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Book Review – ‘The Bankster’ by Ravi Subramanian
About the author:
The author, Ravi Subramanian, has
been known for his fiction novels based on life in corporate sector in India,
particularly the banking and financial sector.
Debuting with “If God was a Banker”, followed by ‘I Bought the Monk’s
Ferrari’, ‘Devil in Pinstripes’ and the Economist Crossword Book Award winner, “The
Incredible Banker” the author has now
come out with his fifth book of fiction, ‘The Bankster’ which has been recently
published by Rupa & Co.
About the book:
‘The Bankster’ is a fiction
thriller – a whodunit kind of mystery of a series of murders that appear to be accidents or suicides. Who is behind these gruesome killings? No one
has a clue. It takes an ex-employee
turned press reporter, Karan Panjabi to link several stories being featured in the
newspapers, to come up with the true motives and pin down the culprits and crack
this intriguing case. Greater Boston Global
Bank (GB2) is a multinational banking corporation with a significant presence
in India and employs smart and intelligent youngsters to grow in a competitive
banking environment. As is commonly
found in such large MNCs, there are several systems, checks and balances in
place to prevent financial frauds of any kind.
But can the pressure to perform better and achieve seemingly impossible
targets that would fetch one lucrative incentives drive these young executives
to overlook potential fraudsters from taking advantage of being close to some
powerful higher ups?
Woven into the story is the
plight of a resort owner who lost his son to the Chernobyl nuclear tragedy and
thereby pledges to safeguard the residents of Devikulam, where the Government
is a few months away from commissioning a nuclear plant for power generation. Although with good intent, his movement is
hijacked by politicians and activists with ulterior motives who lend support to
the cause. This finds the pure-hearted
resort owner in the midst of a controversy!
There is also this globe-trotter, who has been striking shady deals and
indulging in nefarious activities in several countries under different names
and passports.
The author has mastered the art
of revealing just a wee-bit, perhaps lies and deceipt, while concealing a whole
lot, perhaps the truth, in his story telling.
The author has mastered the technique of “misdirection” – I am not
referring to the subtitle of Jaspal Bhatti’s serials – I am referring to the
technique adopted by magicians through which the viewer is misled craftily in
order to divert his attention from the truth.
Through these masterly strokes of crafty writing, the author has spun a
web of deceit as have the perpetrators of crime and fraud in order to appear to
be faultless and committed to the bank’s growth. As a result this whodunit turns out to be an
un-put-down-able page-turner. The author
has also banked on some latest technologies to crack the case that the
ex-employee journo uses to access messages and images that were perhaps
impossible only a few years ago!
While the book has a great international appeal, the heavy
use of local language - interspersed in the conversations of the characters - could
well be a negative aspect. But this does
not prevent the author’s latest book
from pitching the author closer to being considered the “John Grisham of
Indian Banking” that he aspires to be known as. A fiction thriller set in recent times that proves
to be a must read!
Rating: 4.5 / 5
Blogger’s Post-Script: The book was provided
free by Blogadda under its Book Review Program seeking this review post.
This review is a part of the Book Reviews Program at BlogAdda.com . Participate
now to get free books!
Ravi Subramanian's presence on website(s) and social networks
- Website: http://www.ravisubramanian.in/index.asp
- Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/Authorravisubramanian
- Twitter: https://twitter.com/SubramanianRavi
- Slideshare: http://www.slideshare.net/authorravisubramanian
- Youtube: http://www.youtube.com/AuthorRavi
