Tag: thrillers

TV Serials

“Aarya”

At this stage on my life, I have the luxury of having time on my hands. This led me to seeing a lot of television serials. It was from a show Sunday Brunch with Sushmita Sen by Kamiya Jani of Curly Tales fame that I first got to know of Sushmita Sen’s venturing into her digital debut. Naturally, we knew of her as Miss Universe 1994 and a Bollywood actress after that.

“Aarya” the serial she starred in as the female lead got her the award for Best Actress Female at the Filmfare OTT Awards. The serial got much acclaim running for 3 whole seasons. These had 25 episodes fwhich aired from 2020 to 2024. A nomination for the International Emmy Awards for Best Drama series followed.

I was prompted to watch Aarya on JioHotstar. Watching this in 2025, I certainly had a lot of catching up to do! I soon got pretty interested in the show and saw all 3 seasons over several months. Sometimes I saw many episodes together, at other times there was along gap and I had to figure out where I had left off in the rather complex story. The story was interesting. I heard it was adapted from a Dutch drama series.

In my view, Sushmita acted well overall in a role which suited her- suave and sophisticated . Yet the story line seemed uncharacteristic of her – transitioning from being a home maker and mother of three kids to being a drug smuggling don. After an excellent start in Season 1, I saw a sameness in her acting. I wish she had been shown to be more vulnerable- and therefore more human! Her pet theme that mothers would go to any extent to protect their children rang hollow after some time. Yes, they would by and large! However, how many mothers would they take up drug smuggling in a big way in association with international gangs? How many mothers would kill or get people killed left and right?

It is true that in life some people do get good breaks from time to time. In this series all the chips were in Aarya Sareen’s favour . Episode after episode saw her win against the hapless ACP Khan. One felt almost sorry for the bumbling Khan – the last straw being that even Aarya’s kids called him by name as if he was some domestic servant of theirs and not a senior officer of the Narcotics Control Bureau. To add insult to injury, the director dwelt at length about Khan’s personal life which ultimately didn’t add any value to the story one way or the other. In another surprise, I thought the director was silent on the real story between the ever faithful Daulat and Aarya.

The violence and gore quotient was quite high all through the series but that was only to be expected. The story was gripping in many parts and the photography and screen play was of a consistent high standard.

If you like action packed thrillers, you will enjoy watching Aarya. Naturally, I have not spoken much about the story. Be prepared for some amount of complexity with many characters in the fray.

Authors, Book Reviews

“Wolf Six” by Alex Shaw

If you are a top rated assassin available for hire, you are bound to deal with violence- and lots of it. “Wolf Six” is the code name of Ruslan Akulov, a top rated assassin. He is a master in his field of work, his services are sought by many and his work takes him to different parts of the world. Naturally, “Wolf Six” by Alex Shaw has violence, more violence and still more violence splashed all over its pages.

Alex Shaw is an active member and contributor to the International Thriller Writers Organisation and the Crime Writers Association. He was shortlisted for the Wilbur Smith Adventure Writing Prize in 2021.

The fast-paced thriller sees action in the United States, Cuba, and Ukraine as Akulov carries out his latest assignment for a client in the United States. He is no stranger to the Ukraine being from that country though he spent most of his formative years in Russia. As a young man he was selected for “The Werewolves” then Russia’s most coveted Special Forces, serving there with distinction for many years. He honed his skills as a sharpshooter and learnt much about the field craft of a sniper during this phase of his life.

The book has many twists and turns. It brings out the incredible amount of intrigue that goes on behind the scenes in international gang warfare. Shaw has a crisp, direct and hard-hitting style of writing. I am sure you will enjoy the book if, like me, you look forward to fast-paced action thrillers.

I was happy to hear that “Wolf Six” is the first in a series of books being published by Alex Shaw. My best wishes go out to him! Cheers to you, Alex!

Authors, Book Reviews

“Nine Minutes Eleven Seconds” : L V Pederson

Firstly, hearty congratulations to L.V. Pederson for writing such a blockbuster of a debut thriller. “Nine Minutes Eleven Seconds” is the title of Pederson’s fast- paced novel published in January 2025. Guess what? Pederson worked as a film censor in Canada and a script writer in Hollywood, apart from being an entrepreneur and innovator! He brings all these experiences to bear in this thriller which I enjoyed reading!

The story begins with a young, attractive lady called Madison Maxwell joining Know Inc, one of the most renowned tech firms in the world. This, of course, is situated in the Silicon Valley. Madison wants to put her past life at Boston behind her- to make a fresh start in a place which seems so promising. She feels this firm and her position as Executive Assistant to the Vice President would fulfil her career dreams. The plot of the story that unravels is crisply woven together with apt back stories. This makes for very exciting reading.

Shortly into the job, Madison comes across people who are totally different from who they at first appear to be. She comes across several mysteries in that firm which folks don’t talk about. Circumstances force her into situations which test her endurance to the limits. To complicate matters further, there is a deeply personal angle from her past which resurfaces to haunt her.

The story brings back to the reader memories of that unforgettable tragedy- the 9/11 terror attacks on the United States. It is a gripping story which you must read for yourself! Highly recommended.

Authors, Book Reviews

“The Blood of Patriots and Traitors” by James A. Scott

At the outset, let me say that this is an advance review of a book scheduled for publication in February 2023. “The Blood of Patriots and Traitors” ( an interesting title to start with!) is by James A. Scott, the author of “The President’s Dossier” and this too is published by Oceanview Publishing of Sarasota, Fl. By the way, “The President’s Dossier” was awarded the Best Thriller/Adventure Novel at the American Book Fest in 2020.

Maxwell Geller is a former CIA officer who has had considerable success in his career, especially on the Moscow front. He is pretty much forced to come out of semi-retirement to accept a challenge which will take him back to Moscow. His assignment is to bring out a defector who has extremely valuable secrets which the CIA is desperate to get. The defector has asked for him by name based on his reputation in Moscow.

This fast paced thriller is absorbing as it is full of action. It starts with how Geller is compelled to accept this assignment as he basks in the sunshine on a Sydney beach. Things move very rapidly and the events described hold your attention from start to finish. Geller goes about his task with many twists and turns coming his way. It is one thing for him to know whom to contact and quite another to know whom he can trust. The book has a number of interesting characters. As is to be expected, some of them are not whom they appear to be. In the murky world of espionage and spying, as you can imagine, there are many ways of making someone change his/her mind and allegiance.

James A Scott has a good grasp of plotting a story and delivering it with aplomb. I am sure “The Blood of Patriots and Traitors” will be well received when it is published. Keep a lookout for this book. It is worth a read!

Authors, Book Reviews

“The Girl Who Lived” by Christopher Greyson

I was reading a thriller after quite some time. This one was, ” The Girl Who Lived ” by Christopher Greyson. I found it quite interesting though at times there was a lot of repetition. The author hammered home points building the the character of Faith Winters in the story of four murders that took place years ago in a small town in America. She was the survivor- and of course- “the girl who lived”.

Faith’s traumatic experiences are chronicled in great detail. As one reads more of the story, the reader develops a soft corner for her as she is very much the underdog. She has spent time in a mental asylum, has problems of drugs and alcohol. As a consequence her mind is pretty messed up. Yet one part of her mind ceaselessly tries to assemble the bits of the puzzle that is driving her crazy: a huge need to find out what actually happened that day years ago when her sister, her father and two others were killed in mysterious circumstances in a cottage in the woods.

She returns to that town when she is discharged from the mental asylum, determined to find a closure on what has been bugging her for years. She has no one she can trust. Her dead sister’s boyfriend is in the local Police force. He tries to help Faith but she is not sure how much she can confide in him. Her relationship with her mother continue to be strained. Her mother has written a best selling book about the murders. This angers Faith who believes the has cashed in on a family tragedy.

In the course of the story, Faith is driven to desperation, enough to make her contemplate ending her life. However, she stumbles on from one clue to another. It then dawns on her that while she is looking for the killers, someone is hunting her down! She must find the killers before they kill her to silence her forever.

The book leaves you with an interesting climax! Greyson’s thriller is well worth the time and money you spend reading it.

Authors, Book Reviews

“The Hit” by David Baldacci

If you like action-packed thrillers, you will enjoy, “The Hit” by David Baldacci, an acclaimed writer in this genre. The book begins with a gripping account of how a handler for the CIA, Doug Jacobs is literally shot on the job. He is killed as he directs his sniper to shoot an assigned target. Suspicion falls on Jessica Reel,  a former sniper expert in the Agency who has gone rogue. The case is assigned to Will Robie, known far and wide to be the best in his trade. Robie has to find and stop Jacobs’s killer.  Continue reading ““The Hit” by David Baldacci” →

"Let The Dead Stay Dead"

A Beta Reader On “Let The Dead Stay Dead”

I value Divakar Kaza’s opinion a lot as regards books as he is both a voracious and discerning reader. I had sent him a copy of the manuscript of my third thriller, ‘Let The Dead Stay Dead” for his comments. He was the first to see my earlier two thrillers, “It Can’t Be You” and “Lucky For Some, 13.”

Continue reading “A Beta Reader On “Let The Dead Stay Dead”” →

On Writing: Resources for Writers

Tips for Writers from Mike Wells

There is no finish line in writing. That’s what makes it so fascinating for me. You can improve all the time, whether you are a novice or a published author. The objective of most writers is to have their stories published. This process is, as you will find out if you haven’t done so already, is a long one and is by no means as easy as it sounds.  Today, I share a few articles that caught my attention on this topic from Mike Wells, in his website/blog Mike Wells Books/The Green Water Blog.  Continue reading “Tips for Writers from Mike Wells” →

"It Can't Be You", "Let The Dead Stay Dead", "Lucky For Some, 13"

Evolving As A Writer

I was reflecting the other day on how I have evolved as a writer over the last few years that I have been deeply involved in writing.  When I wrote “It Can’t Be You” my debut novel, I had no idea how it would all end but I vastly enjoyed an incredible new experience of writing a story and getting a book published.

On reflection, a few thoughts about the writing of “It Can’t Be You.”

Continue reading “Evolving As A Writer” →

On Writing: Resources for Writers

What Makes Me Write?

I used Grammarly to grammar check this post, because 763,909 people from all over the world like their Facebook Page , and hey, all of them must have found some value in it, just as I did!

What makes me write? What makes me write every day? These are the reasons why I started writing as a second career after 35 years as a business executive, the last 10 of them being an independent consultant and executive coach. Continue reading “What Makes Me Write?” →