Flavours of Fiction – Some Must Reads!

After a hectic day, everything seems berserk. Why not spend a little time on reading?

There are lot of book-lovers who love, breathe and live novels. But, as every individual differs, so does their choices in novels. So which novel should one chose? How to select amongst the plethora of novels?

The first thing that comes up is the question of ‘genre’- which can be very dicey sometimes.  Some of us like non-fiction, some like romantic fiction, and others like an amalgam of all.

This article is about some books which fall under the broad category of fiction, which are MUST READS. According to me, anyway.

        ‘Digital Fortress’ by Dan Brown- it is one of the best novels and the writing style in the books that I have read from ‘techno-mystery’ genre or in other words ‘science fiction’. It can be summarised as “the NSA’s calls its head cryptographer, Susan Fletcher, when invincible code-breaking machine encounters a mysterious code it cannot break. What’s the secret of this code?”  After each chapter she uncovers secrets and at first she is trying to save her life then she has to fight for the man she loves. Each chapter leaves you in a hurry to move on to the next and find out what happens.

        ‘American Gods’ by Neil Gaiman- this particular novel is a mixture of mythology, historical facts, mystery and pure fantasy. It is a story about an ex-con, who is going to his wife’s funeral but then he meets some stranger who knows a lot about him. How? Why?

And what’s its purpose? It is an enjoyable read for all. When you can get ‘all in one’ then why not chose it?

Want to read a book about romance? There is a long list for this but, its Darcy and Elizabeth’s time AGAIN.

        ‘Mr Darcy Takes a Wife’ by Linda Berdoll- Everyone knows about Pride and Prejudice. Who can forget those enticing and enigmatic characters by Jane Austen? This is a sequel to that by Berdoll. The plot follows the happily married couple and the various events, and misunderstandings in their lives. Various parts played by Elizabeth’s elder sister- Jane and her husband Charles, Darcy’s sister Georgina are important. Overall, it is a good read. This book is for those who loved that “era”, and can’t get enough of the characters created by Austen. 

        ‘A Song of Ice and Fire’ series by George R.R. Martin- What would happen when everyone becomes blood-thirsty for each other? This novel is an epic fantasy which has politics, love, betrayal, and suspense. For those, who love to watch televison shows, here is an interesting tidbit, the highly rated ‘Game of Thrones’ show is based on these series.

‘A Thousand Splendid Suns’ by Khaled Hosseini- This book focuses on the riotous lives of two Afghan women and how their lives cross each other. We get to know of the status of women in Afghanistan. It is an intense guide to their world, and the best part is their journey”