There's Something About You - Yashodhara Lal

Title: There's Something About You
Author: Yashodhara Lal
Publisher: Harper Collins India
Tentative Release date: July 15th 2015 (Preorder @ Flipkart - Get 25% off)
Language: English
No. Of Pages: 268 pages

Lal's 'There's Something About You'  is the story of 28 year old - overweight, underachieving and unattached - Trish who's life comes crashing down when she is fired one day. As they say, there's no way but up, the chicklit follows Trish as she is forced to "get off [her] butt and do something about [her] problem[s]."

"After all, it was a fake-it-till-you-make-it kind of world. Especially if you were a single twenty-eight-year-old woman with two dependent parents and no job in the unforgiving city of Mumbai."

Trish's problems in varying levels of priority:

• Unemployment (hence, impending money problems)
• an unwell father (+medical bills), 
• a sharp tongued mother,
• a psycho psychic love interest,
• an over-dramatic neighbour/best friend (+kid who needs to be babysat),
• temperamental maid,
• and a bitchy new boss,
• minor problems incl. weight (Etc.)

While the story is intended to be a love story, evident from the cover and blurb, the main plotline revolves more around Trish's day-to-day issues rather than her love interest. Sahil, a potential match, makes fleeting appearances now and then and his relationship with the protagonist progresses dramatically between each arrival. Their relationship is endearing but, largely unexplored. Instead, you can expect to read more about the transformation of Trish's life from ordinary to extraordinary.

Trish's father is the most engaging character, providing relief from Trish's unending whining and her mother's constant complaining. As much as the author has tried to make Trish relatable, the protagonist remains disconnected from the reader as she often comes across as rude, impetuous and selfish.

"Dear DD,
There comes a time in every woman's life when she has to decide to grow up."

'There's Something About You' is not an unfamiliar plotline but, it is weaved in a way that is refreshing. It is a transformative tale that touches upon a variety of feelings that women go through in their life; it is a story of a modern woman making her own way. An absolute one-time read, I will recommend this book for hardcore chicklit lovers.

Post Script: Also recommended because Flipkart is offering an absolute deal on the book and you might just win a Micromax phone on preorder. (Click here to view Deal)

Other books by this author: 'Just Married, Please Excuse' and Sorting Out Sid

ReviewThisWeek: Krrish 3 [Spoiler]

I've done this before. I have commented on movies starring my favourite actors and here I am again but this time, I am more upset than anything. I love Hrithik Roshan. He carries himself well; acts well and looks good. But, he upsets me at times because he doesn't do enough movies. He upset me even more with his Krrish franchise.

It all began with Koi Mil Gaya, a story of an abnormal child who is given superpowers by an alien played by ofcourse Hrithik Roshan. Then came Krrish 2 and not only did Hrithik Roshan reprise his role from his earlier film but also, played the role of his own son. Now, I enjoy double roles sometimes but this one just pissed me off. AND then last week, we saw the release of Krrish 3 in which Hrithik continued his role of the son of the abnormal-turned-intelligent father who became the superhero called (you might've already guessed) Krrish. I so wish the only problem with Krrish 3 (forget the previous films or this post might never end) was that Krrish's father was never invited for his birthday party but it isn't. There's more...alot more.

Although I have immense respect for the Roshans and SRK, for trying to create Indian superheros in a market where the masses literally worship the English superheros and don't appreciate the Indian ones but Krrish 3 is a clear rip off. I have seen Spiderman, X-Men, Superman, Batman and Iron Man way too many times to not realise where they've copied from. For those who argue against me, what are the odds that they came up with a mutant stuck on the wheelchair and able to control objects with his mind on their own? (Charles Xavier anyone?)

There is a very implausible story line and can we stop with the family genetics and hierarchy already? I can't believe that they didn't bother to explore the Alien storyline because aliens just help humans and leave, don't they? (duh!) The songs are too atrocious for me to even comment upon. I'm still confused about Krrish's powers...can he fly? Can he jump? WHAT CAN HE DO? The graphics were way to fake at some moments especially the airplane scene.

I loved Hrithik Roshan in Jodha Akbar, Zindagi Na Milege Dobara, Dhoom 2, Kaho na Pyaar hai and many more but I cannot believe that the father-son duo sat down and gave Krrish 3 a go after watching the movie in its entirety. All I can hope is that there will NOT be a Krrish 4 because I haven't yet gone into the depths and details of the problems of Krrish 3 yet. I sincerely wish that Hrithik will move on to act in other great movies. For now I give Krrish 3 1/5 stars (for attempting VFX).

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Thanks for reading!

ReviewThisWeek: Inferno (No Spoilers)

This month saw the release of Dan Brown's latest addition to the Robert Langdon series. For those of you unaware of this series, please do go ahead and settle yourselves down with either : The Da Vinci Code, Angels&Demons and The Lost Symbol. If not, you might also enjoy Deception Point or Digital Fortress which are equally good. Now, I am a huge Dan Brown fan but, I want to make it clear at the outset that Inferno was disappointing to say the least.

The book begins with Professor Langdon waking up in Florence with no recollection of the last 48 hours. The first half is nail-biting and a real page-turner. The suspense is beautifully maintained as the reader joins Langdon in his journey of discovery. The arrival of Dr Sinskey, however, in the main story line spelt disaster; from there the books commences into a downward spiral. The story unravels almost dashing the hopes and desires and expectations of the reader. Instead of something incredible, the suspense unfolded as a case of, what can be named, as a less well-thought of end. Inferno has tons of information that makes the reader marvel at the author's in depth knowledge as well as his ability to blend comfortably into the flow of the story. It seems, around halfway, that Brown lost the plot or grew to tired of finding links back to all the incidents and separate pieces of knowledge. The end is extremely anti-climatic and almost makes the entire book seem pointless.

Moreover, the editing of the book acts like the incessant buzzing of a fly; floating about at the back of the reader's minds and providing as a source of constant irritation. It seems that large chunks of absolutely unnecessary information is spread out throughout the book which could easily have been edited out had the editor done his job properly. Furthermore, the grammar and the overall structure especially of individual sentences were both lacking and juvenile. Standards, that had been set very high with the The Lost Symbol, a book which I thoroughly enjoyed, fell drastically; enough to make me want to pull out my hair at the inadequacy of specifically the first few chapters. (Or better, smack the silly editor's face with the ginormous hard bound book.)  Had the editor focused himself, the book needn't have been as thick and long as it was.

I had expected so much more from someone so accomplished as Dan Brown himself. He has established himself as one of the few authors who still take into consideration a wider audience which includes the young adults, a group seriously lacking quality material to read. The plot of Inferno stagnated and the story became as unappealing as the cover, which to be honest - I am not a huge fan of. On the bright, the first half of the book was indeed incredible, sending chills down my spine as I hurried through page after page. The concept of the book was one that was very interesting and had huge amounts of relevance in today's world.
Still, the faults of the book far outweigh the successes, and so I will give it only a total of 1.5 / 5 stars.

Till next time-  #keepreading #lotsoflavh #believe

ReviewThisWeek: Star Trek - Into Darkness

So which of you are Star Trek fans? Then you must have found yourselves siting in the best seat in the cinema, with the tinted 3D glasses on and a tub of popcorn in your hand on the first day of the release of Star Trek: Into Darkness. This time, it came back better than ever with the genius super villain being none other than the fantastic Benedict Cumberbatch from the hit TV series, Sherlock.

This film has a long legacy that this part in particular borrowed greatly from. To an extent, you must at least know who Khan Noonien Singh is. His character was borrowed from the Star Trek TV series and second Star Trek movie, The Wrath Of Khan. Khan is a genetically modified superhuman from India who has an extensive involvement in the adventures of Captain James T. Kirk and crew of starship, 'Enterprise'.

The role of Khan was played breathtakingly by Cumberbatch who brought the screen alive by his inhumane evilness. Of course, Chris Pine and Zachary Quinto reprised their roles as Kirk and Spock and continued to entertain us with their love-hate relationship. The action, drama, filming and acting were out of this world and kept the audience hooked till the very last second. Personally, I felt the story felt slightly short however the best scene of the film was the fight between Spock and Khan atop a moving vehicle. We see Spock's human side in his love for Kirk and as the drama unfolds with the death and revival of Captain Kirk, the audience is almost left hanging of their seats in amazement.

I highly recommend watching the film if you haven't already seen it. The legacy of Star Trek continues...and I give this film 4/5 stars

Till the next time :D

"Space: the final frontier. These are the voyages of the star ship Enterprise. Its five-year mission: to explore strange new worlds, to seek out new life and new civilizations, to boldly go where no man has gone before." 

ReviewThisWeek: IRON MAN 3 [spoiler]

Hi guys!
Okay so I am a HUGE Robert Downey Jr fan and subsequently an Iron Man fan, the third installment of which released only last week! I was really excited but also, a tad bit apprehensive specially since, there was a giant furor on its release. Usually, sequels create massive anticipation but never live up to the standards. On the contrary Iron Man 3 was absolutely fantastic!

There was a genuine story! This is a huge problem with movies nowadays - the lack of a good script. The film had a really good plot which was  maintained till the end and wasn't abandoned half way through the film. Furthermore, there was enough action AKA boom pow phew for the people looking forward to good action sequences. What was absolutely brilliant here was the twist in the story with the Mandarin only being the face of the villainous side. On the contrary, he was only a goofy, drug-addicted theater artist [Played by Ben Kingsley]. It provided a hilarious new aspect to the film. Some people might have felt that a few things seemed slightly inconceivable but, what was kept in mind during the production of the film was that this was post-Avengers, which means post-two gods and an army of aliens, movie.

The acting was absolutely fantastic and what a treat to see Gwynth Paltrow in a deeper role, especially in an action sequence which is hard to come by for female actors. It was nice to see the actual relationship between Pepper Potts and Tony Stark, a superhero. The fact that Pepper was not a trophy wife or girlfriend, a recurring theme in most superhero films, was a fresh and more respectable perspective.

In contrast, I did feel that the 3D feature was quite unnecessary and I could have enjoyed the film equally without the uncomfortable dark-tinted glasses nonetheless, it did not pull away from the film in anyway. In my opinion, the most spectacular scene was the entry of the #42 Iron Man suits as an Iron Man army in themselves. The technological advancements and especially, J.A.R.V.I.S found new respect from me.

With all the guaranteed witty dialogues, due to the presence of RDJ, and a fantastically relatable aspect, I will  give Iron Man 3 - 5/5 stars 

Anyway, I will be reviewing any book/movie/song/tv show once a week so feel free to suggest anything that you might want me to review. Till next time....#YouKnowWhoIAm #keep flying


P.S: Leave a comment to tell me how you felt about this update. #lotsoflavh