Friday, August 22, 2014

Book Review 2014 #16 : Private India by Ashwin Sanghi and James Patterson

Title: Private India

Author: Ashwin Sanghi and James Patterson

About the story: When Santosh Wagh isn't struggling out of a bottle of whisky he's head of Private India, the Mumbai branch of the world's finest PI agency.

In a city of over thirteen million he has his work cut out at the best of times. But now someone is killing women - seemingly unconnected women murdered in a chilling ritual, with strange objects placed carefully at their death scenes. Trying to come to terms with his painful past and his entrenched guilt, Santosh races against time to discover the true identity of the yellow-garrote killer before the body count rises and more innocent women are murdered in cold-blood.

As Santosh and his team delve deep into the investigation, an even greater danger faces Private India - a danger that could threaten the lives of thousands of innocent Mumbai citizens.

Private India along with Jack Morgan can only hope dearly that their efforts to arrest the killer and save the Maximum City, Mumbai, are successful.

Review: I have read only “The Krishna Key” by Ashwin Sanghi but I have read and re-read many of James Patterson books in the Alex Cross series. And I love his style of writing; the way he builds up the suspense and the detailing that goes into each of his characters. I was excited to get my hands over this book because I wanted to know how the amalgamation of the two sharpest minds in the crime/suspense genre would turn out. And the book does not disappoint!

As I kept turning the pages of the book through the wee hours of the night, I could see glimpses of Patterson style of narration- the short chapters, the investigator psychoanalyzing the mind of the killer, the dragon-slayer (I always pictured Alex Cross as the dragon-slayer but I guess Santhosh Wagh is the new Indian equivalent) trying to find a balance between his personal life and his hectic career that is almost an obsession.

And of course there is the archetypal Ashwin Sanghi mythological twist to the story as well, that makes the book more intriguing.

What works for the book is the fast-paced and action packed plot that makes you want to turn the pages of the book quickly so as to reach the end and find out the identity of the killer. I also liked how the authors made the needle of suspicion swing in the way of different characters making the guessing game even more gripping.

What I did not like though is that there are too many elements in the sub-plot which sometimes feels quite odd as it keeps cropping up at irregular intervals. The Indian Mujahedeen and the mafia-don angle did seem a little far-fetched.

The book does a good job of seamlessly incorporating Mumbai’s throbbing hubs as part of the plot. Private India is definitely going to rock the bestseller’s list for some time in Indian markets. And it’s absolutely worth reading.

Rating: 4/5

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3 comments:

  1. The book was definitely gripping and fast paced. Liked the mystery too.

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  2. I've applied for review of this book at IndiBlogger, and waiting for the delivery :). Will follow-up with my review :-). Great review!

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  3. I have just bought the book. Hope to read it soon :)

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