Review: The Sadhu: The Birth of the Warrior

The Sadhu: The Birth of the Warrior by Graphic India
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

Wow colour me impressed, I didn't have much expectations from this reboot having just finished the second part of the original series but boy was I wrong? Chuck Dixon is a master story teller and I salute thee.

Okay while the major story remains the same but that's the only part that remains same except for that almost everything about the original book has been changed and all the boring parts from the original two books has been chucked away to keep all the fast paced action and wonderful story beats which beat from one page to another even in the different issues they pick up from the last scene and the story just flows through and I just kept on reading through even though I should have been asleep by now but no that damn wonderful book had to keep me awake and I just couldn't sleep before finishing that.

That's one way to reboot a story and all the good for it, now where's my next amazing adventure in this reboot. That would be totally out of it as it would have to be a new story, Graphic India work on it and keep it as tight and wonderful as this one.

So yeah no matter if you have read the original two books or not this one is must own graphic novel and with it's fast paced action and awesome art it would keep you staring at it for a long time. So pick it and then just Keep on Reading .

View all my reviews

Review: The Sadhu Volume 2: The Silent Ones

The Sadhu Volume 2: The Silent Ones by Saurav Mohapatra
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I am very confused about it because the graphics were good but the story was jumble of ideas. At least they are trying something new but the more the thing change the more they stay same. In the end let's go with easy way out 3.5 stars.

This is the sequel to the original Sadhu, i say original because after this book they rebooted the series which I would be reading soon. The story picks up after some time where the last book ended and opens in the sea of humanity that is Kumbh Mela. James "The Sadhu" finds and fights some mysterious silent tattooed freaks, who speak telepathically and after that he learns that his son Jack is alive and thus begins his quest to find and save his son.

The graphics were world class but the story was just so so, originally it was published in individual issues so the story takes a detour in some strange place every few pages. But I would still applaud the team for trying something new and at the same time I would you to read it yourself and form your own ideas about how you like it. So without further adieu go ahead and pick this graphic novel but before that the first one and then just Keep on Reading .

View all my reviews

Review: Proven Guilty

Proven Guilty by Jim Butcher
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Poor little giant Harry just can't catch a break, what with Wardens of White Court of Wizard order to Faeries of winter and summer courts.

This book starts with a trial and execution where in a 16 year old warlock is beheaded and leaves Harry disgusted and then he gets a missive to look for dark magic in Chicago and it gets tricky and slow here as Harry tries to learn how come Movie Horror icons are coming to life and attacking people in a Horror movie convention. Harry also finds himself in some plan hatched by Tattooed and Pierced Molly daughter of Michael and Charity Carpenter.

Things get hairy when a spell to send the monsters behind the dark wizard who cast the original spell finds the monsters at Carpenters house now Harry has to deal with the fact that Molly has been abducted by them and so a rescue team is created which involves Harry, Murphy, Thomas and Charity along with help from some other quarters.

This was another nice addition to the Dresden files and I thoroughly enjoyed it. And if you left the series in the middle or haven't started it, now's the time to pick the series and to keep on with it. Pick the first book if you have yet to start or just start and then Keep on Reading .

View all my reviews

Review: White Night

White Night by Jim Butcher
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I am very happy to know that even in the 9th book in the series the things are still awesome, Great job Mr. Butcher. Bravo, All the best for your future ventures,

So let's come back to the book, the story this time is someone is killing off women who practices magic and although all the deaths appear as suicides Harry doesn't think so nor does Murphy. After some initial tests it looks like that Dresden's half brother the Vampire Thomas is the killer and this is something Harry can't handle and works to find the truth of it all.

The book is full of action and now that Harry has a apprentice in Molly he has to devote time there as well. In the usual Dresden Files manner nothing is easy as Harry has to deal with danger from every corner while still trying to stay alive and keep the people he care about alive. Mystery in Harry's life just gets twisted and twisted as evident by the threat in the book 10 which I am reading now.

So yes this is still as good, in fact this series is getting better as it's progressing which is more the reason to pick this series if you are still unsure about it. Once you do that remember to just Keep on Reading .

View all my reviews

Review: Fahrenheit 451

Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

This Sci-Fi/Dystopian book imagines a world which is very terrifying because it's very probable one. But people like me and countless others are trying to not bring this version of future true. The future where people are lost in visual media converting entire walls to the TV covering the entire wall (reminds me of Barney's TV from HIMYM - Maybe show got the idea from this book). The most horrible thing is that the houses are fireproof so there are no fires so firemen are tasked with a new task to burn things specifically books.

Man I would be first of the people to burn with my books if something like this happened but maybe I would be like a professor or writer quietly waiting to bring the books back to the world. The most wonderful thing about the book is that despite starting at a low point and travelling towards even a bleaker point it ends with a message of positivity and hope. I loved the book and hated the version of future hated the people to turned their backs on the books and lost themselves in the giant size TV screens and the non-stop videos. Youtube on steroids anyone :P.

So yeah this was one classic which I wanted to read for longest of times and had even read the graphic novel adaptation of it but reading the original work is something else. So now after finding myself on a journey of classics and Goodreads top 100 books I am going back to Dresden Files Book 8 here I come.

So yeah it's a no-brainer pick this up if you haven't read it yet. If you have read it, read it again. and then Keep on Reading.

View all my reviews

Review: Fahrenheit 451

Fahrenheit 451 by Ray Bradbury
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

This Sci-Fi/Dystopian book imagines a world which is very terrifying because it's very probable one. But people like me and countless others are trying to not bring this version of future true. The future where people are lost in visual media converting entire walls to the TV covering the entire wall (reminds me of Barney's TV from HIMYM - Maybe show got the idea from this book). The most horrible thing is that the houses are fireproof so there are no fires so firemen are tasked with a new task to burn things specifically books.

Man I would be first of the people to burn with my books if something like this happened but maybe I would be like a professor or writer quietly waiting to bring the books back to the world. The most wonderful thing about the book is that despite starting at a low point and travelling towards even a bleaker point it ends with a message of positivity and hope. I loved the book and hated the version of future hated the people to turned their backs on the books and lost themselves in the giant size TV screens and the non-stop videos. Youtube on steroids anyone :P.

So yeah this was one classic which I wanted to read for longest of times and had even read the graphic novel adaptation of it but reading the original work is something else. So yeah it's a no-brainer pick this up if you haven't read it yet. If you have read it, read it again. and then Keep on Reading.

View all my reviews

Review: Of Mice and Men

Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Wow such a short but impactful book/novella/short story, my journey so far through the classics and Goodreads Top 100 books has been blesses to say the least almost all the books I have loved and despite series which I left in the middle the urge to read one more book from the list wins. This time the next book I picked is the one which I wanted to read for a long time 'Fahrenheit 451' by Ray Bradbury. But will talk about that book in that book's review. We are talking about another classic which is not a fantasy, dystopian or some other genre but it's a simple tale of two friends who go from farm to farm finding work and how people are just so so mean.

This is story of George and Lennie, George the caretaker, Lennie the simple giant. They have a dream and they just want to work toward that dream but reality interrupts them always. And the shortness of this book also works in establishing the quick events and how quickly can things go bad.

Loved it and can't recommend it enough, do read it it's not a huge ask for your time which would be enriched due to this, so then pick it up and then just Keep on Reading .

View all my reviews

Review: The Color Purple

The Color Purple by Alice Walker
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

My continued run through the classics and Goodreads Top 100 books, finds me on another Pulitzer prize winner and a classic one. This time it's a story of a tortured little black woman called Celie who faces nothing but hardships and disappointments all the way. This is the story of how she finds the happiness through all the troubles. How despite all the odds she finds love and confidence and success. This is a life story of her and most of it is told through letters written between Celie and her sister Nettie who has to run away from the house at a young age due to the toxic man around her.

Ah well it's a statement of Feminism and a powerful one at that. This book very truthfully and beautifully showcases the USA of 1930s and beyond. The one person who can be credited in bringing about the most change in our heroine would be Shug Avery the singer the enigma who comes and live in her home and they fall in love. Shug is the one who motivates Celie and guides her to be her own woman who can do what she wants to do.

The book tells the story of Celie since she is 14 years old to when she becomes older with Grey hair. Another good read thanks Goodreads. So yeah do pick this book and then Just Keep on Reading.

View all my reviews

Review: The Night Circus

The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

"The Circus arrives without any warning." "Circus will open at night till dawn." This book is magic, full of magic, and magic my only issues was frequent time jump and all the different characters so much so that some times I wasn't able to follow the characters but still I loved it and would look to read it again some day in future. This read was done with a borrowed book which is a rarity for me for I already own too many books but still not enough :P I know you would know the feeling.

Well coming back to the book, it's a story of a unique and mysterious circus which appears in the city without any fanfare and advance notice and disappears as quickly. Like my first line says it opens at night and closes at dawn. It's the story of Celia and Marco who are pitted against each other since they were kids and now they have to continue the game even when they don't want to. enough of the story :P let's talk about the book again.

Again, this book is full of magic and which is just is there's no explanation for it as it doesn't need any explanation. You just feel that this world is full of magic and we just follow the circus and it's members and performers through time jump after time jump and there just magic all around. I loved it and hopefully you would also love it or fall in love with the book or the night circus itself. I love when the books are self contained and not part of the trilogies or series of more books. Don't get me wrong I also love the books which goes on for 3, 4, 5 or 7 books but not all the stories are meant to go on for multiple books. This is it like it, love it, hate it. Night Circus is here and it will be gone without any information :).

If you like romance, mystery, magic, fun do give this one a read maybe you will find magic too in the pages on this book and then maybe you would just Keep on Reading .

View all my reviews

Review: A Clockwork Orange

A Clockwork Orange by Anthony Burgess
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Another day, another book which is part of Goodreads 100 books to read list and another book which made an iconic movie possible, I haven't watched the movie somehow so far and would be able to watch it now having read this book. This is a dystopian novel set in terrifying version of England where violence rules and young guys go around hitting and robbing people for fun and enjoyment. So as it's ought to do, combination of stupid hijinks and some betrayal sees our narrator in jail with a long punishment to endure.

Alex comes to know about a revolutionary technique which might allow him an early release from jail, this is a technique which claims to cure violent tendencies in the criminals to ensure that rather than costing the country by staying in jail they can go out and be regular lawful citizens. But this treatment affects Alex that he can't see any violent act now. And now he is a non-violent person in a violent world. What would happen now.

If you watched the movie or heard about the book, you might have heard about all the slang words used here and that made difficult to follow the book in the beginning but by the mid way through most of the slangs were understandable. This is wonderful book which asks some important questions and demands answers.

Do pick this book if you haven't read it and then just Keep on Reading .

View all my reviews

Review: Siddhartha

Siddhartha by Hermann Hesse
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

This was beautiful little classic book which might have been a poem in German but in translation it became a story and a simple but effective story. The story is about a young brahmin called Siddhartha and his journey towards his salvation as dissatisfied with the current knowledge he tries to find more and unable to find what he is looking for he moves ahead and tries his luck and moves through life experiences.

This translation was easy to follow and the introduction had already explained few minor points already so it was a doozy to go through this smallish book. I am happy to be able to experience this story. This is the story of a common man whose thirst and desire for knowledge takes him through so many different experiences. My only issues were with the fact that like all classics it sometimes gets a little slower even in the small size, but it's another book which people should read once and it was perfectly part of Goodread's 100 top books.

So yeah if you are going through classics or just want to get to read a good book pick this and hopefully you would be happier for it too after that just Keep on Reading .

View all my reviews

Review: The Last Star

The Last Star by Rick Yancey
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

So yeah let's tackle the rating first it will be high 3.5 :)

And coming to the third and final book in the 5th wave trilogy, I wouldn't discuss the story details as you know spoilers spoilers. Going ahead Earth is still what it was after the alien invasion and our main characters race against the clock to try to save the earth from the final step in the invasion which might destroy all humans from the earth but before that can happen we have a ragtag group of kids trying to stop them. After All most of the adults are already dead.

This one moved a lot among the available viewpoints and some surprising secrets are revealed and the end is appropriate and kinda realistic. I enjoyed it but could only read it in patches. So now that another trilogy is in the bag let's move onto some more Non-Fiction, Gandhi anyone? from ultra violence to the man who was all for nonviolence.

Yeah do pick this after all you need to finish the trilogy and once you do that just Keep on Reading .

View all my reviews

Review: The Sadhu

The Sadhu by Gotham Chopra
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

Another day and another graphic novel down, I do love comics and really applaud Graphic India team to try to work on different story lines and ideas. But I guess it's about time that you stopped collaborating with Deepak Chopra. The Art work is wonderful but the spiritual mumbo-jumbo is here and there. Story is fragmented, with abrupt end like others said and more coming in next paragraph.

Once again it's a story with a White Hero, Another story where a White Man saves the day. The storyline could have been much better but alas! what's the point in crying over spilled milk. This looks like that it wasn't a single book but a volume of individual issues which most of comic publishers do and it suffers from the same issue where the next issue may not continue the story or the flow might be totally different. I have read the graphic novels which tell a single story even from the house of Graphic India and those efforts were better, still I am happy and only troubling fact is that this was released way back in 2014 with few sequels later which I would be reading next but what new content are they working on in 2019? I think I have bought all their work well most of it for sure but are they still releasing new stuff?

Well I for one surely wish that they are still active and that they keep on pushing themselves to work on new and innovative storylines which are just not another rehash of same storylines from our past or from outside India :) I liked and loved the work done by GI team but more needs to be done to ensure that we have more and varied stories to tell all the readers.

I have always loved comics, and I hope that I will always love them. Even though I grew up reading local Indian comics like Raj Comics or Diamond Comics or even Manoj Comics now's the time to catch up on the international and classic comics and Graphic novels. I am on my quest to read as many comics I can. So you also give a chance to comics and Graphic Novels and always remember to just Keep on Reading .

View all my reviews

Review: A Hero Of Our Time

A Hero Of Our Time by Mikhail Lermontov
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

I had always thought that my first russian read would be something by Tolstoy, Dostoyevsky, or Chekhov, but as things are ought to do I instead got to read this book which was written in 1840 and is supposed to be the first major Russian novel which actually influenced Tolstoy, Dostoyevsky, or Chekhov, so all's fine, Thanks @Vishnu bro for providing me a Gutenberg ebook for this book.

Coming to the book it's not a single story but 5 short stories on a single individual twenty-five-year-old Pechorin. Two are narrated and others are in his own voice. The stories are written as if they are diary entries and reading this just after Wuthering Heights it might have been Heathcliff as well if only he was as handsome as our hero. Who wants nothing from the world and the World keeps throwing itself on his feet.

The story is based in the mountains of Caucasus and there is detailed description of geography and the this was very interesting to know about the history limited as it might be. This again seems to be an innovative work which talked about an anti-hero at the time when the societal norms would have been way different. I liked it and happy that I got to read this one through my run of Classic reads which I find myself on.

Yes, do read it, it's a short read and hopefully you would like it too, till then just Keep on Reading.

View all my reviews