Bankerupt by Ravi Subramanian (Book Review-Perfect Page-turner)!!!

       

  If ever I will remember the day 30th October, 2013, I would say that it has been a complete day for me. Because generally what happens is- I spend all my day only in reading a novel if its 320 pages+ because I feel that I am wasting time if I am doing some other chores. But today, I did all my routine yet completed this book which is of 320 pages. The book is so interesting that even when I read it for only 5-6 hours, I managed to complete it because I was reading as speedily as possible because of the book being a perfect page-turner. It's none other than the latest book of Mr. Ravi Subramanian- "Bankerupt" which released a month ago on 20th September, 2013. The book's tagline screams three topics "Desire. Greed. Murder". And I am happy that unlike Chetan Bhagat's Revolution 2020 where all the three subjects that has been mentioned on the cover page is been left incomplete, this novel of Mr. Subramanian takes these topics seriously in his story and gives a finishing end to all of them. Well, I would also like to bring into notice of all that the author has moved from Rupa publications to the India's biggest, Penguin with this book. 

About the Book:-

 A university is an institution for higher education and research. It can also be a place where academic brilliance leads to overinflated egos, bitter politics and finally, murder. Cirisha Narayanan, a professor at MIT Boston, who has risen meteorically, stumbles upon a cryptic message. Aditya Raisinghania, her banker husband, sets up a highly innovative financial hoax. Her profiteering father harvests Australia's largest bird, the emu in India. The US elections are on and the debate on gun control has reached a fever pitch. Set in Mumbai, Coimbatore and Boston, Ravi Subramanian creates an impeccably researched world where everyone has a motive to kill. Nothing is as it seems in this cunningly vicious thriller where the plot turns on a dime.

About the Author:-

Ravi Subramanian an alumnus of IIM Bangalore, has spent two decades working his way up the ladder of power in the amazingly exciting and adrenaline-pumping world of global banks in India. It is but natural that his stories are set against the backdrop of the financial services industry. He lives in Mumbai with his wife Dharini and daughter Anusha. In 2008, he won the Golden Quill Readers Choice award for his debut novel, If God was a Banker. 

         

 Coming to the author, I would like to tell that I have only read his second last release before this i.e. Bankster. It was of 364 pages and I loved that tale too. It had many characters while this book manages to treat character better than Bankster. Even though few characters keep on coming unexpectedly in between but still you manage to remember who they were as the plot isn't much confusing. But the narration and writing style of the author is something that makes it easy for us to read the book in one go even when its quite long. The kind of name the author has, he can use difficult words from his great vocabulary and show how excellent he is in the language but still he keeps his language easy-going which makes it possible to keep us interested in it. For the whole period of time, I wanted the book to finish and the moment it finished, I wanted to read from the author on the same story itself. Haha!

           While reading the book, at many places I wanted the video of the story to be with me so that I can fast-forward the CD and see what's going to happen after 5 minutes from the scene because I lost my patience at many places to know as to what exactly happened after this particular incident. :-) There are many scenarios which can give you goosebumps, heart-attack, panic-attack and I don't know what-what. This has been my first such experience where I found a book so interesting even when its written on an off-topic. Amazing! The great thing about the book is that even after the death of many characters one after another, story still keeps them alive and it seems as if they are not dead in the book still as they play the equivalent part in the story. As the whole story is written in chain with all the chapters connected to the previous ones, I can't share my favorite parts as it might act as spoilers. But I must say that a movie can't handle the kind of long and perfect story this is, a series like "24" should be made on this book and it should continue for a quarter of year. Wow! 

             You can not believe while reading that how a parallel scam of Aditya gets into the way of his wife who is into a different country all together. The Dharawi of Mumbai is connected to the Boston which is connected to gun laws which is again associated with Coimbatore. I was like "How can Mr. Ravi Subramanian create such a plot and that too in such a short period of time while other authors take 2-3 years to come up with something like this!" The research work of the author is completely visible and also his knowledge in miscellaneous fields is evidently pellucid. The certain investigation that keeps on taking place and the kind of facts that keeps on coming out thrills out almost every astonishment you have in you as a reader. The very first WOW moment for me in the book was when Cirisha sees the tag of Snuggles in Dharawi. And since then, the book has over-served me. :-) If someone from Wall Street Journal can call him "The John Grisham of banking", I, as a small portal can undoubtedly call Mr. Ravi Subramanian, "The Abbas-Mustan of Banking Thrillers". Please don't miss it if you have been excited for reading books that keeps on giving you surprises on every alternate page. :-) Looking forward to reading all the previous works of The Ravi Subramanian because missing them is as foolish as choosing Pizza over Chchole-batoore. :-)

 Thanks.

 ABHILASH RUHELA - VEERU!!!