Troubled Blood, Robert Galbraith, 2020

Rating: 4/5

To start off with, Galbraith’s (JK Rowling’s pseudonym) “Troubled Blood” has an interesting premise — a woman, Anna, hires protagonists Cormoran Strike and his business partner Robin Ellacott, to investigate the disappearance of her mother, Margot Bamborough, a London-based GP. The interesting part is that Margot disappeared 40 years earlier and we have Strike and Ellacott revisit the lives and motivations of several possible suspects, some of who are dead, including an incarcerated serial killer, Margot’s husband at that time, her medical colleagues, patients and friends. And in between trying to solve this case, Strike and Ellacott must grapple with other cases and personal issues such as his terminally ill aunt, his suicidal ex-girlfriend, Robin’s PTSD from an earlier incident and her messy divorce. That gives enough material for Rowling to make this a 900+ page book, without it dragging at most times!

The mystery is of a high quality. The various characters are fleshed out well and the reader is privy to most developments through the book. Astrological clues are also neatly woven in the narrative, in the form of the scribblings of the initial investigator who slowly lost his mind. For a change, at least in my view, Rowling has handled the emotional elements, especially the potentially romantic track between Strike and Ellacott, quite well. I always thought that romance was the weakest part of the Harry Potter books and the Strike-Ellacott relationship was handled awkwardly in the earlier books in the Cormoran Strike series. This time however, there is far more maturity (and far less cringe)!

Rowling has borrowed the title of the book from Edmund Spenser’s epic poem, “The Faerie Queene”, and has a verse from the poem as an epigraph to each chapter. The epigraphs, very cleverly, appear to have clues to the direction of the story. Given my unfamiliarity with the poem, these allusions escaped me but (important: the following link has major spoilers) http://strikefans.com/the-faerie-queene-epigraphs/ is a very good source to understand the linkages between the poem and the book. 

The missing star in the rating is for the excessive length. While, as mentioned above, the book does not drag for most of its length, the reader tends to lose the plot and forget the characters if they take a long time to finish the book (for example, it took me a month and half to complete this book due to a lack of time to read). Rowling seems to be going the way of the Harry Potter series with the Strike books — the first two books were about 450 pages long, the next two were 500 and 650 respectively, “Troubled Blood” (the fifth of the series) is almost 950 pages long and “The Ink Black Heart”, which has just released has crossed the 1,000-page mark!

Pros: Interesting premise, fast-paced towards the end, relatively better handling of the emotional parts

Cons: Excessive length

The Billion Dollar Spy, David Hoffman, 2015

Rating: 5/5

“The Billion Dollar Spy” is a fascinating book on the world of human spying during the Cold War and is largely centred around the experiences with Adolf Tolkachev, arguably America’s most valuable asset. He provided significant information on various important developments in Russia’s defence and offensive plans between 1977 and 1985 that were relevant for even decades after that and helped America widen its military capabilities significantly over its rival. And with the changing dynamics once again between America and Putin’s Russia, despite the technological advances in spying (superbly described in Nicole Perlroth’s “This is How They Tell Me the World Ends”), this topic takes on a contemporary hue once again.

Tolkachev was a senior engineer in a top-secret design laboratory and a specialist in airborne radar. He proactively approached the Americans to pass on critical information, largely motivated by significant disillusionment with the Soviet system and its failure to provide its people with a better life. He was not averse to material compensation either, including both significant amounts of money and small personal things for his family, especially for his son, that were impossible to obtain in Russia at that point of time. The money, however, seems more to have fulfilled his desire of being seen important given that it would have been very difficult for him to spend such large amounts of money. And for eight years, he was a passionate and conscientious spy, taking enormous amounts of risks. 

Importantly, the Tolkachev operation, codenamed CKSPHERE first and CKVANQUISH later, not only provided America with invaluable information but also changed its previously timid approach towards Cold War operations in Moscow. He is estimated to have saved almost two billion dollars in R&D costs for the Americans … and hence the title of the book.

Hoffman captures multiples nuances of spying extremely well — the actual tension during the exchanges (making parts of the book page-turners) and the fears of being caught, the small details including the types of equipment used and the process to exchange information and most importantly, the personal motivations driving Tolkachev and his various American “case officers”. Tolkachev’s struggles with the Soviet system, his need for constant reassurances and his fear for his life (and his constant requests for a poison pill in case he was to be captured) and the Americans’ dilemma between maximising the information that could be received from Tolkachev and their desire to protect him from unnecessary risks are well captured without slowing the pace of the book. Some of the details are amusing and almost unbelievable such as the use of pop-up dummies in car seats so that the case officer could slip away without being noticed by the KGB or the usage of lights in Tolkachev’s residence to signal his readiness for a “dead drop”.

The book, however, is inconsistent about the tricky ethical and integrity issues associated with spying. It conveniently paints Tolkachev as a hero of sorts, even though he did his own country great disservice and partly for monetary remuneration while it presents an American who spied similarly for Russia as a treacherous villain. And that’s jarring for a non-American reader such as me. Nevertheless, it’s an interesting insight into the world of spying and a quick read at that.

Pros: Fascinating insights into cold-war spying, interesting short read, personal nuances captured well

Cons: Inconsistent about the ethical aspects

Hickory Dickory Dock, Agatha Christie, 1955

Rating: 3/5

It’s rare for an Agatha Christie-Hercule Poirot novel to disappoint me but Hickory Dickory Dock is one of those. The book starts off with a series of thefts of mainly minor items (such as a stethoscope, lightbulbs, and boracic powder) and some trivial but vicious acts (such as a slashed rucksack and spilt green ink on someone’s notes) at a youth hostel located on Hickory Road run by the sister of Poirot’s secretary. Poirot gets attracted to the case due to its ordinary yet seemingly perplexing nature. Soon thereafter, there is a murder and events unfold true to the nature of a Christie novel.

There are a few things to like about the book. It is short and a page-turner, there are several characters that have interesting back stories and who could be the killer, and the unconnected events are neatly untangled at the end.

However, as I mentioned at the outset, the book does disappoint on various counts. First, while the title is a continuation of Christie’s practice of using nursery rhymes, the connection is extremely tenuous in this case. The hostel is located on Hickory Road and there is some brief reference to people “being in the dock” but that’s about all the connection there is. Second, when I re-read Christie’s books, I can’t help but notice the racist treatment of some characters in some of the novels. Well, it was written 67 years ago, so perhaps we can ignore it. Third, it is not clear how Poirot arrived at some of the conclusions that helps him solve the crime. There is no way in which readers can solve this themselves and that feels a bit unfair. Fourth, and this is perhaps a minor thing, I enjoy the dynamics between the investigating officers and Poirot is many of the books — the police holding Poirot’s views in contempt initially and then recognising his abilities eventually. Finally, and importantly, the best part of the Poirot books for me is the eventual denouement where Poirot gathers all the characters in one place and explains how he solved the case. That is sadly missing in this book. So, this is not a book that I intent to re-read ever!

Pros: Page-turner, unconnected events that neatly fit together at the end

Cons: No final denouement, all the steps behind Poirot’s solution are unclear, disappointing title

When Breath Becomes Air, Paul Kalanithi, 2016

Rating: 5/5

When Breath Becomes Air, like Atul Gawande’s Being Mortal (which is probably the best non-fiction book that I have ever read), is about our own mortality and reflects on impending death. But it is also an autobiographical memoir of sorts, published posthumously after Kalanithi’s death from lung cancer. And while it does not have the prescriptive elements that Gawande’s book has to deal with ageing and death, it is a wonderfully crafted book on Kalanithi’s life as a medical practitioner and what his rapidly deteriorating illness meant for his family and for him.

Kalanithi was an extremely accomplished man with multiple degrees in English literature, biology and in philosophy in science and medicine, from Stanford, University of Cambridge and Yale School of Medicine and was a neurosurgeon and writer (and it was unfortunate that his life was cut short at the age of just 37). And it’s his love for English literature that shines through the book. He covers his early life in the deserts of Arizona and his subsequent career path in medicine in the first half of the book and muses on his terminal illness in the second part. The early days of his career take up a disproportionate part of the book but that’s understandable as his rapidly declining health towards the end left his manuscript incomplete. And the book is quite short at about 150 pages anyway. The only complaint, if any, is that the publishers should have split the book into chapters which would have made it easier to read, rather than lump it into two large halves. 

His writing is wonderful and the crafting of sentences exquisite — “when there’s no place for the scalpel, words are the surgeon’s only tool” for example. When Breath Becomes Air is bookended with beautifully written foreword by Abraham Verghese, an author and physician, and epilogue by Lucy Kalanithi, Paul’s wife, where she describes his last days and the ups and downs of their relationship and will leave readers moist-eyed. The best few lines in the book, in my view, were clearly the last words that he leaves for his baby daughter — what a beautiful legacy for her to have! 

While the Kalanithi’s story was tragic, there’s a heart-warming postscript fortunately — Lucy seems to have found love again. In a happy twist of fate, John Duberstein reached out to her after his dying wife, Nina Riggs, connected him to Lucy — Nina died of breast cancer and penned her memoirs too during her final days. And after a period of being “pen friends”, Lucy and John met and are now together. They surely deserve some happiness now! 

Pros: Moving, well-written, reflections on mortality

Cons: Despite the short length overall, the first quarter drags

The House of Silk, Anthony Horowitz, 2011

Rating: 5/5

Arthur Conan Doyle would have been proud of this book. When I think of Doyle’s Sherlock Holmes mysteries, three features stand out: the mystery itself and the process of its resolution, the warm dynamics of the Holmes-Watson relationship and the captivatingly captured atmosphere of late-19th century London. Horowitz’s Sherlock Holmes adventure, commissioned by Doyle’s estate, is a wonderful tribute on all three counts.

The book opens with an art dealer visiting Holmes due to his fears of being followed by an American gang leader. Holmes’ investigations result in the disappearance of a street urchin which in turn segues into a seemingly different mystery involving influential personages and the eponymous House of Silk and with a cliffhanger of an ending where the two different mysteries are neatly resolved. Horowitz often structures his detective novels in unique ways, such as the book within a book structure in Magpie Murders, and this book is no different. As Watson refers to it in the preface, this book is actually two mysteries — The Man in the Flat Cap, and The House of Silk — with a tenuous link between the two. The fact that Horowitz manages to make this look largely like Doyle’s book despite this is testament to his writing prowess.

The House of Silk will not disappoint Doyle fans. The mystery is top-notch, the resolution satisfying and there are enough clues strewn in the book that will make readers kick themselves at the end for not having figured it out earlier. Horowitz also manages to include some important characters from Holmes’ earlier adventures seamlessly into the narrative. There are a couple of incidents of Holmes showing off his detection skills as well, in that partly impressive and partly irritating manner of his that we have grown to love. This story does deviate from Doyle’s works in a couple of ways though — it turns out to be far darker than what Coyle has ever attempted and the end of the book includes more action than what we are used to in a typical Sherlock Homes adventure. The latter was probably directed towards “any circling Hollywood producers” as Horowitz cheekily mentions in the book’s epilogue.

An added bonus: The epilogue where Horowitz details the conception of the book and the rules that he followed while writing it is a nice little read by itself.

Pros: Great mystery, true to Doyle’s writing

Cons: A bit darker than what Holmes fans are used to

The Psychology of Money, Morgan Housel, 2020

Rating: 4/5

Investing is a combination of financial acumen and behavioural skills. While there are several books and blogs devoted to the former, The Psychology of Money focuses on the softer skills around investing. As Housel points out early in the book, investing is one area where a formal education and a person’s connections do not matter much.

Housel has divided the book into short chapters and eighteen of them highlight a particular lesson for investing. These vary from recognising the role of luck, long tails in investing and keeping a margin of error to distinguishing between being reasonable versus rational and understanding that different motivations drive different investors. He supports many of his main themes with interesting anecdotes related to the economy or to famous people. But ultimately, this book is not just about investing — there are life lessons that he imparts as well such as the need to save and to know when you have enough.

This is a short book, but Housel is still unable to avoid repetition, especially within chapters. He sometimes takes several paragraphs to make the same point in different ways. But I guess he would have needed to get to a minimum size for this book to be recognised as one! Having said that, it is an easy read. Also, while some of the insights that Housel provides are extremely compelling, others are self-evident. I would recommend this book particularly to young people starting their careers as a guide to manage their money and avoid the behavioural pitfalls that many of us fall prey to (they will find the last chapter quite useful). But it will also be a good read for older folks, helping them recalibrate their financial goals.

Pros: Thoughtful, easy read, useful guide for young people

Cons: Some repetitive points, some self-evident insights

Never, Ken Follett, 2021

Rating: 3/5

Never is an epic story covering political events in the US, China, the Koreas, Chad and Syria, that inexorably spiral into a possible nuclear conflict. It details how a relatively small event in a remote part of the world could force the superpowers to get involved and how the compulsions of international relationships could actually end up escalating the conflict rather than ameliorating it. A scary possibility, and more so with the enhanced threats of cyber warfare now (interestingly documented in Nicole Perlroth’s “This is how they tell me the world ends” — my review here)!

However, what could have been a compelling political thriller becomes a mishmash of government manoeuvres and personal stories of some of the protagonists. The 800-page length consequently seems unnecessary — the entire track covering an undercover CIA agent in Chad and a mother-son duo from one of the Chadian settlements seems irrelevant and has very little bearing on the main plot, for example. Some of the personal side-stories are somewhat jarring and long, like the ones covering the lives of US President Pauline Green and her husband and daughter or even the relationship between a CIA operative and a French attache in Chad. The romantic tracks are awkward at best — when one of the key protagonists voices that “a woman’s heart can be an unexploded bomb … handle me delicately so that I don’t detonate”, you know that this isn’t Follett at his best. Foes of some of the main characters are reduced to caricatures. In a way, Never reminded me of the old Sidney Sheldon books — I would gobble them greedily when I was younger but would probably get nauseous reading parts of them now.

Given its length, the book is mercifully an easy read. However, only parts of it are real page-turners such as an escape from a terrorist camp or the spiralling of events towards the end. While I wasn’t tempted to leave the book unfinished at any point, Never was a bit of a lost opportunity to be a great book, in my view.

Pros: Epic story, easy read

Cons: Unnecessary length, awkward personal tracks

This Is How They Tell Me the World Ends, Nicole Perlroth, 2021

Rating: 5/5

In a way, this is possibly the scariest book that I’ve ever read! While physical threats to countries around the world are bad enough, digital threats are several times so. While I was familiar with the superficial aspect of cyber espionage, the book fleshes it out in detail and reveals the extent to which it is used, both by bad state actors as well as the supposedly more ethical governments against their own citizens. It covers the early days of hacking when the Russians used the typewriters in the US embassy in Moscow to obtain information to Project Olympic (the joint efforts by the US and Israel to bring down Iran’s nuclear capabilities), to the more recent attack on Ukraine’s infrastructure by Russian hackers and Russia’s interference in US elections. 

By going light on the technical aspects and focusing on stories, Perlroth has made the book easy to read. It is also structured in a way that makes the narrative easy to follow and it covers the key actors involved in cyber espionage using zero-days (backdoors to control software and hardware that can be exploited) — the hackers (both the good and the bad actors), the brokers, the buyers, and the ones that try to prevent it. 

Perlroth raises two important issues in the book. The first one concerns the zero-day buyers. How do we prevent them falling into the wrong hands? At the same time, is it even okay if they are sold to the “right people”? For example, can the usage of the Stuxnet worm by America and Israel to damage Iran’s nuclear capabilities be justified and where will the line of interference in other nations be drawn? And the second is the dilemma that governments face when they are aware of zero-days — do they turn them in to the vendors so that they can be patched or do they exploit it against their enemies but with the risk that the latter might exploit them as well. 

Cyber espionage gets scarier as more and more devices get connected to the Internet. Apparently, 127 new devices are being plugged into the Internet in the US every second. Our homes, cars, offices, financial systems, transport infrastructure, power infrastructure, basically everything impacting our day-to-day lives can be manipulated. Also, unlike traditional arms, any country can afford cyber arms. There is a large economical cost too, with some estimating annual cyber losses to be more than two trillion dollars. But the scariest part for me was the lack of a significant moral compass in all the players involved — “nobody in this trade ever seemed to take a stance” as Perlroth puts it.

Perlroth suggests, naively in my view, that the solution is to increase focus on security in multiple ways while building hardware and software. That is easier said than done given the fierce race among companies to go-to-market and security issues can never be eliminated completely in any case. The only solution perhaps is a global cyber treaty where companies promise not to attack civilians and critical infrastructure during times of peace, a digital Geneva Convention of sorts!

Pros: Extremely interesting content, easy-to-read

Cons: Some parts belabour points and consequently drag