Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets - J K Rowling (Book)

 

Book: 20/52.

Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets - J K Rowling.

My Rating: 5/5.

My 2016 thoughts on the book: Second book of the series and it is for sure better than the first one - more gripping, detailed, takes the reader deeper into the mysterious world of Wizards and Witches. Hilarious is the start of the book and fantastic is the way his friends let him escape from his terrible life yet again with the muggle family (Dursley's) back home especially the Flying Car. Harry Potter and his friends have now grown a little bit in this one with more knowledge of various tricks from the trade, more newer and wonderful characters are introduced in this one which takes the story one step forward but still "The Villain Voldemort" doesn't make a grand (read detailed) entry yet - still I was actually kept asking for more. This one tells us a little bit more about his dark past, the making of Voldemort and other dark secrets. Seriously books have changed my perception of Harry and his world in totality and thats for good. Movies may be visually more strong than the books but they aren't detailed as how much you can wrap up in mere three hours at the most. There were so many things that they had to skip in the movie in comparison with the book that one would end up loving the book definitely more. And as usual the very smart writer makes this one end right at a moment when one is looking forward to so much more that needs to be covered in the next part. I now very well know how the readers kept waiting for years to read the next part when it was all being written and released as I can definitely pick up the next part tomorrow as its already there in my book rack and thats precisely what I am going to do. One more thing that I noticed in the second book is that - it is written in such a smart way that just in case someone hasn't read the first one - it doesn't make a difference as this covers the most of it in the initial couple of chapters before taking the story forward. But if someone is reading all the books back to back - it’s kind of an irritant. But this things makes all of these books a good individual books.

2025: Nothing much has changed, I still loved it totally the way I loved it in my first read. It all comes gushing back to me as the story progresses. Pity those who still think these books are for kids. Let me see when I read them again :). 

Bridgerton 2 - The Viscount Who Loved Me - Julia Quinn (Book)

Book: 19/52.

Bridgerton 2 - The Viscount Who Loved Me - Julia Quinn.

My Rating: 5/5.

Book 2 from the much loved Bridgerton series of 8 books and I must say I totally enjoyed it as much as the first part and a little more. Julia Quinn has not only surprised me but also impressed big time by her imagination and writing prowess, kept me engaged till the very last page and so much so that I need to go on search of the third from the series at the earliest. This turns out to be the story of the eldest son from Bridgerton family - Anthony as they are all named in alphabetical order so one cannot miss the order at any point of time. The playboy of the family who for reason known to himself had decided that he will get married but will never love his wife. He is still attached to his dad who died about a dozen years ago leaving him as the man of the family. After taking care of all of them and much to his annoyance getting his eldest sister married to a Duke (the first book covers their story), he is now the most eligible bachelor of his own times. Enter the Sheffields family with two eligible daughters, elder one not so beautiful but intelligent but his heart is on the younger one who is beautiful and not so intelligent as that’s what he needs in his wife so he won’t fall in love with her. What happens next is the 350 page novel which superb twists and turns (at times unpredictable) but totally amazing, it was indeed a page turner. To know who he marries and why he doesn’t want to love his wife - you’ve got to read the book. It is funny, romantic, engaging, suspensive and so good that it kept me ploughing forward to know more. 

Do let me know which one is your favourite from the series if you have read them all and I must say that I am not liking the TV adaptation that much as they have taken severe liberties with characters and stories, so much so that I will call it a big screw up. 

 

Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone - J K Rowling (Book).

Book: 18/52

Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone- J K Rowling

My Rating: 5/5. 

My friend introduced me to Harry Potter a decade ago when I was lame enough to think that these were for kids :). He gave me all seven in one shot and when I told him that I might not like or finish the first one, he mentioned that if I started the first and end up finishing it in the dead of then night, I will be running to his place to get the second one. And let me tell you after a decade that nothing has changed, as I decided to read them again, I picked up all seven from a friend and started with the first one a few days ago, finished (and loved) it today and will be dashing to second right after I post this one. So the story goes in the first one about a wizard kid who survived a deadly curse, ends up in the school of magic. How he survives the first year of school, makes some amazing friends (and enemies too) is covered in a terrific and thrilling way in the first one. Initially I thought it might not work the way it worked the last time when I read it for the first time, but believe me you, it kept a wide smile on my face throughout and I am super glad that I am reading it again. Now looking forward to the second one big time at the earliest but will give it a traditional one book break in between. 

Also, not going to follow it up this time by watching the movie for sure. Do let me know which one is your favourite from the series if there is one that you would like to pick? Mine will always be The Half Blood Prince. 

 

The Duke and I (Bridgerton #1) - Julia Quinn (Book).

 

Book: 17/52.

The Duke and I (Bridgerton #1) - Julia Quinn.

My Rating: 5/5.

I have told my favourite nephew to put a gun to my head and force me to watch a movie or a TV series that he likes and wants me to watch at the earliest. This was one of those episodes where I end up finding a gem of a series (at least to start with), followed by a much-loved (I believe) TV series, which, as of now, I am not liking very much (two episodes done now). But the book is a breeze to read, especially the Duke and his love interest, the eldest Bridgerton sister. Hilarious is the entire family of Bridgertons, starting with the eldest kid with alphabet A leading till H, so we know who is who from the family and never forget the hierarchy in the first place. I am finding it comical yet very entertaining to keep track of the entire family when it comes to their names and mentions. The purpose of Violet Bridgerton's (the mother) life is to get her Sons and Daughters married at the earliest to the right partners (especially the girls, whatever age they may be). First book is a love story but with a twist and a big secret of the duke as why he can’t marry or father any chidlren to take his line forward. If you are a big-time Bridgerton fan, let me tell you that I was introduced to Queen Charlotte first by my nephew through the terrific TV series of the same name, and then I was allowed to read the books on the Bridgerton family. Now that I am hooked to the series at least in the bookish way, I need to get the remaining seven from the same series and read them at the earliest, as the Fourth adaptation of the book into a TV series is right around the corner. The only thing that surprised me while reading and watching the series is the Duke; there is no mention of him being black in the book, while his picture on the book cover is of the same guy playing in the TV series, and he is black for some reason. 

Do let me know if you have read The Duke and I or any other series from Ms Quinn, as I believe she has written almost 30+ books so far, more or less all of them are regency novels. 

Becoming - Michelle Obama (Book)

Book: 16/52.

Becoming - Michelle Obama

My Rating: 5/5.

Another book that was donated to my office library by a colleague as we were building a good collection. And I must say that it turns out to be a surprisingly amazing book. I didn't have many expectations for it anyway, as written by the First Lady of the US (former President Barack Hussein Obama’s wife), but I was keen on knowing more about the first black president of America, hence I picked it up as soon as the opportunity struck. Impeccable writing and terrific flow of their life story, this entire book is written in the first-person account from Michelle Obama (a Princeton and Harvard graduate) and narrates in its entirety the making of a President from a non-immigrant to the US of A. I never imagined that their story could be this heart-touching, especially Michelle’s life back in Chicago from her toddler days to going to Harvard and meeting Obama in her law firm to their falling in love, marriage, becoming first lady, kids, and so much more. I loved the way she incorporated all the events of five decades in her story and still made it up like a proper thriller (not exaggerating), I simply couldn’t put the book down as it was indeed that good to read. But now that I have finished and loved it, I am looking forward to reading the first one written by Barack himself during his initial days, which wasn’t a great success till he became the most powerful man in the world and that too twice in a row. It also gives quite an insight into the White House (an eye opener), other former presidents, as well as the one who succeeded him, but also adds a chapter on Queen Elizabeth, her outlook and her Buckingham Palace (that was hilarious to read). Seriously, I didn’t expect that she would capture so much in this mere 400-page book and was totally surprised by the plethora of information that I was able to grasp from it. This could be called an authentic biography of Mr Obama in the first place. 

Do let me know if you have read this one or any of her other books. I would love to give them a try, as I loved this one big time.