Turbulence.

So . . so . . . after a long wait, I finally got my hands on Samit Basu's latest offering- Turbulence. And didn't it blow me away, in a manner at least. Since there haven't been many urban-superheroes' themed novels by Indian author, (in fact none I can think off), I was a bit skeptical, deciding to give it a read just because of my love of Samit Basu books. But I have to admit now, this book was something more than just a binding of words with actions and sequences. This was something special, and far-far better than expected.

Basu, the famous writer of the GameWorld trilogy is back with a bang.

With Turbulence, he speaks about very Indian superheroes, ordinary humans who get powers that reflect their deepest longings, innermost desires . . . so everyone on flight BA 142 from London to Delhi is now a superhero, mildly to vastly powered super-humans (some indeed have weirdest powers imaginable)

The story revolves around the main cast, with plenty of sidekicks thrown in. So you have the protagonist, Aman Sen, whose new-found powers enable him to control everything that's on network. Yes, even the internet bends to his will.
There's Tia, a housewife from Assam, who always wanted to do many things and be at many places, so her powers make her a very literal embodiment of MPD. She can split herself into as many Tia's as she wants, and then merge together again, and can acquire every skill a Tia picked up on the way (very useful)
There's Uzma. A lot of reviews liken her to Katrina Kaif. Th similarities are there, I admit. Uzma is a brit-pakistani beauty who wants to make it big in Bollywood. Everyone likes her, and she oozes sexiness. But yet, I didn't find her one bit like her.
Then you have Vir, a former IAF pilot who can now fly.
And finally, you have the two supervillans. Immensely powerful Jai, Vir's former superior in the IAF who is now a one one army, with the old predictable goal of conquering the world. And there's a mysterious character with such remarkable ability to manipulate mob that is would put the Seldon Plan to shame and render his psychohistory useless.

So, Aman, with his rag-tag collection of rouge superheroes is out to beat the bad guys.

That's pretty much about it. The characters are very Indian. I like their Indian-ness. Some, or rather most of their habits can be related to, if you know what I mean. Basu, with this eccentric and interesting collection of cast, weaves together an unputdownable story, with his trademark zany humor and acerbic wit, which catapults him high up, with Jonathan Stroud. (If you have read Bartemeous, you would be knowing what I am talking about)  . . . Blockbuster perfection, electric and a racy page turner.  

I must admit though that after reading the GameWorld trilogy with it's breakneck speed, sharp twists and turns and plot changes, I was left demanding for more. Maybe Samit decides to write a sequel. I don't know. Haven't exactly been following him recently. But it might be a possibility. The ending is pretty much like the last Foundation book ended.

Verdict: A must read. It won't disappoint you. As BEN AARONOVITCH put's it:

"You'll laugh, you'll cry, you'll gasp and you will demand a sequel"