This author wrote Q&A, which was the original Slumdog Millionaires. Hoping this is as good. - Not as good. Really long and drawn out. disappointing.

Tackling this one for adult summer reading -- It took a loooong time to get into this one. Now that I only have a slim quarter-inch to go, I am finally involved in the story and wish it would go on longer. Some of the characters are impossible to believe (too callous, too stupid), but others seem very real. Most valuable thing about reading this: it conveys a sense of just how tremendous India is, how many different kinds of people live there, and how harsh poverty is.

4-. pretty engrossing, and a smart way to essentially write six character studies into one book. i didn't love the format of the super long chapters but it did allow you to forget the rest of the plot for a bit which i suppose was the point. vivid descriptions of india but none very positive. looking forward to discussing.

Another winner from the Author of Slumdog Millionaire--a murder mystery from the unfolding perspectives of six suspects from the whole spectrum of modern India (a corrupt official, a Bollywood starlet, a clueless American tourist, a tribal islander, a thief and the plutocrat father of the victim himself). Each section has the distinct voice of the narrator, and the intricate unraveling of motive and truth just cries out to be filmed.

I had high hopes for this book.
The premise was great, the setting was beautiful and I expected to be given a classic whodunnit that kept me guessing until the end.
I did not expect to be bored out of my mind, aggravated and not finish.
The first thing wrong with this book were the characters. Normally I like gray characters but these were just horrible. Each one was selfish, stupid and downright loathsome. I started to realize I could care less and about the killer, the victim or any of the suspects.
I wasn’t a big fan of the writing either. It wasn’t terrible but it wasn’t very good either. I didn’t feel any suspense and was extremely bored.
I do have to give this book credit for the character ideas. The execution was awful but each character was fairly imaginative. I thought they were creative, just not likable.
If you’re looking for a nice murder mystery I wouldn’t recommend it and I’m giving it 2 stars.

Mon premier contact avec Vikas Swarup s’est fait par le biais de « Slumdog Millionaire », l’adaptation maintes fois primée de son roman « Q&A ». J’avais trouvé le film amusant, mais les ficelles un peu évidentes. Comparé à « Meurtre dans un jardin indien », le film de Danny Boyle passe pour un rigoureux documentaire. Les péripéties y sont si nombreuses, les situations si invraisemblables qu’on nage en plein Bollywood. Seul bémol, je ne suis pas tout à fait certain que l’effet soit volontaire.

Un assassinat, six suspects. Pour résoudre l’énigme, Swarup présente en alternance les mobiles de chacun des personnages. On suit donc un suspect pour une soixantaine de pages, puis le suivant, puis un autre. Tous ont une bonne raison d’avoir assassiné Vivek Rai et tous se trouvaient sur les lieux du meurtre avec une arme en poche. Point positif, Swarup réussit plutôt bien à nous donner l’impression que tous ces personnages existent dans un même univers malgré le fait qu’ils ne se croisent à peu près jamais. La plume est comique, les scènes sont décrites avec efficacité et certains personnages sont attachants et bien campés. La politique de l’Inde est analysée et dénoncée avec un certain mordant. D’ailleurs, le meurtre présenté au début du roman s’inspire d’un cas célèbre en Inde.

Malheureusement, la qualité des personnages est très inégale. L’histoire de Munna est prenante et à peu près plausible. Même constat pour celle de l’aborigène Ekiti. En revanche, l’Américain Larry Page est un cliché sur deux pattes, d’une stupidité ahurissante et difficilement concevable. Ses chapitres sont pénibles de crétinisme. Les péripéties sont à tel point tirées par les cheveux que l’on nage en pleine bande dessinée. L’épisode de l’actrice Shabnam Saxena n’est pas beaucoup plus crédible. C’est cette danse constante et mal maîtrisée entre le réaliste et l’invraisemblable qui empêche le roman de se démarquer. Ce n’est pas un mauvais livre, mais c’est sans aucun doute le produit d’un éditeur pressé de faire de l’argent sur le seul nom de Vikas Swarup et qui n’a pas dû travailler sur le manuscrit très longtemps…

I really enjoyed both Q&A and The Accidental Apprentice. This for me was a 'light' read - not short, no, but content-wise it's the kind of book where you can just float along and see where it takes you. But it IS a murder mystery. You forget that after a while.

The introduction, by an investigative journalist, tells us that rich, corrupt industrialist Vicky Rai has been murdered at a party at his home (celebrating his acquital for murder). Six suspects are in custody, each in possession of a gun that could have fired the fatal bullet.

We are then taken back one by one through each of the suspects' stories and backgrounds, back up to the date of the party. Each is completely different - a Bollywood megastar, a village tribal, a mobile phone thief, a politician, an American and Vicky's own father. It takes 400 pages but eventually we see how each tale takes the suspect to the murder site, and how some are connected.

It's not overly involved, though at the end names and accusations fly thick and fast and your guess is bound to be wrong. I guessed the final twist just before it was revealed .... (to avoid spoiler, skip down a line)

*SPOILER* and then was annoyed as I felt the synopsis on the back cover needed a rewording *END SPOILER*

It's a really enjoyable read, though a few phrases of English jarred. I liked Shabnam's narration the best I think, the Bollywood story, though all had their moments, especially the slightly dumb American, over in India to meet the 'fiancee' he's been sending money to.

Another book with a good feel for India (at least to this Western reader!) and a read to while away a few days.