Hunger Games by Suzanne Collins

"Let the Hunger Games begin." A book focusing on Katniss Everdeen of District 12 of Panem which is built in the ruins of futuristic North America. Each year for the last seventy four years the Hunger games are held, each district of Panem (12 districts ) sends in two tributes to participate in the hunger games (one boy and one girl determined by a lottery) for a fight to the death in an arena which consists of mountain ranges, forests, lakes and a golden horn containing supplies for the games. Katniss Everdeen volunteers for the games as the original lottery picked her younger sister, Primrose as a tribute, Katniss could not watch her sister die, thus she volunteers for the games along with the baker's son, Peeta. They are then whisked off to the Capitol by their coach Hymitch and assistant Effie. On reaching the Capitol Katniss meets her designer Cinna and his team of stylists. Haymitch creates a strategy that Katniss and Peeta have to use in the arena and around to impress people and get extra sponsorship, they have to act as if they are star-crossed lovers who cannot bear to kill each other. After weeks of hard training Katniss and Peeta are ready to fight. In the Arena, it's a necessity to stay alive, but Katniss can't bring herself to kill tributes; she is not a murderer, is she? At the end, it's a fight to the finish with suprises, new alliances, and deaths. Can the star-crossed lovers stay alive by defying the Capitol?


This book is not only good, it's very captivating. It literally sucks you inside and you can't see or hear anything other than the events happening on that page. The book is not like you have a boring start and then at the end it becomes exciting; it's interesting from the begining. There is one flaw though: the actual games start around the tenth chapter and before that is just a kind of prologue. Another thing is that I think it's for kids of age 12-13 and above because there is a lot of violence and lots of romance at the end of the book. But the romance does not dull things; there is a balance of action and love in this book, a very well-managed balance.

Tara Trilogy: The Third Eye - Part 1 By Mahatab Narsimhan

The Tara Trilogy is a brand new series which is a combination of Hindu mythology, a modern plot and spooky stuff. The leading protagonist is Tara, a girl of age unknown to us, and Suraj, Tara's brother. The story begins on the night of Diwali. Their evil step-mother Kali slaps Tara for stealing ladoos to feed a starving Suraj. Basically the background of this story is that Tara's mother Parvati and grandfather Prabala (healer of the village) leave the village because of some unruly rumors, leaving Tara and Suraj alone. Their father, Shiv marries Kali (now their step-mother). Kali tortures Tara and Suraj, beats them up and starves them. Tara has half a mind to run away from home.

This book is really interesting and every chapter is equally exciting. The sentences are easy to understand and each sentence is a small burst of excitement which makes you want to read on.

One day a man named Zarku shows up; he wears a black robe and has a spooky third eye. Zarku persuades the village Panchayat and takes the place of the village healer. Zarku calls himself the best healer in all of India, but Tara can see through this healer and she can see evil. While roaming the village market Tara can see a huge crowd gathered around a dead Vetala. This book is really scary in the chapters including the Vetalas and fights with them. Vetalas are monsters that have appeared in the Kelsar forest, they are bodies of decaying green flesh, have a gash in their forehead which oozes black liquid and their insides are black, and their feet turn at a 180 degree angle.

One night Tara, on the way to the temple alone, overhears her step-mother Kali and another unknown person talking about murdering her and Suraj! Tara makes up her mind to escape at dawn with Suraj to the Kelsar forest despite the grave danger. They are not aware that a black cobra is following them. One night Suraj falls ill and Tara prepares a medicine for him but it does not help, and the next morning Suraj is gone, presumed dead. Tara walks on searching for Suraj when she reaches a temple.

If you thought the book was interesting so far, this is the part where it starts getting really exciting. The problem is that the middle of the book is so exciting that the climax seems boring compared to these middle chapters. I am not going to give away the plot but I will lead you up to it.

Tara quickly hides when she sees a sobbing Zarku holding a silver anklet and talking about his mother! As soon as Zarku talks about finding and killing Prabala, Tara shouts out to Zarku. When Zarku grabs Tara and slams her against a tree, the silver anklet falls into Tara's kurta pocket. Zarku tries to open his third eye to burn Tara but cannot as she now has the protective silver anklet. Tara manages to escape and later runs into Ananth, a boy whose father is dead and mother was eaten by a tiger when she was going to perform Sati.

Together they embark upon their journey once again. They need to find the water of life and Prabala to save Morni (thier village) from Zarku's evil clutches.

The most exciting chapter in the book is yet to come: the one including lord Yama and the water of life. In some places it gets so scary that a shiver runs down my spine. There are a lot of surprises and the book is filled with adventure and chills.

Mahatab Narsimhan has done a really good job giving mythology an engrossing modern plot. Read it for a quick adventurous read. The only problem is that this book answers all the questions, and by that I mean to say that if this was a single book then it would have made no difference, as it leaves no loose ends. Therefore, it doesn't really make you lunge for the 2^nd or 3^rd book, which I am reading now by the way. I am not sure if I feel like reviewing them. 

There are a lot of Indian references so you will need to already be familiar with Indian mythology to understand it.   

Artemis Fowl- Atlantis Complex by Eoin Colfer

The criminal mastermind is back! there is a problem though,Artemis has turned nice!trouble is brewing in the prison of Atlantis where criminal mastermind Trouble Kelp is breaking out of prison and planning to destroy the underwater city of Atlantis with the help of a dangerous group of goblins.Sadly, Artemis cannot battle Kelp as Artemis has a problem called the Atlantis complex(multiple personality disorder)where Artemis fears the number 4 and worships the number 5,he has become paranoid and does not even trust butler!every now and then his other personality(Orion)takes over in the wrong place at the wrong time.  There is a spectacular climax that left me stunned. I can not reveal the climax .

I really like this book but it seems like a very tiny book, it begins,they have a middle scene of about four chapters and then the climax. I really like the book but I wish there was a little more adventure and action.Artemis Fowl is a series that never gets old just like the Alex Rider series as there is always an element of surprise.I wish such series would never end, while you are reading such a book you never feel like putting it down because you just have to turn the page.

** This review can be found at: http://www.guardian.co.uk/childrens-books-site/2012/aug/22/review-artemis-fowl-atlantis-complex-eoin-colfer