Mini Reviews - VII

Bookasura

-          Arundhati Venkatesh

I bought the book for my son, after seeing recommendation in a list of contemporary children's books by Indian authors. I think it started off reasonably well, but meandered soon, and the end didn't make sense at all. I wouldn't have enjoyed it as a child, and my son didn't either. The print quality was not up to the mark either.

Tales

-          Alexander Pushkin

The tales themselves are quite familiar, owing to the number of Russian fairy tales I read when growing up. Moreover, one of these is a retelling of Snow-white.

I purchased this from a seller of old and specially Russian books, at quite an expense. I didn't know that this was in verse, or I would not have bought it. Because verse doesn't translate well, particularly as verse. On the up-side, the book is in as good a condition as can be after 35 years, and it is wonderful to own these now rare books. The best thing about it, though, are the illustrations, which are a real joy.

The Little Shop of Happy Ever After

-          Jenny Colgan

After reading a few highly recommended books in the genre that has come to be known as 'chicklit', I have come to a conclusion that it just isn't meant for me. This includes books by much acclaimed authors like Sophie Kinsella, Anuja Chauhan, Preethi Shenoy. Jenny Colgan was highly recommended to me by a cousin, so I ended up reading 'Little Beach Street Bakery', which is perhaps the only book in this genre that I liked.

Now, this book is about a book-loving shy librarian opening a mobile bookshop in a remote Scottish town, and I fully expected it to be sweet and enjoyable. It started well, but eventually turned out to be too long, too boring, so that I don't even want to write a full review. I just have to say it was too sweet, cloyingly so. And predictable in the stupidity of its protagonists. The romance angle just ruined what could have been an interesting book. Though it's not the first one to do it, and will not be the last.

Hercule Poirot’s Christmas

-          Agatha Christie

 

Probably the weakest Hercule Poirot mysteries I have read, with many unbelievable coincidences, plot holes, and obvious hints. Poirot's character itself is missing, he is just a name standing in for a person (detective) who could have been anyone.

The Murder of Roger Ackroyd

  - Agatha Christie

Amongst Christie's works, I like Hercule Poirot best (though as far as detectives go, Holmes is going to be my forever favorite). I love the Poirot short stories, though I didn't enjoy as much the few novels I have read. Have been hearing a lot of praises for this one, and glad that it did have that 'Poirot' flavor, and I really enjoyed it.

 

The plot was good, and typical of Christie's murder mysteries, where everyone is a possible suspect!
On the downside, I had a nagging doubt on the identity of the murder from quite the start, but I kept wavering throughout the story. However, towards the end, by the time Poirot begins his explanation, I was quite sure of who it was!

An irritant was Poirot's usage of terribly incorrect English, though he is depicted as retired, and by extension should have lived in England for a considerable time and therefore developed better language skills. However, seeing that this is the fourth Poirot novel, perhaps the author had not given this much consideration.

Longshot

Longshot

  - Dick Francis

My rating: 3 of 5 stars

My favorite genre, after I graduated from children's books to those for adults, used to be mystery/thriller. I loved Sherlock Holmes and Perry Mason series, and books by Alistair Maclean and Desmond Bagley. However, in last few years, I have been having trouble finding the kind of thrillers I like; most of contemporary works being psychological thrillers, frequently with gruesome details, psychopaths, and child abuse. That's when someone recommended me Dick Francis (though I no longer remember who or when), and I added Longshot and Danger to my reading list.

Over the Diwali weekend, I wanted to relax with something engaging but unstressful, so I picked up Longshot for a quick read. It turned out to be fairly entertaining but unremarkable book. The protagonist, John Kendall, a budding author of fiction, is an expert on surviving in extreme conditions. Brief descriptions of these skills are sprinkled throughout the book; they are interesting, and also come in handy in the course of the events in the novel. He accepts a commission from well known horse trainer Tremayne, and comes to stay at his family home. Over time, he comes to realize the warm and compassionate nature of his employer, beneath the autocratic and sometimes unreasonable exterior. It makes for nice reading, though it is a well used trope. Kendall's interaction with Tremayne's teenage son Gareth was the best part of the book, as Gareth comes to look up to him as a mentor/elder brother.

Since the employer and the second main character Tremayne is a trainer of racing horses, there is a lot of detail about horse racing in the book (and is a consistent theme in his works, as I come to know from other reviews). Initially I read about those, but after a while I lost interest and skipped the details that didn't have a bearing on the plot.

In these kind of novels, the protagonist usually has some extraordinary skills, which gradually emerge to save others from peril. I think this one went a bit too far on this aspect - Kendall's survival skills, and keen observation and reasoning were alright (and expected), but his learning to ride racehorses well enough to become an amateur jockey in less than two weeks was rather far fetched.

Coming to the question of the genre, which is the main point, I wouldn't call it a thriller. It is a murder mystery alright, but I don't think it is a great one. The murder comes into picture after quite a bit. The identity of the murderer involved an obvious red herring, and another usual device - it turns out to be a very unlikely character. In the good ones, the path to discovery is where the tension lies, but I didn't find it to be one of those biting-your-nails kind of journey.

My rating: 2.5 stars, rounded to 3.