Vital Signs - Robin Cook

       Pediatrician Melissa Blumenthal will try any scientific method available to conceive--until the horrible secrets of an urban clinic erupt in a nightmare of staggering proportions... 

Review:

Robin Cook

      I had really high hopes for Robin Cook after reading 'Mindbend'. But this book never met my expectations. Robin Cook should have sticked to his cup of tea - the medical field. Instead he takes us on a wild goose chase, starting from America to Australia, then to Hong Kong and then to China. And somewhere in the middle, the plot was completely lost. The initial scenes were really wonderful and I felt I had stumbled upon a fantastic book after a long search. But then that joy did not last long.

      The author needed only 2 pages to give answers to all the mysteries that surrounded the hospitals. All the other pages were just covered by chases, murders and travels. What on earth was the protagonist doing travelling all round the globe on a wild goose chase? And even after all those adventures, I never really got my answers. I guessed the plot right from the start and it took the author 400 pages to tell me that my guess was right.

     The characters were loosely developed except for Marissa and Wendy. Three - fourth of the book was like reading some fantasy book. I wonder how such a big treachery were left unnoticed except for a pediatrician. The author surely has written better books.

      Overall, a pretty ordinary book with a promising start that loses its way in the middle.

Rating: 2.8/5

Tell Me Your Dreams - Sidney Sheldon

Ashley Patterson is a beautiful, shy, lonely computer whiz, and is convinced she is being stalked. Coworker Toni Prescott is a gorgeous Brit with a penchant for internet dating and little time for anyone else. And Alette Peters prefers her weekends quiet and in the arms of a beefcake artist. They know virtually nothing about each other -- until the three women are linked by a murder investigation that will lead to one of the most bizarre trials of the century.

Review:

Sidney Sheldon

Lovely young ladies who work for Global Computer Graphics in Silicon Valley are charged  in the brutal murder and mutilation of five more or less nice men. Although confusing, the evidence against them seems perfect and by the time the case goes to trial we know who done it, but not until the story is nearly finished will we understand why.

Considered to be one of the first books to touch on 'MULTIPLE PERSONALITY DISORDER' and the way the author has gone about with an entirely new concept deserves an applause. A must - read book for everyone.

Rating : 4.4/5

Life is What You Make it - Preeti Shenoy

What would you do if destiny twisted the road you took? What if it threw you to a place you did not want to go? Would you fight, would you run or would you accept? Set across two cities in India in the early eighties, 'Life is what you make it' is a gripping account of a few significant years of Ankita's life.

Ankita Sharma has the world at her feet. She is young, good-looking, smart and has tonnes of friends and boys swooning over her. College life is what every youngster dreams of and she also manages to get into a premier management school for her MBA. Six months later, she is a patient in a mental health hospital. How did Ankita get here? What were the events that led to this? Will she ever get back her life again?

Life has cruelly and coldly snatched that which meant the most to her and she must now fight to get it all back.

It is a deeply moving and inspiring account of growing up, of the power of faith and how determination and an indomitable spirit can overcome even what destiny throws at you.

A tale, at its core a love-story that makes us question our beliefs about ourselves and our concept of sanity and forces us to believe that life is truly what one makes it.

Preeti Shenoy

Review : 

A must – read novel for all ages describing the rollercoaster life of Ankita Sharma. The author’s lucid style of narration makes it an easy – read as well. The opening scenes where Ankita finds herself in a mental asylum are more like they have been taken from a Chetan Bhagat book. Ankita’s days in Cochin and the ever – refreshing college atmosphere keeps the readers engaged and gives them a ‘feel – good’ touch. Ankita’s shift to Mumbai and Abhi’s tragic death takes the story in a completely different path. Bipolar disorder, a mental disease involving dramatic change in moods is well portrayed. The author could have shortened her description about Ankita’s sufferings as repetitive analogies and similies slow down the pace for 50-60 odd pages. Ankita’s mean and selfish character does not deserve sympathy but the author manages to make the readers feel pity for her. The feel that the story had ended abruptly is well compensated by what everyone call a happy – ending. The story makes one look back at his/her life and think, ‘Life is not only about money, jewels and expensive cars. Its about the profound joy in seeing a beautiful flower bloom. Its about the sheer joy on seeing an old friend after so many years. Its about the excitement when we walk in a rain. The book projects life in a different spectrum and makes us want to live our life differently.

Life is indeed what we make it!!!

Rating : 2.5/5