Book Review :: Ubik :: Philip K Dick

Ubik by Philip K. Dick
My rating: 2 of 5 stars

I'd not pick this book up for a re-read. It was okay if you like books that are confusing and without any negative character as such, where the villain is revealed in the last two chapters, and so is the McGuffin.

Not a fun book to read, but there were some redeeming points, the staircase scene was mindblowing. The Ubik introductions at beginning of every chapter were good fun to read. Other than that, skip it. I didn't enjoy reading this.

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Book Review :: The Devotion of Suspect X :: Keigo Higashino

The Devotion of Suspect X by Keigo Higashino
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

This one is going into awesome book shelf. Why? because I went into reading this book without any expectations. But the murder happens in the first two chapters! We know who the murderer is and the rest of novel is a tug of war between two brilliant minds, and the only difference between the two is that one of them is a stone cold motherfucker.

I, for one, did not the see the twist coming. It was brilliant, it was so out of the blue, it left me with my jaw on the floor. That motherfucker!

How good was this book? I read the ebook and ordered the paper version because the book blew my mind. So, yeah, those 5 stars are pretty well earned.

if murder mysteries are your game, give this one a read. You'll love it.

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Book Review :: The Bonehunters :: Steven Erikson

The Bonehunters by Steven Erikson
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

What a ride.

Wow.

I don't think anything I will ever read will come close to the magnificence and scope of Malazan books. These books not only tax your brain and your ability to understand, but also strain your brain when it comes to remembering all the plotlines that weave through the narrative like a complex web built by spiders that are high on fucked up drugs.

You can read one Malazan book every year and you won't need to read anything else. I am so happy after reading this book. The action sequences were way beyond anything I've read. The poetry of the words was exhilarating, the history of the Malazan world, the characters, the cities, the cultures, the friendships, the humor (oh the funny bits), the heartbreaks, the badassness of characters like Karsa fucking Orlong and Kamal Mekhar, it all creates such a heady mixture of literary accomplishment and storytelling excellence that nothing can come close.

George RR Martin, sit the fuck down and just give up. Your ASOIAF is nothing compared to even one book of Malazan.

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Book Review :: Choose Yourself by James Altucher

Choose Yourself: Be Happy, Make Millions, Live the Dream by James Altucher
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

James Altucher is a strange cookie. One part motivational guy, one part goofball, one part geek and one part something more sinister. That said, Choose Yourself is a decent read. I don't read too many non-fiction books, but Choose Yourself doesn't lag in any part.

And one can really benefit from re-reading this book to take in all the tips and ideas that he offers in the book. Sure, no book is a key to making millions or living your dream. (What if your dream is you standing naked in an exam hall?), you have to understand it in your own way.

I read this book quite some time back and I am writing a review now. I think I will read it again. Just because.

So, yes. The book makes you feel good, gives you some inspirational stories and points you in the direction that might take you towards your dreams. But it's you who has to do the walking.

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Book Review: Don't Look Back by Karin Fossum

Don't Look Back by Karin Fossum
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Murder mystery with a disturbing conclusion. The book goes along at its own pace without bothering to take the reader along, no rush. Just a calm walk. Nowhere in the book did I feel concerned for any of the characters. The intro chapters were good, but after the murder, it's all cool and calm and unbothered pace of finding the killer.

Needless to say, i am not that big a fan of murder mysteries, more like a fan of murder stories, where the murders keep happening. Give me any of that any day. April 28th and this is the first book I've finished this year!

Back to Malazan then!


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Book Review :: Half A War by Joe Abercrombie

Half a War by Joe Abercrombie
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

Slightly less entertaining than the second book in the series, half a world, which, I think, is the most entertaining book of the trilogy.

What I liked about this trilogy was that it looked into a new direction with YA fiction, and what I didn't like was that an author like Joe Abercrombie had to hold back his hand in terms of sex, violence, and general fuckery that is a part of his books. I guess the man needed a change of pace so that whatever is coming from him next is amped to 11.

All said and done, one of the tropes in this book was better done by mark lawrence in his broken empire trilogy. I mean, come the fuck on :D, you'll know it when you read it. Perhaps it has to do something with the fact that lawrence is more of a science guy in real life, so he is better able to describe those things.

I'd really like to see an author death match between joe's characters and some of lawrence's. Because Jorg is one evil motherfucker and only Glokta can reach that kind of evil fuckedupness from abercrombie's work. But this review isn't about Broken Empire, it's about Shattered Sea books.

Yeah, you can give these a shot if you're looking for filler reading material between something like, say, Malazan series. Cuz, fuck, damn, Malazan is a heavyweight, and that would be a sheer understatement.

I don't know what I want to read next. Suggestions welcome.


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Book Review :: Midnight Tides (Malazan #5)

Midnight Tides by Steven Erikson
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Oh god, i am still 5% to go in this book, but I'll read it when I pick up my tablet in next few hours.

Other than Tehol and Bugg, this book was a drag. But even through the drag, there were parts that were good, I liked the gold coin studded emperor and his visits to the crippled god's island. There was no Karsa in this, that made me sad. I have a legit hard-on for Karsa's antics. Guy is my spirit animal.

Also, I liked Iron Bars, the guy is a badass in his own way. There was some mention of the Crimson Guard in Gardens of the Moon, I think. One of these guys saved the thief from getting killed by a tiste andii. God, that was so long ago. I am half forgetting what happened in that book. This book was a ride in a way, even though it had slow parts. I fucking hated Udinaas. What the fuck is up with that guy? I have no idea. I couldn't give two shits about the feather witch or any of the secondary Edur characters. Fillers, all of them.

I could not make myself care about the other storylines, but the banter between T & B was amazing. That made the book worth reading for me. The jokes were funny, I can't remember how to write most of the names and right now I am too lazy to look em up. But yeah, it's an important book in the series.

Right now, I am just left with a sense of unease after reading this, but maybe that has to do with something else, something personal. But fuck that. I am not sure if I want to dive into the next book right after this one. Maybe I'll read something else to lighten the mood. This was almost 950 pages. More like 2-3 books. Phew. The new jack reacher book was out some time back, I got that, maybe I'll dig into that.

Bottom line, read this for Tehol and Bugg.


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