raped a woman who was unconscious. She was moaning, which means she was enjoying it. But he didn't make a single bruise in her body. Of course she was unconscious. So how come a bruise happen? Next day he realises that she is in the hospital. He learns that she made bruises herself to incriminate him.
So, My question to the author?
If a man rapes an unconscious woman and doesn't make a single bruise, is it justifiable?
2. A step father raping a step daughter. She is feeling guilty because she is enjoying it. She hates him but she enjoys what he did as he is deft in what he does?
So, if a man is an expert of a woman's clitoris and G-spot, it's easy to rape her as she enjoys it?
Is that it?
Let me tell you ignorant lot with such half baked ideas. However expert you are with any body part of a woman, she WILL NOT ENJOY it if you touch her without her permission. Even if you are her lover much less a stranger or someone she hates.
I read 75% of the book to see if I could see any justification to this I'll conceived thought. I was disappointed and skipped the rest and jumped to the last part. It was so disturbing to keep this misogyny out of my mind to concentrate on the book.

Sounak's Love Stories by Dr. Kisholoy Roy- Book Review

 Sounak, an ordinay person with a below average job living an even avaerage life. How would his love life be?

Sounak meets many women at different stages of his life. Everytime he thinks tha he will grow old with her but the climax of the brief romantic endeavours would be different. Why would it be so? Author would tell the readers.

The plot seems connected to reality. Author has given an anecdote of  even the fleeting flings of the protagonist. The imperfection of the protagonist is the highlight of the book as of late the books are all about abounding perfection of the protaginists. Notwithstanding the sketch of the Sounak's family background, the characters of his family members, friends and girlfriends are not given ample space to develop.

The style of narration is vernacular and hence there is much ardour and innocence prevalent in the book but the same gives an amateurish shade to the book. The third person narration could have been in first person to justify the narrative. One round of developmental edit would make the book two notches higher.

I recommend this book if you are looking for a simple, uncomplicated read which gives you a breeze of positivity.

Release day Blitz- Love, Truth and Taking Chances by Shilpa Suraj

~ Release Day ~
Love, Truth, and Taking Chances
(The Kapoor Brothers #2)
by Shilpa Suraj

About the Book:



Losing his wife to breast cancer has left Arjun Kapoor a broken man. He vows to never risk his heart again. Until the day Vihana Luthra turns up on his doorstep. Vivacious, optimistic and bursting with life, she believes in taking each day as it comes.

Unwilling to love but unable to resist the force of nature that is Vihana, Arjun finds himself drawn into the manic chaos that is her life. And he starts to believe again; in hope, in dreams, in love...

But Vihana has a secret... one with devastating consequences. Will they be able to survive it or will it tear them apart?




Buy Links:
Goodreads * Amazon


Check out a few Quotes from Love, Truth, and Taking Chances





About Shilpa Suraj:

Shilpa Suraj wears many hats - corporate drone, homemaker, mother to a fabulous toddler and author.
An avid reader with an overactive imagination, Shilpa has weaved stories in her head since she was a child. Her previous stints at Google, in an ad agency and as an entrepreneur provide colour to her present day stories, both fiction and non-fiction.



Shilpa on the Web: Website * Facebook * Twitter * Instagram

The Tech by Mark Ravine- Book Review Book 33

It is a herculean task to pull off investigative thrillers in literature. The action sequences and the suspense threads need to be graphic enough so as to give the readers a visual prejection of the events. The Tech by Mark Ravine, with its meritorious narration and magnificent character craft has attained the feat effortlessly.
Alexandra Cassidy is delegated the task of investigating a bank robbery. The case is proved so easily that she starts having doubts about the finesse of the job done. But things are not hunky-dory anymore and she is caught amidst child trafficking, accompanied buy an incongrous individual. Her team is no less in being abnormal. With the team that is notorious of having black marks in the track record, without even the basic idea of puntuality, Alexandra's chances of proceeding with the case seems like herding cats. To to it all, her seniors are a major hindrance in her path much less providing any valuable help. How will she proceed? Who is the individual ? How is he possible to get every information at his finger tips?
The characters are the focal point of the plot. For the plot to proceed, the characters must be acting according to the norms but author has crafted a bunch of individuals with their idiosyncrasies and misdemeanour makes everything look unfeasible. After a apoint, the plot gets monotonous Mike's character breaks the monotony of the plot. The mystery behind his efficacy and his secret help, holds the curiosity of the readers. The revelations in the climax were abrupt. More space should have been given to the sequence. The pace of the plot drops half way through the book but succeeds in holding the intrigue again. 
Overall the book is a visual treat of words.

Journey to the Next Level- Book Review Book 32

The journey to the next level- The impression that could be possibly left behind by the title would be that the books are a science fiction or maybe a fantasy book on millenial games. It is indeed fantasy but never connected to the hi-tech millenial stuff.
Omi, is a sailor, a hardcore materialistic person who is jerked back to the spiritual reality with the turn of events in his life. He receives a phone call informing him about the accident of his uncle who ends up in a coma. The visit to his uncle changes Omi's life for good. The uncle who is in a coma holds his hand, which is unexplainable by any medical science branches. He learns that his uncle's soul has left the body and he is assigned to find the lost soul. Omi's foray into the netherworld in search of his uncle's soul is the crux of the book. Omi learns that finding his uncle's soul is not his only destiny. What Omi sees and learns calls for an engaging and enthralling read.
The author has seamlessly sewn contemporary life with mythology, spirituality, and fantasy, thereby presenting a cocktail of intoxicating genres. The book serves the purpose of illustrating spirituality to the youth. The imagery of Lord Krishna as an old man is unimaginable for a layman but the author has portrayed characterized the image with the conviction that the readers will be forced to indulge more in the 'what and why' of it.
Overall it is a fast-paced fantasy ride through the alleys of mythology and present.

Moral Fiber by Shawn Vij- Review Book No.31

We live in a fake world. Be it business, or relations or even social media, we need to project an personna that is acceptable to the society.
Shawn Vij, through is impeccable book 'Moral Fiber' has substantiated his ideology of Moral fiber with anecdotes in his professional life. As a reviewer, I have read many books on spirituality, self help and business but every book indulges in a unpragmatic idea and mostly depicts the tale of people who had everything yet felt incomplete and set out in search of inner peace.
Moral fiber, probably because it's an autobiographical adaptation is concentrating on the hassles of daily lives. Author's take on how we are forced to compromise on our ethics would be relatable to everyone in the corporate, political or any field for that matter. Author has backed up his views with the real life anecdotes and incidents which forced him to set out in search of his moral fiber. 
The experience of the author with Dalai Lama makes the book all the more engaging.Unlike the man gods, Dalai Lama is portrayed as someone who is enlightened with the real knowledge and the methodology of his Guru calls for an impecable read.
Overall the book is a multi genre book with a target audience comprising of people from nearly all genres

Kali's Daughter by Raghav Chandra - Review #BookMarathon Book30

Caste , religion and discrimination has been a topic of discussion in light of the unfortunate incidents happened of late. The phobia of the underprivileged, unwillingness to share space, food or even have relationships with the lower caste and judging people on base of the color is a sick mentality. However varied we look on the periphery, the blood is all the same- red. Author has substatiated this magnificent message through his book Kali's daughter. Kali the powerful Goddess who is jet black in color and wears a garland of skull.The plot revolves a bunch of Civil Service students who come together from various backgrounds.
Aman- A no nonsense guyArundhati- The snobRajesh- Who breeds Phobia towards lower castes and dark skinDeepika- A sagacious girl who has had a hard childhood bearing the brunt of caste discriminationVijay- The fiery rebel who questions the system without caring much about the consequences.

Will Deepika fight? Will she endure? What will she say to the Human Rights Council? How will she represent India to the rest of the world?

If we think deeply, the bunch is the representation of India as such. How these students gel with each other is interesting to see. Arundhati thinks low about Deepika and her simpleton life but is forced to share room with her. Meanwhile Deepika is the heartthrobe of both Aman and Vijay. While Aman is a Brahmin, Vijay belongs to scheduled caste, so does Deepika. This makes the triangle even more interesting and complicated. Will Aman's socially antiquated mother, who thinks lowly of lower caste people accept Deepika? Will ever the pure heart of Deepika win over Arundhati? Will Vijay succeed in his revolutionary ideologies?
The book forced me to skip my sleep. After a while, maybe an year or two I was so engrossed in a book that I forgot everything else.The book doesn't simply call out the discrimination in the country but is an exemplary piece of literature. I envy the author. I so wish if I had written this exquisite piece of litereature.

Book Blitz Gangs of Social Media BY Vasimraja Bhavikatti

About The Book


'Gangs of Social Media' is a mirror of our present situation all over the world. Our lives are taken over by Social Media and we are a slave to our apps. And one of the most poisonous side effects of social media is Fake News.
The story reveals how India’s one and only Forensic Cyber Psychologist, Professor Fabulous is summoned by the National Cyber Defense of India to hunt down the mastermind behind a cyber-attack on social media users who intentionally or unintentionally spread fake news.
In a desperate race against time, Professor Fabulous encounters online scammers, cyber hacktivist gangs, paid trolls, Social Media business executives, Politicians, Cybersecurity Start-ups, and a forgotten victim of fake news before the mastermind reveals his motive behind the cyber-attack.

Will this be the end of fake news or the end of social media itself? 
Synopsys
Gangs of Social Media is a crime mystery thriller set-in present-day India. The story is of 12 hours when Mr. RAJPUT, Deputy National Cyber Defense Chief teams up with PROFESSOR FABLUOS who is India’s only Forensic Cyber Psychologist to hunt down the MASTERMIND of the worst cyber-attack of all time on SOCIAL MEDIA users who often indulge in spreading FAKE NEWS.
The story begins with three nameless youths in three metro cities of India, namely Bangalore, New Delhi, and Mumbai. All three of them heavily use WhatsApp, Facebook, and Twitter to do one and only one thing, to spread FAKE NEWS motivated by aimless emotion, blind political affiliation, and money. These three represent most social media users in India. 
But that day, all the social media users who have been spreading fake news with whatever intention and without any consequences will have to pay a heavy price. Ransomware (computer virus) disguised in the form of a WhatsApp message or Facebook post or as a tweet is circulated and as usual, without thinking of consequences, the users start sharing this message. The moment the users shares any fake news, their device either phone, tablet, or laptop, or computer will hang, and a message is displayed, demanding a ransom of Rs.1,00,000 to be paid within 12 hours as a consequence of sharing fake news. If users fail to pay the ransom, the devices will be destroyed and all the data on the device will be made public.
Professor Fabulous and Mr. Rajput have a bitter past, but they put their personal differences away to catch the culprit behind this cyber-attack. The story narration is sequential but keeps the reader guessing. The division of the book into 15 chapters with titles that almost foreshadow the narration that would happen in the chapter is marvelously and artistically done by the author.
Gangs of Social Media sounds dangerous but there is not much to be worried about as Professor Fabulous is fabulous at his job. But what happens at the end. Is the search over? Does Professor Fabulous get to the criminal? The book trades us through the process. It takes us from one person to the other. The end is what the reader must discover herself or himself. It’s the most surprising the realistic climax and leaves the reader with a few open-ended questions.
Book Purchase Links: Amazon India | Amazon USA
Some Interesting Quotes from the Book: 


"Fake news existed in the past and will continue to exist until human civilization exists, there is no escape from it… "- Professor Fabulous

"Three greatest inventions of the 21st century. The Smartphone, the Internet, and Social Media. The device, the medium, and the platform. The holy trinity of Fake news Empire." - Professor Fabulous
“The color of this shirt is blue…that is a fact, and nobody can dispute that. The color of this shirt is awesome!!! That is an opinion… it is highly subjective, biased, and customized to individual needs. The color of this shirt gives me superpowers… that is false or fake news...” 
- The prime suspect
About The Author: 
Vasimraja was born on 29th February 1984, in India.  He currently lives in San Francisco Bay Area, California USA. He started reading fiction novels at the age of eight after overhearing a story narration of Sherlock Holmes by his father. He grew up in different towns of Northern Karnataka State before his family relocated to Dharwad, the literature capital of Karnataka where he met celebrated playwright and author, Late Girish Karnad. He was greatly influenced by Karnad’s writing and personality.
Vasimraja works in the field of semiconductor engineering and has two patents on semiconductor memories. He is an avid reader of English, Kannada and Hindi literature.  He presents the most complex ideas in a very simple form, leaving a lasting impression on readers.

Catch up with Vasimraja Bhavikatti On:

Facebook | Instagram | Twitter | Email

Startup Ramayana By Prachi Garg Book 29

The epic Ramayana has been retold several times in Indian Literature. We have seen Ravana's version, Sita's version and even modern Ramayana. The retelling of Ramayana in a corporate scenario is unique and beneficial to the readers who are ventuting into business. The book targets, hardcore mythological fiction lovers, as well as business book lovers who are into fiction. Without bloodshed, author has told the tale of Rama's ayana(journey) in the corporate world.
Start up Ramayana is a short read. Rama is kicked out of his firm with Kaikeyi's clandestine tactics. The instances in Ramayana are adopted into the book with a corporate overture. As fate would have it, Rama is forced to leave the town like Lord Rama did. Further how Ravana, Vibheeshana, Hanuman, Bali and all other characters are intorduced calls of a captivating read. There is a profound voice of justice and fate which the epic had conveyed and adapted to the book in a cosmopolitan fashion that the transition is smooth and seamless.
Coming to the characters, the author did not have to work on the basic frame as there is a base plot already set but to paint the idiosyncracies of the characters to the mellenial easel is not an easy feat. Author has impeccable attained the same.
Overall the book is a mythological amalgamation of contemporary fiction