Kal asked Vaseem Khan:

Hi Dear Vaseem, Glad to see you are still pursuing your series of BGA novels. I love all 3 and cannot wait for #4. Can you tell me who were your literary heroes growing up? And has anyone from the entertainment world also been your inspiration??

Vaseem Khan Thanks, Ray ... I grew up on a diet of science fiction so my first inspirations were Arthur C. Clarke, Isaac Asimov and Greg Bear. I later fell in love with literary fiction where writers like John Irving inspire me – A Prayer for Owen Meany is my favourite amongst novels that aspire to the accolade of ‘Great American novel’. I admire writers who write with courage - I read The Fault in our Stars, and haven’t laughed so much in ages, even though John Green was tackling the subject of teens with terminal cancer – he did such a brilliant job. I am, of course, a fan of crime fiction. Ian Rankin’s Rebus series is wonderful. I love Jeffrey Deaver’s quadrapalegic hero Lincoln Rhymes and his partnership with feisty Amelia Sachs. Deaver is brilliant at putting in twists. But Michael Connelly is my favourite – his L.A. based detective Harry Bosch is my kind of crime fighter – grim, gritty and utterly implacable in his mission. That mission is one that Inspector Chopra identifies with. To pursue justice no matter what it takes, no matter what it costs him personally.

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