A very funny satire about modern-day India. Ramesh makes a living by passing exams for the children of rich parents. When he accidentally gets the highest mark in the country for his client Rudi reality TV, kidnap and blackmail follow., Loved it.

This was a good novel - a guy, Ramesh, takes exams for other students so they can get good grades and admission to their dream universities. Things escalate when one student he takes the exam for, Rudi, ends up being the top student in the country - thanks to Ramesh of course - and starts a career in TV. Other characters who are not as successful start being resentful and... I can't share much more, but that when the kidnapping happens basically.

The tone of the novel is very satirical and funny - I loved that because my experience with Indian novels so far has been more with novels that focus on family and tradition, and are maybe not so openly critical of Indian culture; so I found this book quite enlightening and interesting. The humour feels a bit much at times and falls flat on several occasions though, and the book is split into two separate parts - the first one about the main character, Ramesh, and how he became a professional exam taker; the second part about the kidnapping. I personally found the first part, about his childhood and his progression into his current "job" much more interesting than the second part, and the second part, although quite fast-paced, felt a bit... repetitive and boring. There are many excellent and witty paragraphs throughout the whole novel, but somehow, after a good start, I felt slightly bored and I was glad when it ended.

A sharp tale of contemporary India that reminds you slum dog millionaire just isn’t it. Full of quips, pointed remarks at the hypocrisy of western superiority, a just about white saviour, parading as a do gooder nun, and a Whole Lot of Corruption.

Ramesh is an education consultant, a smart guy for hire, a stand in for your lazy underacheiving middle-class son who, with all the pocket money in the world, still cannot be bothered to study for his exams, but is expecting a work visa to America and a job on Wall Street to appear in thin air.

Almost a book of two halves, we are settled in learning about our narrators' upbringing and various exploits, before the stakes are driven up 10 fold with a double, or was it triple? crossed kidnapping chase across Delhi.

At times the plot may have moved a little faster than necessary, but remember I am reader of slow burns and plotless pacing, I’m sure most will find the speed compelling.

A book I would lovingly refer to as, a satirical romp. Read it and laugh and maybe learn and thing or two too.

I was very impressed by this debut, it was full of humour and wit, which made for a great combination to help unwind in the present climate. I thought the characters were likely and well illustrated, it was easy to k!shine them as vivid characters id see on screen but I felt further polishing could make them more relatable in a real world setting.

Reading is for many a form of escapism and after a period of I'll health meant I've not read this as early as I would have liked, I'm glad I was afforded the opportunity to read. A very likeable dive into fiction and I am eagerly awaiting more by the author.

Brilliantly written hardhiting thriller that grips you from the start til the end amazing characters explosive suspense what a debut bravo.

On the whole, this is a fast-paced and funny novel, though very much split into two halves - the first a sharp and satirical look at modern India that covers the background of Ramesh, the narrator, the second a comic thriller detailing the escalating numbers of kidnappings he has to commit to cover up a more minor original crime. I very much preferred the first half and found the second increasingly ridiculous - although it was action-packed, it didn’t hold my attention and as a result it didn’t pack much of an emotional punch by the end. It’s not really my genre so may well appeal more to others for whom the thriller plot is the primary draw. I did learn a lot about modern India and in the first half found the characters sympathetic and well-drawn. Thanks to NetGalley for the ARC.

I needed something a bit light and this comedic cracker of a novel on fraud and ambition in Delhi hit the spot perfectly. ⁣
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Ramesh is a chaiwallah’s son who has risen to become an ‘educational consultant’. He provides his clients a gateway to the ‘whitest lives’ by taking exams on behalf of lazy, entitled kids whose parents are able to purchase their futures. His life changes when his client Rudi becomes the All India Topper, catapulting him to fame and wealth as a television star on a Slumdog Millionaire-esque game show - with Ramesh as his blackmailer, manager/assistant, and babysitter. The novel opens with Rudi and Ramesh being kidnapped, which entangles them in a convoluted web of events that includes a few further kidnappings, accusations of spying for Pakistan, a construction magnate and his Tendulkar-signed cricket bat, and the saffron hysteria of a BJP-like political party. ⁣
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This is an absurdly and cruelly funny novel that casts a sharp eye on the greed, opportunism and injustice rife in contemporary India. ⁣
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#HowtoKidnaptheRich #RahulRaina