Monday, October 27, 2014

God is a Gamer - Book Review -

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It’s a different feeling when you get to read a book authored by an ex-banker and that too an ex- Citibanker  .That makes things a little different. You tend to be at a level of connect ( may be biased )  from other fellow readers since in this case , I too , am a Citibanker and hence the way things work in the book or rather operate make it an easy flow for me to relate , understand and at times connect well .

It’s also heartening to see that a banker who has decades of experience can actually write , be creative and more importantly pen down a thriller of sorts . That’s a rare combination and hard one to get .

As for Ravi , he needs no introduction and in case you would want to know him better you can always read here – link .



To tell you about myself, I'm a writer / blogger at heart and one thing which I love is to share my thoughts over an array of genres across a universe of people I have met till date and continue to meet . My writing works are showcased here  . Besides this I love anything to do with branding , marketing and product management since that is what I do for a living .

Coming to the book ,  I would want to play this smartly since I do not want to let the story drop yet I want people to set their expectations right at the very start .





If you are passionate about the corporate world , life in and outside it , you like meeting people who hold offices of power and you yourself are someone to whom authority is important , then this book is a good read for you.  If you are someone who is alone in life chasing dreams and think and ponder what all have you lost in the life gone by – this book is for you .  If you are looking what it takes to be a single parent and have those frequent clashes with your children -  this book is for you .  If you want to know what is it for those who have high libido levels but for whom companionship is the least important thing in a relationship between a man and a woman – this can be an eye opener . It’s also a book which tells people closest to you are and can be the major reason for your erosion . In short,  it’s a mix and match of interesting characters across the globe as you will travel .


I usually pick a book ( and I am a voracious reader , as my peers call me ) which makes something to learn / know about and also make it an interesting read . The concept of BITCOINS is fun and introduces us to what possibly could be the future payment solution . The plot unfolds with a high ranking executive of  a top MNC bank who only is interested in reaching further top at any cost . The story moves to the US senate and life abroad which is also no different from the one we are having in India these days.  As they say mess happens and then we see the involvement of two of the best investigating agencies of the world – FBI and CBI. Life moves when sparks fly in Goa and plot thicken with bomb blasts , a robbery abroad and a suicide / murder in Mumbai and the world of online gaming and IT firewalls.

For me personally, though it was a nice read but I felt there was too much happening in the story and so many characters actually made it a little complex and at times hard to follow .  I liked the new trends that were being used -  Facebook , gaming community , the entire online banking payment systems , drugs , politics , affairs and betrayals and also the ways wherein some luxury brands ( Indian and global ) have been mentioned upfront / advertised in a way and the way Socrates features in the book ( which I liked as a key highlight )

There were loose typos /  spell check all through and I could only take note of a few below ones :

1) Pg. 236 - 'Three of his neighbours, who has seen the ghastly attack, went along with him and signed off as witnesses.'
2) Pg. 261- 'This in a disaster.'
3) Pg. 304- 'They had started seeing each ('other' missing) after the party.



Though ,unable to see a connect as to why the title is - God is a Gamer - since he plays with us ( humans ) . May be !

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