The Books Thread (Fiction)

rajesh1868 · 19th February 2013, 19:10

Quote:

Originally Posted by Oxy

I am looking to purchase Miss Callaghan Comes to Grief by James Hadley Chase. Have heard that this book was banned in the UK when it was released and there was a court case against the author. Any pointers where I can get it in Bangalore or online? Landmark has it but it quotes an obscene Rs.970 for it.

http://cheapr.me/view?q=%22Miss+Call...ief%22&t=books

StrangeWizard · 19th February 2013, 21:49

just completed reading Dongri to Dubai.
great book on Mumbai's underworld mafia.

bond_bhai · 20th February 2013, 14:47

Anybody here "pre ordered" Amish Tripathi's last book from the Shiva's Trilogy - The oath of the Vayuputras?

charthom · 22nd February 2013, 12:20

Quote:

Originally Posted by bond_bhai

Anybody here "pre ordered" Amish Tripathi's last book from the Shiva's Trilogy - The oath of the Vayuputras?

Yes, I ordered from flipkart.com. Have not read any of them- so ordered the entire trilogy!

ACS · 25th February 2013, 17:21

I am not sure whether this is discussed in this thread already or not. However a help/response is greatly appreciated. I am looking for a car book known as "The book of Car" by Readers Digest. Its a 80's book as per my Dad who had this but misplaced unfortunately. I could see many online links which could probably download the soft copy but nothing is found to be working. Please help!

travelwriter · 25th February 2013, 18:16

I recently finished '100 Years of Solitude'. I can safely say this is the best book I have read in years. Really close to RK Narayan's The Guide and Premchand's Godan.

"Those who forget history are condemned to repeat it" seems to summarise the book.

I strongly recommend this book to everyone. The way the writer has interspersed time periods in his narration seems strange at the beginning but keeps you engrossed throughout.

charthom · 27th February 2013, 13:01

Just recd "The oath of the Vayuputras":-) Have to read it now. Hope it will be a good experience.

Yes- One hundred years of solitude is a great book. Please read Love in the time of cholera too-or any book by Marquez.I was mesmerised by the beauty of his story,"The sleeping beauty and the airplane"

Rgds,Charthom

Samurai · 27th February 2013, 15:03

Quote:

Originally Posted by travelwriter

I recently finished '100 Years of Solitude'. I can safely say this is the best book I have read in years. Really close to RK Narayan's The Guide and Premchand's Godan.

Sorry to say, but I absolutely hated this book. In fact, I gave up after reading more than half.

It is a series of unconnected events of a family over generations, with no clear plot. May be I should not have looked for a plot. I rate it as the most frustrating book I have ever read. It may feel interesting right after reading War & Peace.

tsk1979 · 27th February 2013, 15:15

Very long time I read a big fat book by a russian author.
I do not remember the Authors name, or the name of the book.
I was very young then, so could not do justice, as the book was thick and a little snow.

The plot is about a group of people on some kind of expedition in the mountains in russia where they battle cold and bears, and lot of members die in the crossing. Very gripping.

If anybody has read such a book, please let me know the name.
I wish I could tell you more about the book.

Oxy · 4th March 2013, 16:11

Just finished Doctors by Erich Segal.

A realistic account of the lives and struggles of doctors in the 1962 batch of Harvard Medical School, also portrays the lives of some key characters after they graduate and start practicing.

The story revolves around two central characters: Barney Livingston and Laura Castellano, who are childhood neighbours/friends and end up in the same 1962 class of Harvard Medical School. They have their individual highs and lows, and several seperate love lives, but end up falling for each other in the end (which is predictable).

Two more important characters are Bennett Landsmann and Seth Lazarus, both in the same 1962 batch. Bennett, the surgeon, being the only black in the entire batch, and a jew on top of it, has to endure some racial discrimination against him. An unfortunate event during practice forces him to take up forensics, hence he ends up in a law school as well.

Seth plays a mercy killer. He puts an end to the lives of some patients who are hopelessly gone cases and killing them would mean helping them putting an end to their woes, rather than seeing them die an incredibly painful death. In the end he gets caught in one of such acts, and faces a trial where Bennett comes to his rescue as an attorney.

A fairly interesting read, provided you are patient enough to stand 700 pages. The book could definitely have been much shorter. Segal at times tends to go on and on about some unnecessary characters.

Overall, a fairly good book.

NMS · 4th March 2013, 17:48

Just Started Reading "The Oath of The Vayuputras" Just been through the first Chapter, somehow it is not invoking the kind of interest the first two did.
Anyone else feeling the same?

ampere · 11th March 2013, 08:27

Quote:

Originally Posted by Samurai

The Pacific theater is not part of the Trilogy, but you will be amazed to find that Shaara manages to follow the story of Clay Adams, the brother of Jesse Adams (from the western theater). Both brothers survived the war, which is a miracle by itself.

Finished the first part of the WW-II trilogy. Very nicely portrayed. Especially the emotions of Rommel and Eisenhower. Looking forward to the next two.
This is in parallel to various read-through novels which need need not be digested; while this one needs to be chewed and digested. And many a times also warrants a re-look at the maps.

The parallel read-through novels nowdays include Michael Connelly and Vince Flynn. Almost finished both these authors, now hunting for the next set.

Mudhalaipatti · 11th March 2013, 08:39

Finished reading "The oath of the Vayuputras". While this last part pales in comparison to the first two masterpieces, I don't think anything better could have been done to the concluding part.

It would be interesting to see if Amish gets to write or rewrite Mahabarath.

mobike008 · 11th March 2013, 12:02

Started reading "The Hard Way" by Lee Child.

In one hour, completed 75 pages. It kept me on my tenterhooks all the way. An amazing thriller starring the favorite character Jack Reacher.

I can't wait to finish this book. A must read for thriller genre lovers !!!

Oxy · 11th March 2013, 12:59

Finished reading Miss Callaghan Comes to Grief by James Hadley Chase, the guy known for his extremely fast paced thrillers.

This is the rarest of his works and you won't find it anywhere in the market. The reason being, the author and the publisher had to face a court case for releasing this book, because of its highly obscene contents.

The plot revolves around sex slavery - girls being kidnapped or tricked and forced into prostitution. The central character Raven, who runs this brothel business, is portrayed to be utterly ruthless and cruel, who practically keeps getting away with anything you can possibly think of, until the end.

Please keep this as far away from kids as possible. Some adults too will find it nauseating. There are descriptions of stripping, beating, torturing, raping and murdering of young women, along with some racist language.

Read it only if you must or if you are a diehard Chase fan. Most people are likely to be left with a very unpleasant feeling after reading it.

View Poll Results: I read most my books in...
Paper book format	269	62.70%
Amazon Kindle	103	24.01%
Apple iPad	9	2.10%
Android Tablet	13	3.03%
B&B Nook	5	1.17%
Sony eBook Reader	0	0%
Smartphone	19	4.43%
Others (mention in post)	6	1.40%
Kobo eReader	5	1.17%
Voters: 429. You may not vote on this poll

19th February 2013, 21:49	#722
StrangeWizard BHPian Join Date: Mar 2011 Location: Bombay Posts: 760 Thanked: 311 Times	re: The Book Thread (Fiction) just completed reading Dongri to Dubai. great book on Mumbai's underworld mafia.
	() Thanks

20th February 2013, 14:47	#723
bond_bhai BHPian Join Date: Aug 2007 Location: Bangalore Posts: 83 Thanked: 10 Times	re: The Book Thread (Fiction) Anybody here "pre ordered" Amish Tripathi's last book from the Shiva's Trilogy - The oath of the Vayuputras?
	() Thanks

25th February 2013, 17:21	#725
ACS BHPian Join Date: Dec 2012 Location: Bangalore Posts: 35 Thanked: 8 Times	re: The Book Thread (Fiction) I am not sure whether this is discussed in this thread already or not. However a help/response is greatly appreciated. I am looking for a car book known as "The book of Car" by Readers Digest. Its a 80's book as per my Dad who had this but misplaced unfortunately. I could see many online links which could probably download the soft copy but nothing is found to be working. Please help!
	() Thanks

25th February 2013, 18:16	#726
travelwriter BHPian Join Date: Feb 2009 Location: Hyderabad Posts: 296 Thanked: 116 Times	The Book Thread I recently finished '100 Years of Solitude'. I can safely say this is the best book I have read in years. Really close to RK Narayan's The Guide and Premchand's Godan. "Those who forget history are condemned to repeat it" seems to summarise the book. I strongly recommend this book to everyone. The way the writer has interspersed time periods in his narration seems strange at the beginning but keeps you engrossed throughout.
	() Thanks

27th February 2013, 13:01	#727
charthom BHPian Join Date: Apr 2011 Location: Cochin Posts: 652 Thanked: 270 Times	Just recd "The oath of the Vayuputras":-) Have to read it now. Hope it will be a good experience. Yes- One hundred years of solitude is a great book. Please read Love in the time of cholera too-or any book by Marquez.I was mesmerised by the beauty of his story,"The sleeping beauty and the airplane" Rgds,Charthom
	() Thanks

27th February 2013, 15:15	#729
tsk1979 Team-BHP Support Join Date: Feb 2005 Location: San Jose, CA Posts: 23,727 Thanked: 23,067 Times View My Garage	re: The Book Thread (Fiction) Very long time I read a big fat book by a russian author. I do not remember the Authors name, or the name of the book. I was very young then, so could not do justice, as the book was thick and a little snow. The plot is about a group of people on some kind of expedition in the mountains in russia where they battle cold and bears, and lot of members die in the crossing. Very gripping. If anybody has read such a book, please let me know the name. I wish I could tell you more about the book.
	() Thanks

4th March 2013, 16:11	#730
Oxy BHPian Join Date: Sep 2011 Location: Bangalore Posts: 264 Thanked: 549 Times	re: The Book Thread (Fiction) Just finished Doctors by Erich Segal. A realistic account of the lives and struggles of doctors in the 1962 batch of Harvard Medical School, also portrays the lives of some key characters after they graduate and start practicing. The story revolves around two central characters: Barney Livingston and Laura Castellano, who are childhood neighbours/friends and end up in the same 1962 class of Harvard Medical School. They have their individual highs and lows, and several seperate love lives, but end up falling for each other in the end (which is predictable). Two more important characters are Bennett Landsmann and Seth Lazarus, both in the same 1962 batch. Bennett, the surgeon, being the only black in the entire batch, and a jew on top of it, has to endure some racial discrimination against him. An unfortunate event during practice forces him to take up forensics, hence he ends up in a law school as well. Seth plays a mercy killer. He puts an end to the lives of some patients who are hopelessly gone cases and killing them would mean helping them putting an end to their woes, rather than seeing them die an incredibly painful death. In the end he gets caught in one of such acts, and faces a trial where Bennett comes to his rescue as an attorney. A fairly interesting read, provided you are patient enough to stand 700 pages. The book could definitely have been much shorter. Segal at times tends to go on and on about some unnecessary characters. Overall, a fairly good book. Last edited by Oxy : 4th March 2013 at 16:24.
	() Thanks

4th March 2013, 17:48	#731
NMS BHPian Join Date: Jul 2012 Location: Pune Posts: 141 Thanked: 56 Times	re: The Book Thread (Fiction) Just Started Reading "The Oath of The Vayuputras" Just been through the first Chapter, somehow it is not invoking the kind of interest the first two did. Anyone else feeling the same?
	() Thanks

11th March 2013, 08:39	#733
Mudhalaipatti BHPian Join Date: Jan 2013 Location: Chennai Posts: 332 Thanked: 1,376 Times	re: The Book Thread (Fiction) Finished reading "The oath of the Vayuputras". While this last part pales in comparison to the first two masterpieces, I don't think anything better could have been done to the concluding part. It would be interesting to see if Amish gets to write or rewrite Mahabarath.
	() Thanks

11th March 2013, 12:02	#734
mobike008 Distinguished - BHPian Join Date: Sep 2006 Location: Seattle, WA Posts: 11,827 Thanked: 15,704 Times View My Garage	re: The Book Thread (Fiction) Started reading "The Hard Way" by Lee Child. In one hour, completed 75 pages. It kept me on my tenterhooks all the way. An amazing thriller starring the favorite character Jack Reacher. I can't wait to finish this book. A must read for thriller genre lovers !!!
	() Thanks

11th March 2013, 12:59	#735
Oxy BHPian Join Date: Sep 2011 Location: Bangalore Posts: 264 Thanked: 549 Times	re: The Book Thread (Fiction) Finished reading Miss Callaghan Comes to Grief by James Hadley Chase, the guy known for his extremely fast paced thrillers. This is the rarest of his works and you won't find it anywhere in the market. The reason being, the author and the publisher had to face a court case for releasing this book, because of its highly obscene contents. The plot revolves around sex slavery - girls being kidnapped or tricked and forced into prostitution. The central character Raven, who runs this brothel business, is portrayed to be utterly ruthless and cruel, who practically keeps getting away with anything you can possibly think of, until the end. Please keep this as far away from kids as possible. Some adults too will find it nauseating. There are descriptions of stripping, beating, torturing, raping and murdering of young women, along with some racist language. Read it only if you must or if you are a diehard Chase fan. Most people are likely to be left with a very unpleasant feeling after reading it.
	() Thanks