The Affair(2011) by Lee Child, Genre: Action/ Mystery, Pages:526, 4/5

It started with Batman Begins, this journey of the person discovering the superhero in him. It continued with Casino Royale, X men origins: Wolverine and the ilk. Taking inspiration from the trend, Lee Child takes us sixteen years back to 1997 and to the case whose culmination made Reacher resign from the army and become the maverick loner Jack Reacher. 

A woman is found murdered with her throat cut behind a bar in rural Mississippi. There is a military base near the place. The army wants to control the blow back from the incident and hence sends the trusted major Reacher to keep tabs on the local law enforcement. 

The sheriff is a supremely beautiful woman Elizabeth Deveraux. Her investigation has led her nowhere so far. 

After the initial distrust, Reacher and the sheriff predictably start working together to catch the killer.

Narrated in the first person by Reacher, this is one of the best books which Lee Child has written. 

The altercations between Reacher and some of the locals are preceded by dialogues which drench with sarcasm. Reacher humiliates his opponents with words which are extremely funny. They are so well written that the reader would end up wishing that the fight never transpires and the verbal exchanges keep on continuing.

The violence, when it happens, is absolutely brutal and described vividly. Those with a fertile imagination would be able to see Reacher land punches with remarkable clarity due to the language used by Mr. Child.

The whodunit part is also well done. It is not as good as “Gone for Good” or “One Shot”. But still, the reader won’t feel disappointed with the denouement.

The sex scenes are well written and you may find yourself reaching for your zipper to do the needful after reading some of them. 

Reading this again brought back to me the casting disaster which was Tom Cruise as Reacher. 

Reacher has been a hard ass from his childhood and that is well brought out by the short story Second Son which is provided after the end of the book. The review for the same can be read at http://readthenwatch.blogspot.in/2013/07/second-son2011-by-lee-child-genre.html.

Reacher has become an integral part of my life due to the excellent books written by Child. He is slowly acquiring mythical status due to his cool quotient and this book does no harm to his reputation.

Thank you, Jeeves(1934) by P. G. Wodehouse, Genre: Humor, Pages: 263, 4/5

Bertie has offended Jeeves in a number of ways. His mustache, his gaudy shirts and his choice of girls have always left Jeeves’ sensibilities rattled. Here, the quintessential gentleman’s gentleman is left cold by Wooster’s far from perfect handling of the banjo. So, in the very first chapter of the book, Jeeves gives notice to Wooster and the employee employer bond is severed.

Bertie, meanwhile, is invited by his old friend Chuffy to spend time in the countryside. He gladly accepts thinking that he would be able to play the instrument unimpeded. Jeeves ends up being hired by Chuffy.

Chuffy is a shy giant and is unable to profess his love to the lady of his dream who happens to visit him along with her father for purchasinging Chuffy’s palatial house.

The Woosters, as Bertie keeps on repeating, can go to any length for their friends. Upholding this age old tradition, Bertie thinks of a hot plan to make Chuffy confess to the girl he loves, Ms. Pauline. He decides to kiss her so as to make Chuffy realize the foolishness of procrastination. However, she happens to have been previously engaged to Bertie and all hell soon breaks loose creating a truly knotty situation which only Jeeves can resolve.

I have exhausted my vocabulary praising Wodehouse. I don’t think his genius can be analyzed threadbare. Suffice it to say that this is another winner in a truly distinguished writing career.

Wodehouse makes me feel giddy and glad. I become giddy savoring the way he uses English. His choice of words and the style in which they are arranged to describe even the most mundane incident in a novel and hilarious way has seldom disappointed. I am glad because I know the language. His work is one which, in my humble opinion, cannot be translated, either into a different language or for the big screen. The series Bertie and Wooster is not a patch on the books.

If you want to be transported into a different, better and funnier world, pick up a Wodehouse book today. This is unalloyed joy and has to be read to be believed.

The Zombie Survival Guide(2004) by Max Brooks, Genre:Humor/Horror/Self Help, Pages:249, 4/5

How does a person turn into a zombie? Which is the best weapon for killing a zombie? How can you get physically ready to battle the undead? How can you make your house ghoul proof? How will you be able to survive in a world which has been overrun by them in the millions? Did you know that Srinagar witnessed a Zombie attack in 1996 but it was covered up under the guise of an infiltration bid?

Max Brooks, the author of the absolutely mind blowing World War Z, answers all these questions with a seriousness and intensity which would leave the reader rattled. 

Divided into chapters which begin from the very origin of the Zombie myth, the narrative races through chapters detailing the expected and the ideal human response during the fight and the flight modes.

The last bit, which covers almost seventy pages, is all about the recorded Zombie attacks. Starting from 60,000 B.C., Brooks recounts incidents up till 2002. 

It actually took me a while to really involve myself in the book. However, the chapter about the flight mode made me sit up and after that it was a stunning read till the end.

Brooks unveils his rapier like sense of humor (inherited, perhaps, from his father, the great Mel Brooks) on nearly every page and the reader would laugh out loud, both from reading (and in some cases, rereading) these gems and because of the relief they bring to what is actually a grim read about a near impossible vision of the future. 

This is a blockbuster debut by Monsieur Max. 

Brooks is obviously passionate about Zombies. The level of research he has done and the amount of thought which has gone into the book is evident from the content list itself. It is always a pleasure to read the first book of an author who has recently become a favorite. Please read this and World War Z to explore the pleasure and the pain of the undead.

The Conjuring(2013) , Genre: Horror/Thriller, Run tie: 107 minutes, 4/5

 It has been a really long time since I saw a matinee show. It has been since forever that a horror movie has given me the creeps in the morning.

"The Conjuring" is directed by James Wan. It has garnered universal praise from critics and audience alike and has proved a surprise hit at the US box office by earning more than 100 million dollars so far on a budget of 13 million. I was, hence, all pumped up to watch this.

However, I have seen the other flicks directed by Wan and his filmography is kind of a mixed bag.

"Saw" has been one of my favorite thrillers of all time. "Death Wish" was exhilarating due to Kevin Bacon's superb performance. "Insidious" and "Dead Silence" were pretty lame. His chequered track record kind of dampened my enthusiasm. So it was a cautious Dushyant who decided to view thos on his birthday.

It begins with the demonologist/psychic Warren husband-wife duo talking to three people about a doll who has been infested by a malevolent spirit. There are scenes which show the couple giving lectures about ghosts and spirits.

There is a parallel track about a family of seven which settles into a new home. The house is extremely cold, there is rancid smell pervading the air and the youngest daughter has become friends with an invisible entity.

The family discovers a cellar by chance. Little do they know that all hell is about to break lose.

Slowly, the haunting begins to pick up momentum and every family member is terrorized.

They go and ask for Warrens' help and hence begins what the Warrens acknowledged in their files as their most terrifying encounter with the dark side.

It is not as if this movie is based on an original concept. It contains cliches galore. However, it does these cliches extremely well.

The movie has minimal gore,no nudity or profanity. However, the MPAA had good reason to give this a R rating because of its scare quotient.

The terror keeps on mounting. The scares come thick and fast. The sounds are used expertly to creep out the viewer.

The acting is pretty good. However, this belongs to the director. Wan uses the camera expertly to heighten the suspense. I could swear there were entire sequences wherein the audience was collectively holding its breath waiting for the denouement.

This is the first English movie this year which I have seen on the big screen. It rarely happens that I get to recommend any to my readers because by the time I watch a flick, it is already available on blue ray. So I would wholeheartedly recommend to please go ahead and watch this in the theaters. Trust me, this is definitely among the best horror movies of this millennium.