Best Books I've Read In 2015

I'm back with yet another post about books. Because, let's be honest, that's the only topic I can speak confidently about.
So, coming to the point. I've read uncountable number of books in 2015 (no, I'm never typing 2k15). And that's what I'm listing today. These book may have been published long time ago, but I've only read them this year.

1. Coup D'etat by Ben Coes.
I haven't finished the book as of yet, because I got caught up in something, but as far as I've read it seems to be pretty gripping. And that's all I can ask for. The book is based on the potential times when a war breaks out between India and Pakistan. How USA is involved in it, how it will affect the world. Without giving the spoilers, there's only one man, named Andreas Dewey who can stop this mass assassination between both the countries. I'm sure it will be a happy, peaceful ending. But this book is a good read.

2. The Damned by Andrew Pyper.
I have a twin. There are times when I do think that my twin might be possessed by some sort of evil. And this book is written account of my worst nightmares. This book is about the story of a man whose twin dies in a fire when they are only children. But his twin sister wasn't normal. She decides that she has died way too early and that twins aren't really supposed to stray away from each other. So she decides to haunt him. The book made goosebumps rise on every surface of my body. Clearly, it was one the worst decisions of my life to read it at 2 A.M. Safe to say, if my twin ever says "twins are supposed to stick together", I'm ditching her sorry arse in a deep and dark pit.

3. November 9 by Colleen Hoover.
None of my lists are complete without including a book by Colleen Hoover. And she's back yet again with one of the most amazing books I've read in my life. The plot twists are mind blowing and the writing style is as captivating as ever. Colleen has always been one of my favorite authors and judging by the way she has been writing, she will always remain in the list of my favorite authors. She makes the reader feel the emotions of the protagonist and makes you fall in love with the characters.

4. Gone Girl by Gillian Flynn.
I don't really need words to describe just how incredible this book was. The movie makers may have stolen the limelight of the book but the book still remains better than the movie. There's no doubt that Ben Afflek and Rosamund Pike (sigh, my girl crush) have done nothing less than a brilliant job at their acting, but the characters described in words are just more relatable. The book is mesmerizing. If I ever want to be like a woman, it is Amy Elliot Dunne. Maybe she's evil and full of vengeance but the woman knows how to get her revenge and she's unbeatable and perfect at it.

5. R.I.P by Rachael Van Dyken.
I have liked the books by Rachael Van Dyken before. But those books were light humor and romance. This book is romance but it's dark and twisted. It's still good. There may be no funny wit charm or humorous offhand remarks but it doesn't make it any less incredible, This book revolves around a man who's a hypnotist and a very powerful one at that. He's the source of fear among most of the most powerful men in the Russian mafia. To be honest, I was so taken by the raw dominance of the man that I wanted to by a hypnotist for a very long time that followed.

6. Jaya by Devdutt Pattanaik.
I've always been quite interested in Mahabharata. Dvendutt Pattnaik has been one of the speakers that have always inspired me. He's strong, levelheaded and fair in whatever he speaks. He's an insightful mythologist. And his writing holds the same sanity and strong grip on the audience as well as the readers. The book isn't a novel but a collection of short stories from the Mahabharata. There's a whole part which is highlighted and explains Geeta. This book is must read for anyone and everyone who is remotely interested in mythology of India.

Right in the feels!

Sigh. Did you hear that? It's a loud sigh. the kind that erupts from deep down when we step back into reality after reading a book that made us forget it in the first place.

It has been long since I last posted. So I'll make this one good. I promise.

I decided to dedicate this particular entry to those books that hit us right in the feels. Meaning, the books that take us on an emotional roller coaster. They made me laugh, cry and relate. The books that made me feel like I was a part of them.

1.  SLOTH by Ella James.
I very recently finished this book and it was that made me write an entire blog post just so I can talk about this one. Imagine it's perfection. The beginning is a bit sketchy but by the time you reach the end, you're clutching your heart and dabbing your eyes. Yes, it's really that good. Maybe I'm under the influence of the sheer incredibly of it so I'm leaning on it a bit more than others, but you'll be in my place if you read it, too. It's a guarantee.

2. Confess by Colleen Hoover.
It's not a secret that Colleen had always reigned over the list of my favorite authors. So it's obvious that no list of mine is incomplete without one of her books. Confess, it's a heartfelt, easily relatable story that leaves you rips and surrounded by shards of your shattered emotions. But as easily does she cause this emotional explosion, she fixes it back with more ease. This book has you gripped by the prologue.

3. Wild Card by Lora Leigh.
It's one of those books; the ones in which you need tissues to wipe off your tears by the time you reach chapter 2. Lora Leigh made me cry, gap in mock outrage, beg, laugh soppily and sing songs of appraisal when I read this beauty. She is undoubtedly a brilliant storyteller and this book is a true master piece. Though, I have followed up on all books in the series, this one remains the best and my personal number one choice.

4. The Consequences of Loving Colton by Rachel Van Dyken.
When I say that some books affect us, it doesn't always have to be sad. It doesn't always mean that they'll make you cry. This book, for instance, is absolutely hilarious. Seriously, it's a riot. So it's a definite worth read. Especially if you want to freak people put by randomly bursting into fits of hysterical, uncontrollable, roaring laughter

5. Raze by Tillie Cole.
Another sad book. The story isn't hard to guess, really. But the way it has been worded is honestly hypnotizing. You can't just keep this book down. And when you're done with it, you want to read it again. You keep thinking about it for days that follow after you've read it. You just can't stop thinking about it. Is realistic, sad and touching. I thoroughly enjoyed my way to the epilogue. Thrice, if I may add.

6. Taking Chances by Molly McAdams.
I read this book a very long time ago. You can only guess how grand this book must have been if I still remember it. It's the story of chances, luck, date and masked emotions. It'll shell you off and strip you away of all emotional armor. It'll make bleed raw feelings. It's a piece of art, truly.

7. Beautiful Disaster by Jamie McGuire.
I might have already mentioned this book on my previous posts but believe me when I say that is worth mentioning again and again. It probably gives a new definition to when I say "emotional roller coaster". It's such a getting, syrupy story that just cannot let you keep the book down for breaks. I suggest this especially to my Indian friends who love a spicy, dynamic story that isn't stagnant for long. It's a beautiful book, worth a thousand words of appraisal.

A List Of Good Non-Romance Books

Whenever we pick up any novel, it has a romance aspect to it. Somehow, somewhere, there is always a love story. Now there is a huge difference between a romance novel and a book having romance in it. And in this blog post, I'm suggesting you readers some book that may, may not have romance in it but they are not entirely love stories.
Here goes.

1. Inferno by Dan Brown
I have always vouched for this man ( I have also given a deep consideration of building him a shrine). So any book by him will always be Number One on any non-romance list. Inferno is one of the best books that I have read. Clear, neat, resourceful, enlightening, gripping, tangling, exciting, everything about this book screams fan in making. So be sure to read this one.

2. Wuthering Heights.
Yes, it is basically romance outline but its really not. Its more like real life story with practicality thrown into it. The decisions and the thought processes in the book are what normal people would think, like not marrying the poor servant just because he's broody and hot (the two things female love). So, yes, I strongly recommend this one.

3. Carrie by Stephen King.
One of the most scary books I have read in a long time. It makes you think back of not only the times you may have bullied or been a part of bullying someone, but also the times when you stood there and watched. Because Carrie was full of hatred towards everyone who bullied her or watched offering no help. And then she practically burned them. So, yeah, I'd start helping the weak.

4. The Palace of Illusions by Chitra Banerjee Devakurni
This book is for everyone who blame Draupdi. The story is from the POV of Draupadi explaining clearly as to what lead to Mahabharata and how it affected her, I had not read any part of Mahabharata before this but this book alone cleared all my concepts, And I loved it, There was little superstition or magic in it, and more of real life and emotions. It was written in a brilliant manner that anyone could relate with Draupadi.

5. Gone Girl by Gillian Flynn.
I haven't read this book but I have read and heard so much about the sheer brilliance of it. It is siitng on the top of the books that I have to read. So I would suggest everyone to read this too. 

How Indian Authors Affect the Psyche of Today's Generation.

I chose to post a small blog entry on this seemingly innocent subject to bring it under careful scrutiny.
Most of us love reading. Especially fantasies. The captivating tones strewn together by hypnotic words that fill us up with whimsical, giddy joy! I can relate to that ecstasy. I'm an avid reader.

While books like historical period drama, profound meaningful philosophy and sacred anthologies I can cope up with, its the romantic fiction that not only infuriates me but also renders me speechless and agape in foolish astonishment.
The books are straight out, by-the-alphabet from the stlyes of a western author! The community, the scenarios, everything is what happens in their society, not ours. If you're heavily making out on the street, you WILL be frowned upon! You will be insulted, nobody will applaud at the beautiful declaration of love!

Maybe we have drowned ourselves in westernisation so wholly that we fail to recognize the arbitrary boundary that separates the culture that we seem to so carefully nurture. We are blissfully ignorant or the gruesome reality that our youth is hanging in the perpetual state of limbo.

Our origins and lifestyle is up in question! The Indian authors that who copy and/or draw their ideas out of western books are radically altering the fragile sense of reality, they are letting the youth out of the leash, letting them roam free of inhibitions, which is wrong in more fronts than it is correct. The youth seems to be stuck in the delusion that it is what happens in India, but really think, does it?
The more than obvious answer is a whopping NO. Its how they function, not us. We live differently and we should pride in it as well keep it living instead of ruling it out as old living.

How we can manage reading novels! ( Isn't that what you ask? )

Whenever i mention that I am a keen and weirdly active reader, the first question that someone pops up is how do I manage to read so much? Honestly, at first, I hated this question. I mean, it doesn't make sense. asking. Its almost like asking how do we watch television or how can we study for our exams. But then I understood that reading like a crazed person is something only a few people do. Its not all that common as I thought it to be.

So I am going to answer this universal question right here, for once and all. How do we readers manage to read so much. But just be prepared. Its difficult to explain. Or understand.

Do you have a passion? A feeling so strong that it literally takes your breath away? Do you have an addiction? Something you just cannot live without? Something you need, not just want. For us, its the books. We need books. We need to read. Its like an unjustified craze that we cannot shake off even if we try. Like men like sports. Like men detest chic-lit. Like drunkards love their alcohol. And like cracks need their kick.  Its just something we love, something we need to exist normally.

Besides reading is insightful. No, don't laugh, I'm serious. Believe it or not, we readers know what you're thinking right now. Not because we are mind reader, no. Because at some point, in some book, we have read the exact scene we are experiencing. We know what's going in your mind. We can read you, because we already have read you. We can empathize with a schizophrenic, or a person in love, a person who suffered heartbreak, and even an assassin. We can understand and reason why did they do what they did because we understand their desperation, we know how their minds work, we read and felt about their emotions.

Reading tells us about how the world works. I can sit in India and know all about the works of USA because the protagonist of my novel is a citizen there. I know how bad and merciless Afghanistan is, because the protagonist is a soldier. I know how difficult it is to live in poverty because the leading character of the novel fought and rose through it.

There are more than a billion reasons why I read like the world is coming to an end. Because we are humans. We are hungry for information. And books give us unlimited supply of information. We can be whatever we pick up. We can be doctor one day and a hired killer the other day. We can be a successful businessman whenever we want to and we can hunt for vampires, too. We have the liberty to be whatever we want to be, whatever we have ever wished to be. We can live the life we want to.

I know I sound like a totally deranged person but these are the few of the billion reasons why we love reading. Why we readers need our supply of books more than the next thing.

The odd genres we like with guilt

We readers are versatile when it comes to reading. We can read anything and everything that is successful in holding our interest. We can enjoy everything and we can bounce from one genre to another within minutes ( though I must say, skipping genres to genres in minutes comes off as a little difficult sometimes. Say, jumping from a mind of schizophrenic to one with a strong personality, its difficult) .

Anyway, there are a LOT of genres! Try browsing through the genres list in Goodreads. It'll astound you. And while there are some conventional genres, like contemporary romance or school romance or thriller, there are also genres which are a little different from the usuals, like taboo reads, dark, abuse, mental instability etc.

Like everyone, we have some favorite genres, which if we admit we like, makes us look a little bonkers.

First and the most odd genre that I personally like and I feel awkward admitting my obvious addiction to, is psychology. I absolutely LOVE reading books from the point of view of a mentally pertubed person, like a person suffering from Bi-polar disorder or schizophrenia or depression. I have read them all. And yes, I'll admit, I can totally relate with them. Recently I read "The Forgotten Girl" by Jessica Sorenson, which was about a girl with multiple personality disorder. I have read "The Bell Jar", "Unravel", "Perfectly Damaged", "Girl, Interrupted" and many more. Whenever I tell people that I love psychology books, they look at me like I'm wrong in the head myself. And then I have to go on giving elaborate explanations saying that these books are really, really insightful!

The othee genre I like and when I tell people, they look at me like I'm off my rockers, is Abuse. The books with those protagonists who have gone through true horrors of life. O have very simple reasoning for it. I think that romances with broken hearts as the biggest troubles are over rated. I prefer people who face terrible stuff that, is, in fact shakes us in our knees. Its reality, not some stupid fairy tale that makes is say "awh" and "boo-hoo". Some examples of this genre are "The Dark Duet", "Comfort Food", "Hopeless", "Tears of Tess" and books as such.

One other genre I really like reading is about Assassins and Hitmen. I know, I know, they are the "bad" guys. Why would anybody write books on them? The more important question is, why would anybody like these books?  But haven't you heard the saying "No one is born in darkness, darkness makes them dark." So, yes, I love reading their side of the story! Sue me. And I have read alot. It makes me understand why the bad people are bad. It gives me reason. It frees me from wondering why would a terrorist do what he did. Why would a person kill someone he did. These books make me understand the emotions behind the criminals. It makes me feel what they feel, reasonify their actions.

So, yeah, these are some of those genres that I enjoy but when I tell people, they plaster a smile and think of running away to the opposite direction! If you do know some other genres, feel free to drop a comment. Nobody here to frown upon your choices, I promise. 

Pains only a Rajasthan University student can understand

It all begins with the merriment and that goaded feeling when you're cleared for admission in this seemingly prestigious university. You think that its one of the best achievements! And it only intensifies when people arch their eyebrows, clearly impressed. Boy, the joy the being in Rajasthan University.
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But only we people know the truth behind it. Its all downhill from the first day. We are well aware of the trivial importance of attendance, and so we plan to forego it. But still, we need to be known! We want our lecturers to identify us, for that's the greatest conquest. Also, additional favors are just icing bonus! So we decide, we shall attend atleast two days of college in a week. Its a sweet bargain, yes? We have other things to worry about, anyway.
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And so we march on to the college gates. We are warmly welcomed by the sight of couples saying farewell at the main gates and street dogs prowling beyond the gates. Surprised? Not quite! Its just succeeded in widening of our eyes. We saunter casually to the reception, which we soon discover is filled with throng of antsy crowd. So we shrivel back and wait for some of them to go away. We're surprised at the number of people willing to attend classes even when attendance is never an issue.
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After hours of waiting for our turn, we rush forward, afraid that we'd be late for our first lecture. Only to find there is no lecture. Or even, by some divine luck, there is, we are free to enter and go as we please. Now that's surprising! We sit through the entire first day to find thay there are no lectures, no classes. We either skip college, in tow of our new friends or stroll to a canteen with kindergarten furniture. Bu the end of day 1, we decide to come back a few days later.
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Now, the sight after those few days, is a sight to behold. Abandonment. Quiet. Not a soul to be found. You find yourself worrying if there has been declared a holiday. So with a saddened heart, you return. And when you come back the next day, and the next, and the next to that, there is hardly any change in the vision of stranded desert. And it remains similar throughout the year.
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See, the giddy happiness that envelopes us at mere mention of no classes, soon turns into anguish. Desperation. We need classes! We need to know the name of our lecturers! We want a college life. The joy quickly turns into misery, where we thrive for one normal college day. When we watch television ads, we are enraged when they say "College life is so memorable!". We see shades of red when our batchmates put pictures on Facebook, smiling like a loon and adding captions of songs of appraisals of college. We sit in our canteen, slurping on RC Cola, look around and wonder - " Its great being in Rajasthan University, indeed."