The Mistress of the Game: Not up to the mark

Tilly succeeded in bringing back Sidney Sheldon's characters alive but the characters were dancing for Tilly's tune and not Sidney's. If you want to be famous, write a sequel to a bestseller, don't go after the legend! Sidney Sheldon was and forever will be the master storyteller.

As for the characters, I'd like to start with Gabe. He is a drug addict, loser, criminal and a prisoner. When he is released and suspected for a fraudster again, the natural reaction would be to think he is guilty. But the detective who inquires the case believes in him even though he knows Gabe is an ex-con. Seriously? What was I reading? Sidney Sheldon's sequel or some self motivating crap? The characters were co-operative and lending a helping hand in every step of his. Dhai helps him in real estate business. His friend from "prison" (yeah that's right. People are very generous and kind) is financing him to start a real estate business from scratch. Tara agrees to marry him on a lousy second date. He works for AIDS charity. He hires a detective to spy on Lexi. Now that is purely Tilly not Sidney! This is not Jeffrey Archer's or James Rollins.. It is Sidney Sheldon's! It has to be thrilling, manipulative, evil cut throat competition. There was no room for warm sentiments in the Master of the Game nor should there be any in its sequel!

I am kind of disappointed to see how Robbie's character turned out. In The Master of the Game, the last scene goes like Kate getting tuned to manipulate her great grandson when she sees him at the Piano, waiting to build up a career as a Pianist and not as a Chairman in Kruger Brunt. I'd have least expected that sweet little aspiring pianist to be gay.

Lexi (Late Alexandra's daughter)is supposedly a wild cat (I don't see it) who is ambitious and righteous right from her childhood. Her moral values are crushed and her emotions are evidently shattered when she is kidnapped and raped as a child. But she doesn't let that or her deafness from the bomb blast affect her in anyway. She tracks down the rapist and kills him in the prison. She strides Kruger-Brunt office along side Max (Eve's son) and proves to be a prospective Chairwoman of the company. But the tide turns over when Max seduces her and lures her into bed (That's so gross because their mothers are twin sisters and they are cousins!). Anyway, their secret relationship and Max's sweet talks make Lexi believe in him. Max takes over as the chairmanship of Kruger-Brunt at the right time and Lexi is expelled. Now here is the part where the author's drawing comparison between Kate and Lexi has to ridiculed! Kate would have seen right through Max and his ruse, and she would would have out-witted him long before he could lay the trap for her. Lexi could not have been more of a puppy here. And she emerges back from ashes and builds her own company and loses it to win Kruger-Brunt back. While that is appreciated it is not really what one would expect from the Mistress of the game to short-sell her shares from Kruger-Brunt to rebuild the empire again. Lexi is definitely not the Mistress of Kate's game.

Max is just a lame pathetic despo and Eve is the puppet master. Eve is the only evil character but the credit goes to Sidney Sheldon as she is from Master of the game. The final touche with the letter even from her death bed, her intention to destroy everyone she blames for her misfortune was so like Eve.

I'd have rather preferred to read The Master of the Game again.

All that this book does is uplift Sidney Sheldon's fame and image. This book talks bad about Tilly Bagshawe: that she cannot be the Mistress storyteller.

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