Wednesday, September 11, 2013

Review: I Played A Game With Life by S.Richardson

Some people have led a life of struggle and have achieved great things late. The support which they need from parents,friends, loved ones sometimes is not sufficient enough to make it through. It takes an extra push in order to get things right. Author S.Richardson in his debut novel "I Played A Game With Life" talks about struggle of a young man and the mountains he has to climb in order to get his life back on track. So is this mountain worth climbing? Let's find out.

Will his hurts, disappointments and pressures lift Sam up to greatness, or will he submit to mediocrity?
Romance/Drama/Comedy
SAM, a typical guy, living life happy and carefree, but has an ambition that far exceeds what a normal Chennai boy can aspire to. Encountering ‘Life’ itself in a dream, he’s convinced into playing a game with it. A game that ends when Life's travails get so hard that Sam is pushed to tears.
A girl enters Sam’s life. The moment he sets eyes on her he knows she’s going to play hard to get, but sparks do indeed fly between them, taken into a world of romance. 
When everything looked like its going according to the plan, it just wasn't. This is when Life starts pressing down on Sam. Though Sam’s attitude about living life is to be happy and cool, he finds himself being tested.
Circumstances pushes him into a world of discomfort and guilt. Amidst such emotional turmoil, he manages to grip on to hope. 
Sam is expected to worry, complain, and give up. One event after another sets him on edge to make him shed that tear which veritably ends Life's game. 

Does he win the game with Life, or will he spiral into what so many people who've given up the fight have fallen into? You simply need to be part of his life to find out. 


First look at the title and the cover image and you'll be definitely impressed as a reader. There's this hint of love, calm and a compelling title which makes the book an automatic pick for the readers. The blurb hints about a person called Sam and his problems which will keep him at bay till the end. The blurb is good in terms of what the book title has been kept in order to justify the plot inside. 

The story revolves around Sam his never ending woes with his family, his newly found love Amritha an uber cool super rich girl, his friend Harish & his girl friend Preethi and some relatives and his professional life which is in a terrible mess. A person with big dreams and ambitions to fulfill finds himself at crossroads when his father doesn't supports him in the cause and his struggle to set things right becomes a tough ask. Some sparkling revelations later on turns his life upside down and then people around him set out to make life easier for Sam. It's a story about lost hopes, fading ambitions, silence of an innocent soul, intense love for a girl and in the end the price he pays for each and everything. 

When the book title is very good then expectations from the story rise. A mixture of love story and personal life struggles keeps the plot up and running all the time. Friendship and love are dominant factors in the story along with it the modern day traditional family setup is prevalent too in the book. It inspires in a way to never back down from what you want to do with your life. The sparkling chemistry between Harish & Sam, Sam & Amritha is a sure thing to watch out for in the book. The last part of the book will give the readers some goosebumps with an unexpected twist in the plot. 

The downside of the book is clarity in the story. The career and love become a hotch potch many a times in the story. Hindi dialogues  & words could have been handled better in the book. "Aap Kaun Hain" translation is Who Are You? instead of Who is this?. It's not Laduki, it's ladki.  The first half of the story is a regular narration which is not up to the mark. 

The book as a collective effort in portraying fading ambitions and love will work out wonders for the readers but with love story pretty much like a regular love story like in other books will become a disappointment. It's a good story certainly not the best. It can inspire you and make you fall in love once again. 

RATINGS: 

3 OUT OF 5. 

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