Book Review : The Pillars of the Earth by Ken Follet

The Pillars of the Earth is Ken Follet's bestselling novel published in 1989 and  the prequel to 2007's World without End; it was also adapted for TV as a miniseries.

Summary:
        Set in a fictional town Kingsbridge,England of medieval times during the Anarchy ; from the year 1123 - 1174,with the building of a cathedral by an ambitious Master Builder, Tom, serving as what I call a foundation theme, The Pillars of the Earth explores the development of medieval  masonry and architecture, the civil
war, intrigue - filled secular/religious disputes and shifting political
loyalties and their conspiracies of that time.

Xpressview:
     
        Ken Follet picks from almost every genre of fiction and whips it all together comfortably in this historical masterpiece.  A book that just pulls you  along gently while transporting you back in time to an era that you never imagined will have much to interest your generation, The Pillars of the Earth is a must read for every fiction lover(xcept if u re into sci-fi or other fantasy stuff). I found out that a forthcoming game based on the novel has been set for 2016.

Rating:
           4.5 stars out of five. A superb read.

Book Review : Cold Vengeance by Preston & Child

Summary:
After the death of his wife,Helen; FBI Agent Alloysius Pendergast vows to catch her killers. In the process, he gets a shocking revelation from one of her supposed murderers: Helen is alive and may have staged her death.How and Why? Pendergast vows to find out.....

XpressView:
    My first impression of this book was...well,....Hot, but then  it ended up not so hot. Why?  Well, I felt it had a much to do with the fact that Cold Veangeance is a second part in a trilogy involving Mr and Mrs Pendergast; (Fever Dream and Two Graves being the first and last respectively ).
     The first and second chapter held my attention but after a few more i got bored, (the protagonist seemed not to be needed, not until chapter 26 did  he become prominent). Its ending was less dramatic too.
   I  think a Good book should be able to stand out on it's own regardless of it being part of a trilogy or whatever,to me Cold Veangeance didn't do that.

Rating :
   Two out of five. Not an impressive read.

Book Review : The Fault In Our Stars by John Greene

First let me start by saying that this book has been made into a movie that got released this year. So I decided to read before watching; Having finished reading, here are my thoughts. SUMMARY: Seventeen-yr-old thyroid cancer patient Hazel Grace meets osteosarcoma (a sort of bone cancer) survivor (he had one of his legs amputated to keep the cancer from spreading) Augustus Waters at a cancer support group meeting,the two teens knock it off quickly,become fast friends and seem to be in love with each other. Amidst health challenges (Hazel suffers a crisis when her lungs accumulates fluid and she is sent to ICU,Augustus learns his cancer has spread and might be bedridden ), the two teens fly to Amsterdam on Gus wish to meet Hazel's favorite author Peter Van Houten to get a climax to his only novel. Despite the meeting turning out to be a disappointment to them,they make the most fun out if it and return home; Augustus' situation gets worse; eventually he dies, leaving Hazel without a true friend "The only person I really wanted to talk to about Augustus Waters' death was Augustus Waters." Hazel struggles to find comfort. REVIEW: With an out-of-the-norm storyline,humor-filled teen romanctic plot,a sad character end and big hype to follow (I actually got to read this novel upon a friend's recommendation;she said it actually made her cry),I expected "a roller coaster ride that only goes up"(Augustus' words) with me gushing out tears (makes me think of V.C.Andrews 'Flowers in the Attic') at the end, but I never got that feeling. For one,the characters seemed unbelievable to me,the humor seemed overdone (couldn't picture a dude whose pasttimes are sodomy and Angeldust and forever sticking an unlit cigarette in his mouth as funny) and a baffling ending that ironically leaves me wanting to know how Hazel felt on finding Augustus letters just as she desired to know to the real ending to the novel she was reading. For those who want a quick,funny read to pass time I'll recommend this; otherwise I won't. From WordXpress we give this book two out of five stars.

Book Review: Double Cross by James Patterson

Double Cross is the thirteenth book in the Alex Cross series featuring Detective Alex Cross by James Patterson. It was released on November 13, 2007.

Summary
Alex Cross rejoins the Washington DC police force in pursuit of a serial killer who wants to be a mega-celebrity. Alex Cross has a new girlfriend, Brianna Stone, who is also a detective in the police force. Each murder becomes increasingly complex and expands the audience to the murders. The killers ‘modus operandi’ is that he adores an audience to his murders. Throughout the story the murderer is referred to as DCAK, short for “The Washington DC Audience Killer”. Meanwhile FBI agent turned serial killer Kyle Craig,plans his escape from prison for revenge against Cross.




Review
I’d say James really killed it this time, I just have one word for this, “UNPUTDOWNABLE”. From the beginning to the end James gives you the most thrilling and suspenseful ride into novelworld. I read "CROSS" earlier on before reading this; and I must confess this was double the thrill than it. Really got me hooked on this one. To all the JP’s fans who'd want to go on a "thriller-coaster-ride", I'll recommend this.I cant wait to get hold of "CROSS COUNTRY".

The Last Juror is a 2004 legal thriller novel by John Grisham, first published by DoubleDay on Febuary 3, 2004.

The story is set in the fictional town of Clanton, Mississippi from1970 to 1979. Clanton is also the venue for John Grisham's first novel A Time To Kill which was published in 1988. Some of the characters appear in both novels with the same occupation and characteristics,such as Lucien Wilbanks and Harry Rex Vonner.

Summary

In 1970,Shortly after the first person narrator, a 23-year-old college drop-out by the name of Willie Traynor, comes to Clanton, Mississippi and decides to buy the local newspaper, The Ford County Times paper spontaneously for fifty-thousand dollars, through money from his wealthy grandmother, a member of the notorious and scandalous Padgitt family brutally rapes and kills a young widow named Rhoda Kassellaw. The murderer, Danny Padgitt, is tried in front of a jury and i found guilty. Prior to being sentenced, Danny threatens to kill each of the jury members, should they convict him. Although they do find him guilty, the jury cannot decide whether to send him to life in prison or to Death Row , so Danny is sentenced to life in prison at the Mississippi State Penitentiary.

After only nine years in prison, Danny Padgitt is paroled and returns to Clanton. Immediately, members of the jury who had voted against his conviction to Death Row begin to die one after the other . Convinced that Danny is exacting his revenge, as promised, the judge of Clanton issues an arrest for Danny Padgitt. At Padgitt's trial, the former lover of Rhoda Kassellaw, Hank Hooten a schizophrenic, guns down Danny Padgitt in the courtroom by positioning himself on the balcony, attributing his action to hearing the voices of the victim's children in his head, convincing him to murder Danny and the three jurors who voted against his conviction to Death Row. After nine years of ownership, Willie sells The Ford County Times for 1.5 million dollars. The book ends with Willie writing the last obituary for the paper.

A must read!

JO PHILIP

John Grisham's first novel, it was rejected by publishers at first but later got published by the Wynwood press and recognized as a bestseller only after The Firm, The Pelican Brief and The Client became bestsellers.
Carl Lee Hailey, a father of three takes justice into his hands when he acquires an assault rifle and guns down the two white racists who raped and assaulted his ten-yr-old daughter. He is taken to court and charged with murder.
But then young defense attorney Jake Brigance takes up his case and fights at all cost to set him free . Meanwhile a brother to one of the rapists seeks revenge by enlisting the help of the kkk, a militant organization. Despite all attempts to get Jake off the case and get Carl convicted, the case proceeds and at last Jake makes a touching and powerful closing statement
After all said and done the jury acquits Carl on the reason of insanity at the time of the murder. S0 Carl returns home to his family while Jake celebrates with friends.

This book is a bomb!
Go read it if you haven't, you'll find how unputdownable it is.

From the #1 bestselling author James Patterson comes Cross Country-the most heart-stopping, speed-charged, electrifying Alex Cross thriller ever.

This book is one of James Patterson's best. i saw it at a friend's house picked it up and before i knew what was happening i was in chapter 3!

In Cross Country Detective Alex Cross is called to the worst murder scene he has encountered in all his years on the force. Someone with less than zero regard for human life has slaughtered a family–and then more killings, each one more ruthless than the last, quickly follow.

As Alex and his girlfriend, Detective Brianna Stone, dig deeper into the case, they become entangled in the deadly African underworld of Washington DC. When the elusive killer's trail turns up in Africa, Alex knows that he must follow. Alone.

When Alex arrives in Nigeria, he discovers a world where justice is as foreign as he is. Unprotected and alone in a strange country, bombarded on all sides by the murderous threats of the Tiger, can Alex manage to both survive and catch the killer? 

Read an excerpt here and find out how engrossing  you will find it.