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Book Review: Beyond the Ice Limit by Preston And Child
Beyond the Ice Limit by Douglas Preston
My rating: 4 of 5 stars
A much wanted sequel to a story that went full fledged downhill for all important characters.
I was hooked to the first part Ice Limit and its climax was an absolute banger. All important characters were simply tossed into the plot and played about mercilessly.
This sequel was good, well-researched and fast-paced as well.
The first 50 pages of theme setting and introducing some new characters were a dull drag. None of the new characters played a pivotal role to leave imprints in the readers’ minds.
As Gideon Crew became more involved with the story, it felt again like Eli Glinn is the actual protagonist and rest are all supporting characters. Gideon didn’t do anything remarkable or jaw-opening throughout the book.
The Baobab or the alien entity was the only character development intensely researched and put forward. The entity threatened us with every single scene it came into picture. It exuded enigmatic and an eerie presence and the fear of the unknown was always creeping steadily inside our heads.
The worm subplot causing complete mayhem inside the ship was up to a certain level entertaining, but I felt it was bit overdone and simply used to kill off all the supporting characters.
Climax was a complete let-down in the whole novel. The authors simply got tired with the plot that they decided to bring it to an abrupt good end. The nuke idea and the destruction of the Baobab, survival of the important characters like Gideon, Sam, Glinn, Garza was a bit far-fetched. A good read, overall.
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Book Review: How I made 2 million in the stock market by Nicolas Darvas
How I Made $2,000,000 in the Stock Market by Nicolas Darvas
My rating: 5 of 5 stars
I have always wanted to read a good stock market book by a self-made individual. Failure stories are all the more attractive because I can learn a lot from those. I didn’t expect this book also to contain so many of the author’s failures. The book had an interesting flow just like a suspense novel and at times when the chapter ends on a cliff-hanger, only here, it was true and not fiction.
His story made me gasp at several places and be in awe at others.
Salient points from my view –
1. The author was probably in his 30s when he is interested in stock market.
2. He seemed to have been a famous dancer, because I cannot fathom the amount of money he invested for the starting of his gambling period. Three grand during the 1952 made me choke a little.
3. His vision was unblurred because of the income being constantly generated one side and market was blossoming to be his passion flower.
4. So, he can focus on his career as well as this side hustle.
5. He had given unbelievable levels of dedication to this hustle during his world tour, living only with cables and a weekly magazine. Now, that’s impressive.
6. I love how he documented every single thing. The important trades during his journey of some 7 years. I can’t remember the trade I took three years back which wiped out my account, but I remember the mistakes I did.
7. The selection of stocks based on pure price action. Use of his box theory. Strict use of stop losses and importantly trailing the stops when your stock goes higher instead of randomly exiting a position.
8. Taking full advantage of everything the market, the exchange, the brokerage offers that could increase your position size without much spending like margin, discounts, stock split, right issue, etc.
9. Once confident with your theory and the right stock, we need to add considerable position (the risk) to reap in considerable rewards at the end. Stops can help you minimize losses.
10. He chose stocks that were active and high priced. So, when you are confident with the setup, don’t bargain like a beggar, buy and add position during rise. This directly clashes with the normal mindset of adding to your losses or averaging the losses – which may not turn out good.
A good book overall and I gained a lot of insights. I need to now sit and jot down the points that I think would need refinements for this modern era trading and investing, but his core belief and confident approach need not be changed!
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Book Review: Don’t believe everything you Think by Joseph Nguyen
Don’t Believe Everything You Think: Why Your Thinking Is The Beginning & End Of Suffering by Joseph Nguyen
My rating: 5 of 5 stars
The title is alluring which was why I decided to buy and read it. Thinking – sometimes our friend but mostly our enemy.
So, what has Joseph detailed in this book that prompted me to give 5 stars? I am not a huge fan of the self help category, but all the books that I have researched and then read proved to have some really good insights including this one.
The five stars is mainly for his brilliant, life-altering point that thoughts and thinking are not the same. I had no idea!
Thoughts are nouns and they just exist and arrive from the Universe or God. They are expansive and hence do not make us feel strained inside. Thinking however, is a verb, an unwanted action that arises from inside us that is our Ego, which is never good for anything.
Thinking consumes energy whereas thoughts not so much. Most of the battles that happen in our life are not external but internal ones which can be eradicated by this simple shift in mental programming.
Being calm, passionate, peaceful and joyful like a baby is actually our natural form. Anything else is a survival mechanism gone haywire inside our mind. So much unwanted thinking and resulting imaginations, emotional draining, stress and fear are due to this.
Just shift the gear inside to calm thoughts whenever mind slips back into negative thinking which can vary from doubts, fear to depression and self destruction.
I deeply pray that this insight should be etched in my heart and brain forever so that I can slowly achieve the state of “non-thinking” or the flow!
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Book Review: Ice Limit by Douglas Preston
The Ice Limit by Douglas Preston
My rating: 4 of 5 stars
The theme was classic “Douglas-Preston” style. A meteorite in a faraway island and a billionaire wants to have it. What could go wrong?
Everything!
The characters were all brilliantly developed – Lloyd, perfect billionaire energy who thinks anything and everything has a price; Glinn the elusive know-it-all, who was the key driver of the plot, McFarlane, the scientist to give the plot the required sci-fi angle, then the supporting characters like Sally, Rachel, the sudden rise of villainy with Vellanar all did justice.
Coming to the story, it was neatly written and enough research was done into the naval commands and theme. It was really good to read a fresh suspense thriller. I was unable to guess till the end whether the meteorite or so that seemed, will go to destination or not. The authors went berserk near the last 50 pages where, the sabotaged the whole character arcs and the complete buildup of the ship Rolvaag and the meteorite as the mission was going hopelessly sideways. Nature was too powerful and everything went as per its wishes.
Although my mind was ready for a twist in the climax, the way authors dropped it on me, was surreal. I enjoyed the blunt way in which whole novel collapsed into a kind of “anti-climax” and the shock from Sam’s dialogues invoked dread inside.
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புத்தக விமர்சனம்: சு.வெங்கடேசனின் வேள்பாரி 2
வீரயுக நாயகன் வேள்பாரி by Su.Venkatesan (Author) by சு.வெங்கடேசன் (Author)
My rating: 5 of 5 stars
இது போன்றதொரு அதிசிறந்த படைப்பை என் வாழ்நாளில் நான் வாசித்ததில்லை. ஒவ்வொரு பக்கமும் மயிர்க் கூச்செரியும் வண்ணம் சு.வெ அவர்களால் வடிக்கப் பட்டுள்ளது.
முதல் பாகத்தில் நிறைய “குல” விளக்கங்கள் இருந்தன. ஆனால், இதில், முதல் பக்கம் பற்றி எரிய ஆரம்பிக்கும் கதை இறுதி வரை தொடர்ந்தது.
போர்க் காட்சிகள் மட்டுமே முக்கால் பாகம் கொண்ட ஒரு புத்தகம் இதுவே. அதையும் மிகச் சிறப்பாக கையாண்டுள்ளார் ஆசிரியர். அவரது புனைவுக்கும் தமிழ் ஆளுமைக்கும் இனி நான் அடிமை. எவ்வளவு நுட்பமான கதை, நம்பகமான பாத்திரங்கள்!
பாரி, கபிலர், தேக்கன், முடியன், உதிரன், நீலன், பொற்சுவை, காலம்பன், கொற்றன், கீதானி, இராவதன் – இவர்களை எல்லாம் விட்டு மனம் எதார்த்த வாழ்விற்கு வருவதே பெரும் பாடு!
வேள்பாரி வாசிக்க அனைவருக்கும் கொடுத்து வைத்திருக்க வேண்டும்.
This is the first time in my life I am struggling with the deficiency of stars. This book deserves 10/5 stars if I have to be honest and the writer deserves all the literary awards this world has.
A brilliant thriller. An epic saga! Velpari and the people in this book are going to haunt anybody who reads for years to come!
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Book Review: Zero Day by David Baldacci
Zero Day by David Baldacci
My rating: 5 of 5 stars
Baldacci at it again! Among his different series, I have read reviews on John Puller ones are really good. So, I thought of buying the first one – Zero Day.
How was it? Well, a brilliant narrative first of all. Unlike other Baldacci novels, this one has a plotline that mostly sits on suspense rather than thriller. I loved the way he built the suspense enough to get to the final part.
Yet again an all powerful protagonist John Puller – his character portrayal was really impressive because this novel is mostly about him. He is left all alone to dig and solve a murder case which turns out to be a much bigger issue. Samantha Cole was a realistic character developed as the female lead and Baldacci builds romantic tension at places with very subtle and nuance writings that I adored it.
Coming to the plot – a terrorist tragedy unfolding in the final chapters which also goes for a twist at the end. Well researched and written. Choice of premise and the background of the place added more credibility to the plot. The people at higher echelons in the Pentagon simply dusting Puller away sounded more convincing of the politics in this field.
Suspense was well handled and broken once, twice and then at the last as well. The main culprit behind the whole issue was hated by me when the author revealed and though it was a cinematic showdown, I liked the climax. There is a nail biting sequence which made me hold my breath, only to realise that a beloved character tragically dies. It was heart-breaking arc.
Overall a great read for the year end.
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Book Review: The Psychology of Money by Morgan Housel
The Psychology of Money by Morgan Housel
My rating: 5 of 5 stars
I am a financial market enthusiast and a trader. After initial period, I immediately realised to survive this ocean of a field, your psychology should be in sync with the brain’s actions and rationales.
On seeing the name of the book, I immediately plunged at it. I was curious to know what the author had to offer.
And I was taken aback when I realised on every single page, wisdom and financial psychology was oozing. A practical and highly relatable stories and how psychology varies according to place, time and culture and nothing can ever be easily compared to the other in black and white.
This is a brilliant book and when I wanted to take notes or highlights, I was shocked to see after finishing the book, I had taken snaps of almost a quarter of the book. It was that good.
I am glad I bought this and read at a time when I am making big and important financial decisions involving my family. This is simply enlightening! A must-read for sure.
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Book Review: The compound effect by Darren Hardy
The Compound Effect by Darren Hardy
My rating: 3 of 5 stars
I actually recently became infatuated with the “compound effect”, not this book, but the actual phenomenon.
When I came across this book, I thought, “Wow! A title I wanted to know more of in terms of financial literacy”, and I bought it.
I got hooked to this book from the very first chapter. Darren explained flawlessly about the compounding effect, not only in financial world, but also in personal world – I never thought in that manner before at all. It was all plain, simple and overwhelmingly relatable but fantastically evading us through our life.
I got more interested when I learnt about negative compound effect – and you just need to give it time before it takes momentum and ruins your life for worse.
The second half of the book was pretty much like a self-help, boosting talk show. I didn’t get much out of it but the overall energy of this book is laudable. It gave me some clearer perspective into the choices and habits and thoughts we hold, that we don’t give much weightage, but are the ultimate reasons why we succeed or fail in life.
The littlest things matter most – this has never made so much sense before.
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Book Review: Intensity by Dean Koontz
Intensity by Dean Koontz
My rating: 4 of 5 stars
Dean Koontz is one of my recent favorite writers. He is the only writer that I love and admire in the psychological/horror thrillers.
He himself has mentioned that intensity was one of his best works, so I had to read it.
He was not wrong, the book is a benchmark for suspense thrillers. Absolute rendition of psycho-thriller with just two main characters and a usual plot, but considerable dedication into the character developments.
Chyna Shepherd, the protagonist was one of the best creations I have read and also a wonderfully convincing portrayal.
Edgler Foreman Vess, the antagonist, was unlike all the other psychopaths who used to have some form of a flashback in their past where they would have started to derail into this killing machinery. But, Vess was a different being. He’s a pure psycho who loves to kill just because he can and he wants to. No past trauma, no trigger points. Immaculately well-written character.
Now, the plot, a vulnerable and aversive protagonist vs a formidable and psychopathic antagonist.
From the very first page, the plot started burning through my fingers. It was all too good and ultimately suspenseful. Templeton’s house sequences could easily be the best suspenseful read where the readers are left hanging at every page.
When the flow of the plot turned the other way – when Vess knows about Chyna and she doesn’t know that he knows. Then the lion’s territory – My God! I could swear I was sweating during their face-off. The story moved at a definite pace of suspense.
Chyna’s escape plan and severely challenging maneuvers was mind-numbing. Ariel’s lost character was justifiable and the end of “holding on to hope” drove home the intended point.
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Book review: Price Action Trading T.A by Sunil Gurjar
Price Action Trading Technical Analysis by Sunil Gurjar
My rating: 4 of 5 stars
I simply bought this book because I had a book coupon on Amazon but it turned out to be a rather interesting choice.
As per many people’s reviews, this book offers beginner’s understanding and ways to tackle market during different trends and conditions.
I personally loved and learnt a lot from the stop losses strategies, trade positioning, various market patters and how to ride them as per our analysis.
All the theories apart, the case studies at the end (nearly 50) were more enlightening where the author had explained entry, target, stop-loss and exit for multiple case scenarios and different scripts as well.
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