electronic resource
English language
Published May 2, 2007 by HarperCollins.
Seven years in the making, Sacred Games is an epic of exceptional richness and power. Vikram Chandra's novel draws the reader deep into the life of Inspector Sartaj Singh—and into the criminal underworld of Ganesh Gaitonde, the most wanted gangster in India.Sartaj, one of the very few Sikhs on the Mumbai police force, is used to being identified by his turban, beard and the sharp cut of his trousers. But "the silky Sikh" is now past forty, his marriage is over and his career prospects are on the slide. When Sartaj gets an anonymous tip-off as to the secret hide-out of the legendary boss of G-Company, he's determined that he'll be the one to collect the prize. Vikram Chandra's keenly anticipated new novel is a magnificent story of friendship and betrayal, of terrible violence, of an astonishing modern city and its dark side. Drawing inspiration from the classics of nineteenth-century …
Seven years in the making, Sacred Games is an epic of exceptional richness and power. Vikram Chandra's novel draws the reader deep into the life of Inspector Sartaj Singh—and into the criminal underworld of Ganesh Gaitonde, the most wanted gangster in India.Sartaj, one of the very few Sikhs on the Mumbai police force, is used to being identified by his turban, beard and the sharp cut of his trousers. But "the silky Sikh" is now past forty, his marriage is over and his career prospects are on the slide. When Sartaj gets an anonymous tip-off as to the secret hide-out of the legendary boss of G-Company, he's determined that he'll be the one to collect the prize. Vikram Chandra's keenly anticipated new novel is a magnificent story of friendship and betrayal, of terrible violence, of an astonishing modern city and its dark side. Drawing inspiration from the classics of nineteenth-century fiction, mystery novels, Bollywood movies and Chandra's own life and research on the streets of Mumbai, Sacred Games evokes with devastating realism the way we live now but resonates with the intelligence and emotional depth of the best of literature.
What an interesting experience to meet unlikeable characters and yet still care what happens to them. Really enjoyed this book and am sad it is over.
Fascinated to see the changes made for the Netflix series. Some huge differences that make me wonder who made the decisions and why.
I really enjoyed the Dickensian, multiple-character main storyline, even though the evil plot uncovered by the protagonist when he solved the mystery was a little preposterous. Unfortunately, there was a second story that Chandra wanted to write, that took up 40% of the book (I counted), and consisted of the increasingly rambling soliloquy of a deceased gangster. If only there had been a creative writing instructor to tell him in no uncertain terms that this part of the book added nothing and was entirely unoriginal. Or maybe the fact that I never got into the Sopranos means I am resistant to the literary potential of the gangster and his tragic journey. Either way, it was maddening to get drawn back into these annoying (and very long!) chapters when I just wanted to continue with the main storyline and characters.
I gave up on reading this book after about 120 pages. For me the dullest parts are the ones narrated by Ganesh - the prose is just not interesting enough for me to care about his story. I usually love sinking my teeth into huge, ambitious novels, but reading this one felt like a chore.
