A-Z Book List: Q for Question

If I had started this series almost 3 months ago, I wouldn’t have found a book that I had read which starts with the letter Q. I might have ended up listing a book which I wanted to read as Linda once suggested when I started this series. But recently I read this mystery series in which the second book’s title started with the letter Q. So I got a save. How many other books do you know that starts with the letter Q? Goodreads lists only 102 books according to this list. Mostly starting with the word Question or Queen which are the most common ones used.

Name: A Question of Inheritance by Elizabeth Edmondson

Genre: Mystery, Thriller, Historical Mystery, Fiction, Suspense

Thanks to the Amazon Kindle Unlimited trial period to which I was subscribed at that time (and then later went ahead with my subscription paying 9.99$ per month) I got introduced to this series called A Very English Mystery and enjoyed both the books that is available in Kindle Unlimited. It is a historical mystery with a slight hint of romance. It is not a fast-paced story, flows at a medium speed, but never boring, at least to me 🙂 The male protagonist, Hugo, is slightly disabled (for now) and reminds me of Cormoran Strike (the Robert Galbraith’s series) and uses his sharp senses and with a huge help from the female protagonist, Freya solves the murders that happen in that small town. In this second book, the Selchester Castle (where Hugo, Freya, Hugo’s sister are staying for now) has got a new Earl, that too from America (the first book deals with the death of the Earl of the castle). But when he lands, people start to drop dead. And the very quiet town gets into a frenzy all again. I gave it 4 stars in Goodreads because I loved both the books in this series and will be eagerly waiting for the nex tone.

PS: Check out the rest of the A-Z Book list here

A-Z Book List: M for Memoirs

Not many books are successful as a movie. It is not very easy to convert a book into a movie in the first place. Books can be anywhere between 10 pages to 800 pages (a rough estimate that is) but a movie cannot be more than the max of 3 hours (if by then it doesn’t put you to sleep that is) Adapting a novel and delivering it with a good screenplay is always a challenge. That is why we have so many movies which failed to impress us visually even when their book counterparts were very successful. But, like everything else, we have exceptions to these too. And this book falls on that list.

Name: Memoirs of a Geisha by Arthur Golden

Genre: Fiction, Romance, Historical Fiction, Historical Romance

Honestly, I had a tough time to choose from my selection of books for M. I could have chosen Mahabharata by C. Rajagopalachari (which is an abridged version of the epic tale) or Malgudi Days by R.K. Narayanan or The Mirror, by our very own Navigator (a fellow blogger) I am listing these here so that you might have a chance to check these out too 🙂 And I have done a set of posts on ‘The Mirror’ already which also included an interview with the author himself 😉

Coming back the book of the day, Memoirs of a Geisha. I gave this book 4 stars in Goodreads. It is very poetic in nature. That is how I felt about it when I read it. Can you bring a certain grace and calm and elegance to characters with your words? It is not that easy. But this book does that. The pain, the suffering, the love, the yearning, the hate, the disappointment – we feel all that the Geisha feels. We are taken into a whole new different world in a different era and go through a whole life. A very well written book. The movie also was equally amazing. Mesmerizing performances by everyone involved. Very well adapted movie. One other book that comes to my mind where I was equally enamored with both the book and the movie was ‘Gone with the Wind’.

PS: Check out the rest of the A-Z Book list here

 

A-Z Book List: E for Emma

I am a huge Jane Austen Fan. I think it is a given for any romance book fan. Pride and Prejudice is one of my very favorites. I have a huge book which consists of all of Jane Austen’s novels and it is the size of a pillow. No one is able to hold the book and read it without getting carpal tunnel. I wasn’t clearly thinking straight when I ordered that book  🙂

Coming back to the book of the list.

Name: Emma by Jane Austen

Genre: Romance, Classics, Historical Fiction

As much as I was awed by Elizabeth Bennett, I really wanted to strangle Emma from time to time. For her overbearing attitude and spoilt ways. I am a very emotional reader, so no wonder I got so pissed off her that I ended up giving 2 stars in Goodreads for this book 😀 It is a good book. The author wanted to show us what such a girl can do to her own life and that the lives of others around her. And she does come to her senses but still. I also have watched the BBC series for all the Jane Austen’s novel adaptations. They are really very well done and I enjoyed them as much as I did the books. One of those rare times when the book and the TV series gives you equal pleasure. The actress in that brings out the Emma of the book so well.

PS: Check out the rest of the A-Z Book list here

A Very English Mystery Series

I did mention that I subscribed for the Kindle Unlimited for a 30 day trial, sometime earlier. Out of the books I have read, found a good series worth mentioning. There are two books to this series published so far and both are available on Kindle Unlimited. Now, they have made sure that I will be following this one and buy the next books for sure (just like the Coromoran Strike Series or GoT etc) The series name is A Very English Mystery , written by Elizabeth Edmondson and the books are

a) A Man of Some Repute

b) A Question of Inheritance

They aren’t your fast paced thriller, but they have a very nice pace to it. I liked it and would definitely follow this series for sure. If you are looking for some relaxed and yet mysterious books to read over the New Years, go for this one. They belong to Historical – British Detective genres, if you are particular about it. I rated them 4/5 in Amazon and Goodreads.

Portable Magic – Introduction to the World of Fiction

Reading for fun or story books were never part of our growing up agenda. It was a luxury we couldn’t afford and we had our hands full with the books that we need to study for our classes. The education here is at times too taxing. When I completed my under graduation, before joining my post graduation there was enough time to spend. That is when I took to reading. I joined the local library and started getting books. But even before I did that I first took upon my mom’s advice to start on a historical fiction. My mom has a very huge collection of books (Tamil) of all genres. She used to collect the stories that come’s weekly in the magazines and bind them to make a book out of it. She used to say that she will use them when she is old and when she wanted to relax and enjoy her sort of retired time reading them. She is 62 ,yes, she is old, but she is yet to relax and have time of her own. She is more busy with her grand children. The book she suggested was Ponniyin Selvan ( பொன்னியின் செல்வன் ). She said that this is a book that I have to read no matter what, at least once in my life time and that she has read it innumerable times. This is one series that gets reprinted almost every 5 years owing to the popularity and she reads it every single time. I wondered what the big deal about it was. It was an historical fiction where you have Kings and Queens and all that stuff. So I picked up the first bound volume.

In Harry Potter, there is a thing called PortKey, that helps you transport to a specific location. This book did it for me. Instantly I was transported to the age of Chola Dynasty, which was very vast and spreading. Since this novel uses existing historical figures and existing places which I have seen a little, it was very easy to relate. But still very magical. I was instantly and for ever hooked. I used to have this book in my hand all the time not wasting a single waking moment. My mom later regretted suggesting this book to me 🙂 She would call me for some house hold work and there I would be, huddled near the bed with the book, lost to the world, travelling among the horsemen and playing in the pool with those princess and their friends, biting my nails on the sudden turn of events, seething with rage on the treason and sighing myself on all those non-cheesy romantic moments. Life was never the same after that. It had action, adventure, romance, love, espionage, treason – every single thing that a human encounters and spread across 5 volumes and not to mention some strong characters (yes, Kundhavai  is from this book and she plays a very important role in the whole story) Ponniyin Selvan means ‘The son of Ponni’ and the river Cauvery was called Ponni at that time. The title suggests that it is about the then Prince Raja Raja Chola (a real King of Chola Dynasty).  It spans across two generations. I am not going to go into the novel, that is not the intention of this post anyway. I don’t remember how long it took me to complete all the 5 volumes. But I decided then and there that I will own this book no matter what. When I started earning, I did buy this book (but lost the first part somewhere during the troubled times). During my stint in the working women’s hostel, I have read it so many times again. Once in an hostel, seeing the way I was buried in this book, my room mates, Telugu was the mother tongue of one and even though Tamil was the mother tongue of the other she was brought up in Dubai so she can speak but not read or write Tamil, asked me to relate the story to them as and when I read it. It was no simple feat. 5 volumes and so many complicated characters, situations. But I took it upon myself to enlighten them with this beautiful world. When they left the hostel, they gave me a good bye card with a special thanks for involving them in that story and making them a part of it, something they said they will never forget.

That was my first dip into the world of fiction and books. And soon after that I started taking up small books from the library for the benefit of my mother too so that we both can exchange and read them (we were allowed 3 books for a fortnight). That world got lost when I joined my post graduation and studies, projects, and job interviews became more important. But never did I believe that the break was temporary and that I will be introduced to a whole lot more later.