Age of Vice: A GMA Book Club Pick (A Novel)
Deftly shifting through time and perspective in contemporary India, Age of Vice is an epic, action-packed story propelled by the seductive wealth, startling corruption, and bloodthirsty violence of the Wadia family — loved by some, loathed by others, feared by all. Available January 10, 2023.
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Readers say *Age of Vice* is a gripping crime novel set in modern India, praised for its intriguing start, vivid setting, and multi-perspective storyt...
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What’s it about?
Three characters converge to tell the story of crime and corruption in modern India. Sunny Wadia is the son of an Indian crime boss who has been very successful- and this leaves Sunny with access to way too much money and not enough respect. He finds himself in a relationship with Neda Kapoor, an Indian journalist who is looking into the Wadia crime family but soon falls for Sunny. Ajay is the faithful servant who comes from nothing and finds himself losing everything to protect Sunny.
What did it make me think about?
Duplicity.
Should I read it?
Well this was just a well-written crime novel. It never becomes a scathing look at the corruption in India that it promises, but it is an awfully engrossing story that most fans of fast paced thrillers will enjoy. If you want a novel about India that digs a little deeper then pick up “A Fine Balance” by Rohinton Mistry. “Age of Vice” has been touted as the Indian version of “The Godfather” and I get that. I will be watching when this hits the big screen- because it certainly entertains.
Quote-
“The evictions in the city kept up pace,”
“The newspapers heralded the transformation of the urban space. The poor were no longer victims of an incompetent and corrupt state. They were encroachers and thieves. Their misery was not the misery of lives. As human beings they were being erased.”
What’s it about?
Three characters converge to tell the story of crime and corruption in modern India. Sunny Wadia is the son of an Indian crime boss who has been very successful- and this leaves Sunny with access to way too much money and not enough respect. He finds himself in a relationship with Neda Kapoor, an Indian journalist who is looking into the Wadia crime family but soon falls for Sunny. Ajay is the faithful servant who comes from nothing and finds himself losing everything to protect Sunny.
What did it make me think about?
Duplicity.
Should I read it?
Well this was just a well-written crime novel. It never becomes a scathing look at the corruption in India that it promises, but it is an awfully engrossing story that most fans of fast paced thrillers will enjoy. If you want a novel about India that digs a little deeper then pick up “A Fine Balance” by Rohinton Mistry. “Age of Vice” has been touted as the Indian version of “The Godfather” and I get that. I will be watching when this hits the big screen- because it certainly entertains.
Quote-
“The evictions in the city kept up pace,”
“The newspapers heralded the transformation of the urban space. The poor were no longer victims of an incompetent and corrupt state. They were encroachers and thieves. Their misery was not the misery of lives. As human beings they were being erased.”
As an Indian, I was excited to read a story about India. I wasn't expecting it to portray India as a glorious land, but I didn't think that they would portray it as horribly as they did either.
The only reason I finished this book was that I kept hoping it would be worth it in the end, but it wasn't. Honestly, I found everything after Ajay's story to be really uninteresting. It felt like watching a bunch of unlikable characters do horrible things and have horrible things done to them and then feeling bad about all of it. I especially struggled with Neda's section. I feel like I never really understood her motivations from the beginning and all of the bad choices just made her unlikable without any sense of understanding for why she might make those choices.
I did really like the first part of the book with Ajay's story and I was very invested in that part.
Also, I felt like the book did not need to be as long as it was. So much could have been cut out without losing the meaning of what happened.
The only reason I finished this book was that I kept hoping it would be worth it in the end, but it wasn't. Honestly, I found everything after Ajay's story to be really uninteresting. It felt like watching a bunch of unlikable characters do horrible things and have horrible things done to them and then feeling bad about all of it. I especially struggled with Neda's section. I feel like I never really understood her motivations from the beginning and all of the bad choices just made her unlikable without any sense of understanding for why she might make those choices.
I did really like the first part of the book with Ajay's story and I was very invested in that part.
Also, I felt like the book did not need to be as long as it was. So much could have been cut out without losing the meaning of what happened.
This is a book that you’ll either quit on in the first half or persevere towards the end and it fully depends on what you like to read. There a complex interwoven storylines that are occasionally difficult to follow, but I really enjoyed the scenery descriptions and the development of Ajay throughout the novel. I think it lives up to most of the critic hype although I’m reserving the fifth star primarily because Neda felt like an afterthought rather than a main character and didn’t fit in with all the men in the novel that had more complex rationales for their actions than she did. I would’ve been okay in this case for the interactions between the men to have been emphasized more, but I understand why the author may have wanted to add a female perspective on the surrounding events into the mix.
Don’t expect a happy ending with a book titled Age of Vice.
Don’t expect a happy ending with a book titled Age of Vice.
“You are who you are, the past is gone. It’s the present you must master now.”
“I don’t expect you to marry the man or even the family, I expect you to marry the business.”
Do the sins of one's father have to be their legacy? Can you change your destiny? Do you want to?
In the veins of The White Tiger, we have the Wadias where money, power, dignity, and humanity are all questionable. Told in multiple narrations: Ajay, Sunny, and Neda. One act sets off a chain of misery and tragedy.
I enjoyed the novel very much but at times, the interjection of a few new characters during the 75% period started to throw me off. Too much suddenly started happening and the stories were getting a bit too far-fetched. We are now introduced to Sunil Rastogi who later becomes a big part of the story. The ending, be forewarned, leaves us with a cliffhanger. Not nice! Will I read the second novel? You betcha!
This is the first novel of a trilogy.
Plot: 4/5
Characters: 4.5/5
Writing Style: 4/5
Predictable and full of cliches: 4/5
Entertainment - 4.5/5
Recommend: 5/5
Triggers⚠️: violence, social class, and misogyny.
“I don’t expect you to marry the man or even the family, I expect you to marry the business.”
Do the sins of one's father have to be their legacy? Can you change your destiny? Do you want to?
In the veins of The White Tiger, we have the Wadias where money, power, dignity, and humanity are all questionable. Told in multiple narrations: Ajay, Sunny, and Neda. One act sets off a chain of misery and tragedy.
I enjoyed the novel very much but at times, the interjection of a few new characters during the 75% period started to throw me off. Too much suddenly started happening and the stories were getting a bit too far-fetched. We are now introduced to Sunil Rastogi who later becomes a big part of the story. The ending, be forewarned, leaves us with a cliffhanger. Not nice! Will I read the second novel? You betcha!
This is the first novel of a trilogy.
Plot: 4/5
Characters: 4.5/5
Writing Style: 4/5
Predictable and full of cliches: 4/5
Entertainment - 4.5/5
Recommend: 5/5
Triggers⚠️: violence, social class, and misogyny.
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