Tag Archives: Fiction

I Don’t Like Childish Girls

I Don't Like Childish Girls
I Don’t Like Childish Girls

It’s a pretty bold statement when you say something about that you don’t like. But, no serious hate going on here. It’s just recently I came across one such not so adorable personality, who reminded me of so many things which makes girls irritating. I met a childish woman(not a girl, she was way above her twenties).

To start with first let me clarify, what I mean by childish girls?

A childish girl is, who is no longer a child (as per her age), not even a teen, so I would prefer to call her a woman, but who will try to speak like a child, when in company of others(specifically note down this point), to impress others by making herself look like some innocent girl lost in the woods.

Why I don’t like such girls? Well, here is a story to tell….

Once upon a time…. oh cut this crap……. When I came to live in a new city and a new job, I landed on a group of girls who seemed like just out from the movie, “Mean Girls”. They were always wearing high heels, fashionable brands, not actually wearing but flaunting the brands all over; will always walk in groups, even when they would go to loo; always have their sunglasses on, yes even inside office’s air conditioned and all covered building; would always talk in third person; and mostly be surrounded by guys.

Surprisingly, they refer all the guys of their group, as their brothers, or just friends 😛 preferably chosen to do chores for them. Yes, boys, lesson number one, if you think that you are just friend with a girl, who usually keeps you around for making, her life easier….. No, she is not that into you.

I Don't Like Childish Girls
Child Like??

Coming back to The Group, their was one girl in the group, who always seems to me, as she didn’t belong their. She was always well spoken, more than just polite, infact like a child. Now, you know, where I am going….

Whenever, I use to talk to my friends about The Group, I used to say, how this one girl is so sweet and she even talks like a kid. She seems to be really nice, but lost, like Alice in Wonderland, in somewhat new world.

To give you a taste of how she used to speak, if you would ask her “have you taken your breakfast? She will replay back (Please try to read as some 5 year girl would say it), Ohhhhh, I totally forgot. 😦 I didn’t even had milk. What will I do now? Can you please take me to cafeteria? Will you go with me, Please, Please plzzzzzzzzzzz.”

I Don't Like Childish Girls

Yes, I know. Laugh it off.

I was that naive to think of all this as “her innocence”. It all washed down, in a single day actually, when The Group decided to live with me, as roommates. 

So, the very first day, I prefer to call it, the great eye opener day, firstly every brand of clothe came out and they were now in the dirtiest or I would say somewhat old and torn clothes. Contacts from eyes out, big ugly glasses, in. Straight hairs with shining gels out, messy hair with curlers, in. Hygienic attitude out, dirty laundry and dishes in bedroom, in. High class talk out, gossip about the girl in other cubicle, in. Hollywood movies and English shows out, Balika Vadhu and Kahani Ghar Ghar ki type, in. Not that any of this matters, as everyone is somewhat like this when at home. But…….

Most importantly, I heard a loud shrieking and never ever heard before voice, “One tomato is less in fridge, I have just brought it today from the market? Who has taken my tomato?”

Yes, she was the same innocent, child like polite girl screaming her lungs out for one tomato.

My experience over the years (yes, I managed to make it more than a year with them), told me that, she was using her childish behavior as a way to impress others and to make them love her more. When at home or alone, she was as normal, as everyone else. Just a fake…

I Don't Like Childish Girls

Now, every time I saw a girl, sorry woman, talking like a child ( not when they are talking to a child), I just laugh in my head and say good bye to the child lady, to live in peace. 🙂

Along Came A Spider

Along Came A Spider
Along Came A Spider

 

A thrilling, fast paced novel filled with gory details., but this is not all which can be said about James Patterson’s famous novel “Along Came A Spider”. For the lovers of thrillers and psychotic characters, this could be among the best choices, but if you are not very fond of insane characters, than go take a nap instead.

 

This novel takes a very good start by building the very gruesome foundation for our psychotic character Gary Sonezi, who starts off by kidnapping and killing an infant mercilessly. You can guess easily what he is capable of doing, if he starts his killing spree in such a sick way.

 

To match this psychotic killer we have our very own hero in the form of Alex Cross, the famous homicide detective who is determined and passionate about his work. Main plot starts off with kidnapping of two kids, one girl Maggie Rose and her friend, Shrimpie as  known popularly . What makes this kidnapping, a crime of the century, is the fact that both the kids belong to the affluent families, one being kid of a celebrity and other one of treasury. In-fact the kids had their own personal bodyguards assigned to them by the secret services for protection.

 

Alex Cross is assigned to solve this kidnapping, along with Jezzie, from the Secret Services, who later becomes his love interest too. The mastermind of kidnapping, Gary Sonezi is shown as a cruel and devilish person, who has no remorse or soul, indeed he is a brilliant plotter who is always two steps ahead of Cross and whole bunch of secret service personnel. He comes across as one who makes backup plan, of a backup plan. Still he was caught in a very dramatic way. Later, however it does looked like, that this was also a part of his terrific plan.

 

Their is one interesting twist to the whole story, when even the kidnapper got duped by some opportunists. Incidentally Gary Sonezi, trusts Alex Cross to solve the final mystery more than himself or the police. Their is also a dramatic turn of events with a double personality disorder, which was actually being shown marvelously.

 

Now, coming to the points where this novel lacks, is number one it is pretty boring in the second half. It seemed to stretch beyond a point making it dull and heavy. At one point you just want to put down the book, but you are hanging only to see if Gary received the punishment he deserved. Romance is exaggerated and in such a boring taste. You can yawn easily between the love making sessions. They talk as if no two lovers or even normal persons talk to each other. What disgust me about this novel is the Racism card, which was played over and over. Their was no such need to glorify it or to make it such a big deal. It was like getting distracted by something which is so out of place for this kind of a book.

 

Only thing that this book needs is a better editing.Rest, it is a marvelous story told beautifully.

ILLUSION (Review): Book by Frank Peretti

ILLUSION
ILLUSION

(ILLUSION by Frank Peretti)

I have always loved mysteries and fiction, this one is worth the love. Illusion is one such book which will keep you engaged throughout the read. It is the first book that I have read of Frank Peretti, and I know I will be going for more. Most captivating thing about this book was, you are never sure what’s going to happen next. With so many twists and turns, taking on different genres and then mixing them all together in a single book, it’s not an easy task. But, Peretti has done it so beautifully in this book. This book is put in the genre of christian fiction, but it can easily be tagged into teen fiction, romance, science, religion and thriller, all at the same time.

The book tells the story of Dane and Mandy, the sixty year old magician couple, deeply in love with each other. After a long companionship of forty years, Dane was suddenly left devastated when Mandy die in a car crash. His world is torn apart and he decides to leave everything and go back to the place where he first met her, at her hometown. But, was Mandy really dead?

She doesn’t agree with this.

Sitting under a tree in a hospital gown a twenty year old Mandy was wondering what era is this? How does she suddenly woke up in 2010, when all she did was sleep under a tree in 1970s. Uncanny.

My typical mind, brainwashed with so many ghost and rebirth stories, quickly thought that this could be old Mandy’s soul which has captured a young girl and entered into her body. Gosh! My imagination. No, this is not the case. It becomes clear when I read it further. New Mandy met Dane while demonstrating some street magic. Yes, magic. New Mandy can also do magic. One common factor. But big disappointment for me when both Dane and New Mandy couldn’t recognize each other. So, how can she be a rebirth? No, she is no rebirth. She didn’t even have a memory loss. She remembers everything from the dress she was wearing to the name of street she lived.

Story unfolds some more. New Mandy can do weird stuff. I can’t call it magic if you can levitate yourself without any string attached, kinda like Criss Angel. She can put life to any static object like a ball, coffee in cup, mike and even a pencil to poke you. How did she get those superpowers? That is actually the main secret behind her story. Coming to Dane, poor widower, coping with his wife’s death, has new challenges to face in his life. He has met a girl who looks a lot like her Mandy, only she is not. She is a kid, so younger, stupid, and always seems to be in danger. However hard he is trying to stay away from that girl, he is getting more and more entangled in her life. My next thought was that she could be a daughter of old Mandy, which Dane is not aware of. Too filmy! I know.

No, this is also not the case, as both of them feel romantically for each other. But, she is not Mandy. Book shows a different and mature approach to teenage crush which Mandy has for Dane. Only, Dane could not reciprocate the same to her, she being a lot younger than him. This aspect is dealt beautifully in the book, never getting weird.

Approaching end, everything is answered patiently. With the big secret out (no, I am not telling you that), both Dane and Mandy’s life comes to a point of losing each other once again. Till the last page, I was hoping for a miracle. Hoping for balance of universe, for love, for eternal love of Dane and Mandy.

What appealed to me other than the story was the last note of author, Frank Peretti. When he says that this story is not only a science fiction or a love story, this one is also about finding yourself. To find out, Who you are, What are you here for? Doing, what you need to do? What you actually want from life? And, what do you believe in? Ultimately, accepting your beliefs and give yourself to that higher power.

Blessed are those who are being Loved.

Either “Never tell a Lie” or don’t throw a Yard Sale

Never tell a Lie
Never tell a Lie

(Review of Hallie Ephron‘s book – Never Tell a Lie)

There are thrillers and then there are some thrillers which are disturbingly weird. Yes, it’s the class of weirdness where Hallie Ephron’s novelNever Tell a Lie” falls to.

Story is about Ivy and David, happily married couple who are expecting their first child in few weeks. Being kicked by nesting spirit of pregnancy, Ivy decides to get rid of clutter and arrange for a yard sale. Everything was going on smoothly, until an old, not so friendly friend, Melinda shows up. Everything comes upside down when Melinda goes missing and her last known sight was at Ivy’s home. Story unfolds in such a way that it becomes hard to trust anyone around.

Underlying idea behind this book is, should you share every secret with your partner, every mistake and every truth? A lie told to protect a relationship or a person, can it resurface from the past and shake your present and your future.

While I was reading that book, a pregnant friend of mine ask me to suggest a good book to read. I was just about to say, “Never Tell a Lie”, and then I realized that, it’s so much disturbing story, of a pregnant woman, that no other pregnant woman should have to go through reading it.

On a lighter note, the female lead, Ivy in her last month of pregnancy, seems to have the strength of wonder woman, fighting and rescuing herself, all alone. She is also a detective, who likes to enter into weird people’s abandoned houses and look for hidden evidence. One more peculiar thing, a lab can ring you at four in the morning to get your appointment. 🙂

End was a bit disappointing for the feminist in me. Considering that Ivy, forgive everyone involved. Whatever happened in the past, and whoever did that, was a crime and a punishable one. Leastways, the author should have tried to explain the consequences.

Now, that I have finished the book, I am feeling relieved that I don’t have any weird friend. At least not that I know off. 😦

 

Review: The Playdate (by Louise Millar)

Review: The Playdate (by Louise Millar)

The Playdate
The Playdate

I was just wandering in the library and wasn’t able to pick my read. Normally I select my books from the online catalog of library before actually going there. But, this was spontaneous visit and I was kind of getting lost in piles and shelves of books. Strangely, with so many options before me I was not able to choose one. So indecisive of me.

Saw this book. It was on the outer display unit. Liked the cover and short recommendation and picked it up. Yup! just like that.

I soon realized my mistake of randomly picking up a book like that, as I began to find its introduction of characters pretty lame and lackluster. It’s very nonconforming with me that I don’t like dull and single layer characters. So, as I was going through the characters of its three protagonists, all females, I found them very generic and lame. They are like women living across the street, you saw them occasionally, waving, chatting and soon fading away.

One thing which irritates me in the beginning was that the chapters were written with the perspective of the three characters, not like a single observer or story teller. Like each chapter devoted to single one of them – Callie, Suzy and Debs, all having their own voice. It somehow confuses me in the starting as each female says her part of the story with her own perspective when you were already immersed in the previous one. Each has a different take on her surroundings and life in general.

But after reading a moment or two, I realized that how much depth this has given to the whole story. Now, with the proceeding of story I was visualizing three characters telling their story with utmost honesty and specifics, telling stories of their longings, their shortcomings, their struggle, pain, suffering and love.

This novel is listed as a thriller, so I was waiting for that one twist and turn which will spice up this old neighborhood kind of story. It came, though late. By then, you were just wondering if this story has anything else to offer other than telling us how not to be a single mom? Or How to track your husband’s extra-curricular activities? Nonetheless many would be interested in finding it out J

Mystery weaves into the story is pretty smooth and intricate. It flows with the story and suddenly you realize that how did you miss the indications in earlier chapters. It’s written in a very well absorbing and captivating way. After a point I was just not able to put myself to sleep without completing the book, in the fear of what will happen to the poor little girl? Not me poor girl from the novel L

The big drawback or the disappointment that I have with this story is that the end was so one sided. I would have loved to see the whole drama unfolding from Suzy’s eyes. Her perspective was totally wiped out in the end, which if shown could have added more depth and meaning to the narrative. Oh! I am so fascinated by the psychos. One thing to credit Suzy, she truly believed in keeping your friends close, and your enemy closer…. J

Now I am going to sleep and then maybe a trip to the library. This time I am getting Dan Brown’s Inferno. Good Night. ZZzzzz………