Review: The Peshwa: The Lion and the Stallion

The Peshwa: The Lion and the Stallion by Ram Sivasankaran
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Purely for Indian history and Indophile buffs, this is the story of Peshwa Bajirao in his pre-Mastani days (If you know about the story of Bajirao and Princess Mastani of Bundelkhand). The book charts Bajirao's life from his infancy under the tutelage of his father Balaji Vishwanath to his fatherhood and his first battle against the Mughals under Chhatrapathi Shahu's rule. When I first got this book in a kindle offer, I was expecting this to be another tome on the Bajirao-Mastani affair which had become popular due to the Hindi movie on the same folklore. But it was a refreshing change to read about Bajirao on his early life.

The author has written in a very simple and lucid manner which makes it much more enjoyable. I was transported back to my childhood days when I used to read more of such stuff. It deals mainly with the conflict between the Nizam-ul-Mulk of the Mughal empire and the Marathas, the military and political ramifications, time bound tradition of honour in the armed forces and glory for he brave. The book ends with the introduction of Princess Mastani which more or less would likely result in a sequel later life of Bajirao. I thoroughly enjoyed this break from thrillers.

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Review: The Wife Between Us

The Wife Between Us by Greer Hendricks
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

A story on primarily three characters - the husband, the wife and the other woman and a sincere attempt by the wife to stay sane to keep the marriage alive. This is the short synopsis if I am not supposed to reveal more. However, as the story progresses, the plot unravels slowly.

I was intrigued by the blurb on GR and the excellent reviews, so I bought the kindle version when I got a good bargain. The start was good. However, as the pages turn on, it becomes slow and drags a lot. The drama unfolds largely between the husband and wife and drags on for the most part of the book, which is necessary for the development of the plot. The climax is stunning and not revealed until the last couple of chapters. This is the saving grace of the book. There are moments when it becomes very interesting but few and far between. However, you need immense patience to read this book. It is a psychological thriller with a difference. The characters are well etched out and the writers bring out the complexities fully.

Not for somebody who loves action or wants an edge-of-the-seat thriller.


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Review: Next

Next by Michael Crichton
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Actually I liked this book. Don't know why majority readers thought this book was overrated. I was hooked from the word go. Well researched book, the author has taken pains to learn about genes and weave a story around it. The book was also interspersed with articles and essays on biotechnology related subjects.

To make it short, the book is about genetic technology and experiments around it including the discovery of various genes with behavioural traits. There are three or four plots in the book which are unconnected. There are greedy tycoons, unethical scientists and immoral health workers and abundant technical jargon thrown in to make the book interesting to the reader.

Simply put a very engrossing book.

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