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Mayhawke (97 KP) rated The Strange Disappearance of a Bollywood Star in Books
Feb 13, 2018
Kahn is establishing himself as a solid and reliable voice in cosy crime
Vaseem Khan is still a relatively new voice in cozy crime fiction, but I have been with him since the start, and on current showing I shall be with him long into the future.
One of the great pleasures for crime fiction readers of the last decade has been the influx of new voices as - in the search for something new and different - the British market has been opened up to translations from abroad (Camilleri, Akunin, Vargas) and English-language fiction set in different cultural environments (No.1 Ladies Detective Agency, Aurelio Zen, Dr. Siri Paboun). Khan has proven himself a skillful and delightful contributor to the latter category, lifting the vibrant sounds, colours, smells and characters of India (good and bad) from the page as he weaves remarkably clever and entertaining stories of brutal thefts, murder and abduction for the protagonist, Inspector Chopra (Retd) & and his mystical and cheeky four-legged sidekick, Ganesha, to unravel.
His latest book sees a young and arrogant Bollywood star abducted on the eve of his most important film shoot to date. As the biggest and most expensive film in Bollywood history grinds to a halt money, reputations and lives are on the line and Chopra is employed to quietly find and return the prodigal starlet to his duties. It quickly becomes apparent, though, that the boy has not just had a Bieberesque tantrum, and that the funding for, and personalities behind the movie may be a lot murkier and more complex than they seem.
Already on his third book in two years he promises to be as prolific as he is enjoyable.
One of the great pleasures for crime fiction readers of the last decade has been the influx of new voices as - in the search for something new and different - the British market has been opened up to translations from abroad (Camilleri, Akunin, Vargas) and English-language fiction set in different cultural environments (No.1 Ladies Detective Agency, Aurelio Zen, Dr. Siri Paboun). Khan has proven himself a skillful and delightful contributor to the latter category, lifting the vibrant sounds, colours, smells and characters of India (good and bad) from the page as he weaves remarkably clever and entertaining stories of brutal thefts, murder and abduction for the protagonist, Inspector Chopra (Retd) & and his mystical and cheeky four-legged sidekick, Ganesha, to unravel.
His latest book sees a young and arrogant Bollywood star abducted on the eve of his most important film shoot to date. As the biggest and most expensive film in Bollywood history grinds to a halt money, reputations and lives are on the line and Chopra is employed to quietly find and return the prodigal starlet to his duties. It quickly becomes apparent, though, that the boy has not just had a Bieberesque tantrum, and that the funding for, and personalities behind the movie may be a lot murkier and more complex than they seem.
Already on his third book in two years he promises to be as prolific as he is enjoyable.
Organizational Accidents Revisited
Book
Managing the Risks of Organizational Accidents introduced the notion of an 'organizational...
Little Women
7.2
Rate It
TV Show
Angela Lansbury and Michael Gambon star, with Bafta award-winner Emily Watson playing beloved Marmee...
classics drama
AL
A Life in Brine: A Surfer's Journey
Book
Covering 40 years of surf culture, Australian writer Phil Jarratt rides a wave of nostalgia...
LoganCrews (2861 KP) rated Legend of the Guardians: The Owls of Ga'Hoole (2010) in Movies
Jul 4, 2021
Am I saying all it takes to make a good movie is animation as angelic as this - some of the very best the 2010s (or any decade) has to offer - which not only took my breath away but on several occasions you could even have convinced me some of these beautiful vistas were actually real? Well - I mean 𝘍𝘳𝘰𝘻𝘦𝘯 2 still sucked, didn't it? But at the same time, without such godly visuals this would have been a total snooze. The bookends strain but the portion in the middle won me over, it's just so dang cute (I mean come on... that echidna?? Adorable). It really is a testament to how exemplary this looks that it managed to choke me up even in spite of its boring voice acting, character designs that look good idle but once they're required to emote have such unexpressive faces, and of course it wouldn't be 2010 without a heaping helping of noxious 3D 'gimmicks' (gimmicks = continually grinding the movie to a halt while shoving something uncomfortably close to the camera for no reason). There's even a super intriguing thread in here about the different ways we view legends/fairy tales as a kid versus as an adult and how to reconcile with that (or at least try to). But one last quibble - this has the same issue as 𝘛𝘦𝘦𝘯𝘢𝘨𝘦 𝘔𝘶𝘵𝘢𝘯𝘵 𝘕𝘪𝘯𝘫𝘢 𝘛𝘶𝘳𝘵𝘭𝘦𝘴 (2014) where the slo-mo was really cool the first few times but did they have to keep reusing it over and over and over again like that? We get it, it's a Snyder movie but it gets tiresome after a point, dude. And putting an Owl City song in this should have been punishable by imprisonment.
Lyndsey Gollogly (2893 KP) rated Betwixt (Betwixt and Between #1) in Books
Jan 24, 2021
14 of 250
Kindle
Betwixt (Bitwixt&Between book 1)
By Darynda Jones
Once read a review will be written via Smashbomb and link posted in comments
Divorced, desperate, and destitute, former restaurateur Defiance Dayne finds out she has been bequeathed a house by a complete stranger. She is surprised, to say the least, and her curiosity gets the better of her. She leaves her beloved Phoenix and heads to one of the most infamous towns in America: Salem, Massachusetts.
She’s only there to find out why a woman she’s never met would leave her a house. A veritable castle that has seen better days. She couldn’t possibly accept it, but the lawyer assigned to the case practically begs her to take it off her hands, mostly because she’s scared of it. The house. The inanimate structure that, as far as Dephne can tell, has never hurt a fly.
Though it does come with some baggage. A pesky neighbor who wants her gone. A scruffy cat who’s a bit of a jerk. And a handyman bathed in ink who could moonlight as a supermodel for GQ.
She decides to give it three days, and not because of the model. She feels at home in Salem. Safe. But even that comes to a screeching halt when people begin knocking on her door day and night, begging for her help to locate their lost objects.
Come to find out, they think she’s a witch. And after a few mysterious mishaps, Dephne is beginning to wonder if they’re right.
It wasn’t a bad book it was very middle of the road compared to her other books. It’s got a decent story some good characters hoping we see the ex get his comeuppance a little more! I do love her little quotes at the start of each chapter it wouldn’t be a Darynda book without them!
Kindle
Betwixt (Bitwixt&Between book 1)
By Darynda Jones
Once read a review will be written via Smashbomb and link posted in comments
Divorced, desperate, and destitute, former restaurateur Defiance Dayne finds out she has been bequeathed a house by a complete stranger. She is surprised, to say the least, and her curiosity gets the better of her. She leaves her beloved Phoenix and heads to one of the most infamous towns in America: Salem, Massachusetts.
She’s only there to find out why a woman she’s never met would leave her a house. A veritable castle that has seen better days. She couldn’t possibly accept it, but the lawyer assigned to the case practically begs her to take it off her hands, mostly because she’s scared of it. The house. The inanimate structure that, as far as Dephne can tell, has never hurt a fly.
Though it does come with some baggage. A pesky neighbor who wants her gone. A scruffy cat who’s a bit of a jerk. And a handyman bathed in ink who could moonlight as a supermodel for GQ.
She decides to give it three days, and not because of the model. She feels at home in Salem. Safe. But even that comes to a screeching halt when people begin knocking on her door day and night, begging for her help to locate their lost objects.
Come to find out, they think she’s a witch. And after a few mysterious mishaps, Dephne is beginning to wonder if they’re right.
It wasn’t a bad book it was very middle of the road compared to her other books. It’s got a decent story some good characters hoping we see the ex get his comeuppance a little more! I do love her little quotes at the start of each chapter it wouldn’t be a Darynda book without them!
Neither Snow nor Rain: A History of the USPS
5.0
Rate It
Book
Neither Snow nor Rain: A History of the United States Postal Service The United States Postal...
My Life, Our Times
Book
As former Prime Minister and our longest-serving Chancellor, Gordon Brown has been a guiding force...
biography politics
ClareR (5996 KP) rated The Hemlock Cure in Books
Apr 6, 2023
The Hemlock Cure was a fascinating insight into the lives of ordinary people during the Black Death (Bubonic Plague) epidemic of 1665-1666. The plague is very much in the background of this story for most of it, though.
The real evil isn’t a disease, it’s being shut in with people who clearly do not have good intentions.
The village of Eyam is well known for the decision to shut itself off from the outside world when its inhabitants started to become ill and die. They understood that the only way to halt the spread of the disease was to isolate themselves - a selfless act.
This novel looks at some of the families and their relationships inside and outside of their family units. The local apothecary and his daughter Mae, are one such family. Mae is desperate to be her fathers apprentice, but this isn’t a time in history where it’s safe for a woman to be working with herbs. So Mae studies with the midwife and a local wise woman (who are both also skating on thin ice, truth be told).
The plague wasn’t a constant in London it appears, and we travel there with one of the main characters. The contrast between the country village and London was quite something to read. I could almost smell the difference off the page!!
I enjoyed the pacing of this book: in Eyam the time crawls, whilst in London everything is all hustle and bustle.
The slow reveal of the terrible secrets in Mae’s family are not so much shocking as terrifying. Wulfric, Mae’s father, is not a well man. It seems to be a race against time for Mae.
I would most definitely recommend this book to historical fiction fans - and if you like a mystery, you may well like this as well.
The real evil isn’t a disease, it’s being shut in with people who clearly do not have good intentions.
The village of Eyam is well known for the decision to shut itself off from the outside world when its inhabitants started to become ill and die. They understood that the only way to halt the spread of the disease was to isolate themselves - a selfless act.
This novel looks at some of the families and their relationships inside and outside of their family units. The local apothecary and his daughter Mae, are one such family. Mae is desperate to be her fathers apprentice, but this isn’t a time in history where it’s safe for a woman to be working with herbs. So Mae studies with the midwife and a local wise woman (who are both also skating on thin ice, truth be told).
The plague wasn’t a constant in London it appears, and we travel there with one of the main characters. The contrast between the country village and London was quite something to read. I could almost smell the difference off the page!!
I enjoyed the pacing of this book: in Eyam the time crawls, whilst in London everything is all hustle and bustle.
The slow reveal of the terrible secrets in Mae’s family are not so much shocking as terrifying. Wulfric, Mae’s father, is not a well man. It seems to be a race against time for Mae.
I would most definitely recommend this book to historical fiction fans - and if you like a mystery, you may well like this as well.
Lindsay (1779 KP) rated Too Hurt to Stay in Books
Aug 14, 2025
We are introduced to Casey and her family at the beginning, and we learn that she was on a break when she received a call.
That call seems to be from John, who is a link to some of the children who need help.
But will Casey and Mike take on this little boy?
We see a boy named Spencer and his way of life. We see he is polite and friendly. However, that may not be all it seems.
We see Spencer having a side, but he seems to be stealing and taking. However, there is a hole in their bedroom where he is sleeping. What is the cause of Spencer's behaviour?
We see a bit more of Spencer and his behavior. He seems to follow the rules. However, he also has a habit of stealing and taking things that belong to others.
What could be causing the home to do this? And Why? We see more of Riley and her two children. We also see Kerion and his girlfriend, Lauren. Kerion seems to have Asperger's. I'm not sure if we can find that out in one of the author's earlier books. It was a surprise mention in this book.
When Spencer School calls and finds that Spencer may be stealing, I can understand Kieron when he is a bit upset.
Well, we see what Spencer is up to, and he gets a little weekend away. However, its antics and behavior seem to come to a sudden halt.
When he goes to visit this family, something is off about his mother. And when they come back to get him. He's gone, where did he go, and what about his mother not stopping him? Though Casey may have found something of interest when they came to the door. They want to talk to Kerry's husband. What's going to be like?
That call seems to be from John, who is a link to some of the children who need help.
But will Casey and Mike take on this little boy?
We see a boy named Spencer and his way of life. We see he is polite and friendly. However, that may not be all it seems.
We see Spencer having a side, but he seems to be stealing and taking. However, there is a hole in their bedroom where he is sleeping. What is the cause of Spencer's behaviour?
We see a bit more of Spencer and his behavior. He seems to follow the rules. However, he also has a habit of stealing and taking things that belong to others.
What could be causing the home to do this? And Why? We see more of Riley and her two children. We also see Kerion and his girlfriend, Lauren. Kerion seems to have Asperger's. I'm not sure if we can find that out in one of the author's earlier books. It was a surprise mention in this book.
When Spencer School calls and finds that Spencer may be stealing, I can understand Kieron when he is a bit upset.
Well, we see what Spencer is up to, and he gets a little weekend away. However, its antics and behavior seem to come to a sudden halt.
When he goes to visit this family, something is off about his mother. And when they come back to get him. He's gone, where did he go, and what about his mother not stopping him? Though Casey may have found something of interest when they came to the door. They want to talk to Kerry's husband. What's going to be like?