Eclipse - Stephanie Meyer
This is the best in the series by far and I am authorized to say that now that I am half way through Breaking Dawn. My heart bled for Jacob through this book and I would have loved for Bella to go with him. Sighhhh! The conversations between Jacob and Edwards while they await the newborn vampires is very interesting and I am desperately looking forward to the movie now:D If possible, please please stop at Eclipse and do not venture to read Breaking Dawn.
The Zoya Factor - Anuja Chauhan
This was a recommended fun read by my sister and she even told me of her meeting with the author. Although I am not into cricket, this book was such a fun read and my sister and I kept trying to imagine who would fit the roles of all the character if this movie were to be made in Bollywood. It was also fun to read about Karol bagh and Delhi and the typical huge family that Zoya has. The ads and the campaigns they come up with for Zoya are hilarious and so reflective of some messed up marketing campaigns we see in the ad world today. Overall it was a very fun and entertaining read and I would recommend it as a travel book:)
New Moon - Stephenie Meyer
I watched Twilight last year and I loved it. I know some of my friends are cringing as they read this:D:D I will still hold on to my view:D. I couldn't understand what caused the teens to faint and behave abnormally but I thought it was an interesting movie. I then went and bought the second book and only got around to reading it now. The book was very intense and gripping and watching the first movie made it easy to imagine the characters. Jacob is my favorite character and he transitions very quickly from the sweet boy next door to the intense man in this story. Bella is very interesting as well and her clumsiness makes her very likable to me for obvious reasons. Edward always seems like the ethereal and unattainable love to me. The book ends on a promising note and I am excited to read the next one 'Eclipse' as well as watch the movie New Moon. I don't have any company so I will wait for the DVD to come out.
Bombay Girls, Bombay Rains - Anirban Bose
I read this book right before I saw 3 idiots and my thoughts are all confused and mixed up now. I enjoyed this book immensely and couldn't put it down . It tells the story of a small town boy who gets admission into a prestigious medical college in Mumbai and everything he experiences during those years spent in college. Ragging, friendships made and broken, heartbreaks and every possible life experience that you can imagine and of course all of Mumbai's character put into every single experience. I have read so much about Mumbai by now that I almost wish I was brought up there. Its a city that has a distinct character and this is obvious from every Mumbaite that you meet. Whether I would trade that for my life in Hyderabad is a different story:). This book is a good travel read and I enjoyed my Chennai-Bangalore trip immensely while reading it.
The Storyteller’s Tale - Omair Ahmad
This book reminded me of Arabian nights and similar tales. Although it wasn't full of magic and spells, the feel of the story was the same. The tale of Taka and Wara heart wrenching. The attraction between the storyteller and the begum is very strong and you can almost feel their chemistry through the stories they tell. Overall a very interesting and quick read. I would definitely like to read more by this author.
Two States - Chetan Bhagat
This book was very entertaining and funny to me. Especially because I am married to a Tamilian:). The story of Krish, a punjabi boy, in love with Ananya, a tambhram. What more do you need to create a complete book! The only suggestion I have for couples who come from such distint backgrounds is, don't bother convincing your families! Just get married and let them come around to it. This philosophy of trying to have a love marriage that is arranged and accepted, sometimes cause more pain and trouble than just going for it. I would compare it to pulling out a band-aid:D:D. It was fun to read about the wild punjabis and the sober but uptight tamilians. If Krish and Ananya think their struggle has ended with the marriage, well I would say that was the easy part:D:D.
I have a wonderful marriage and very loving and caring in-laws, family and extended family. I wouldn't say that my husband and I lived perfectly with each other after marriage, even though it was a love marriage. There are always new things that you discover and learn about each other once you start living with each other. I think with our 4th wedding anniversary, we have got it together - almost:). However I must say that I have become a staunch believer in the concept of arranged marriages. Our forefathers were smart. All they did with arranged marriages was reduce the differences in culture, tradition, financial background/habits and lifestyle so that after marriage, it results in fewer differences between the husband and wife and I think this was a smart way of approaching it. I don't mean to say that arranged marriage involve no effort in adjusting but probably less because you start with a common ground.
Back to the book, it was a good and light book to read during my travel in India. I definitely liked it better than One Night at a Call Center.
Married But Available - Abhijit Bhaduri
This book continues on Abbeys story where Mediocre But Arrogant left off. It was definitely an interesting read. I loved some of the marketing and HR gyan that was imparted as part of the story. I kept wondering why he marries Ayesha in the first place when he has always been more into Keya and Keya is such a whimsical character. I found her annoying at times. You do end up feeling a little sorry for Abbey when Ayesha leaves him. Overall it has a good flow and I will definitely read the next one:) Keep it coming Abhijit!
Where are you now? - Mary Higgins Clark
This book was a big disappointment to me. Either I have gotten really good with figuring out her endings or she has become repetitive.
I really wish the ending was something more exotic like Mack being alive. And it wasn't even half as scary as some of her previous ones. Sigh! I will however still read her next one:)
The White Tiger - Arvind Adiga
This was another highly recommended read by my sister and also a Christmas gift from my husband. I found this book rather depressing and scary. A lot of grim realities that we avoid thinking about in day-to-day life were depicted realistically in this book. My sis even told me that there is a magazine like Murder Weekly that gets published in Delhi. I never got the whole point of the ending and wished the ending was something different from what the story was building up to all along. Also I think the part where he moves to Bangalore and becomes a big shot would have been more interesting to me. But I can see why it won the Booker prize. I do recommend this as an interesting read but do not get your hopes too high.
Monsoon Diary - Shobha Narayan
How I love books that talk about food! A big thank you to Sindhu for letting me borrow this book from her:) This book is kind of an autobiography of the author where she talks about her childhood and years spent growing up and after but every single description is around food and there are recipes at the end of each chapter. I loved reading about her childhood days in Kerela at her grandparents' home and I really wished I had taken up the offer that my friend Vimi made as a kid to goto her hometown in Kerela. None of the dishes were new to me but it was fun to read about them in the context of her family and life. I really wish there were more pictures in the book but oh well. I recommended it to Asha of foodies hop and to my delight she had already read and reviewed it. This is a highly recommended read if you are a foodie:).
