Thundergod : The Ascendance of Indra by Rajiv Menon

Title : Thundergod: The Ascendance Of Indra

Author : Rajiv Menon
Genre : Fiction / Mythology
Publisher : Westland Ltd.
Pages : 384
My Rating : 7/10
Reviewed For : MySmartPrice Books / Indian Debut Writers Month 2013 / South Asian Challenge 2013 / First Reads Challenge 2013

 

 

Blurb:

 

One day a prince from one of the four great tribes will unite the sons of Aditi and he will sow the seeds of an empire that will rule the world. Born of a prophetic union between the Earth Goddess Gaia and Daeyus, chief of the Devas, comes the story of a child recounted by history to have become a king and retold by legend to have transcended into a god. Indra, destiny’s orphan, finds himself growing up in a vortex of treachery and tribal incumbency. Shielded from the usurpers of his birthright only by the watchful eye of the warrior sage Mitra, he first sets out to conquer the hearts of his tribesmen, and then the kingdoms of the unmapped world. Aligning forces with his brothers by blood oath and divine intervention Agni, Vayu, Varuna and Soma Indra embarks on a military campaign of epic proportions, stretching from the Euphrates in Asia Minor to Harappa on the Indian subcontinent, encountering formidable armies, demonic beings and powerful goddesses, and losing the only woman he really loves. Will he get her to love him again? Will he avenge the death of his father? Will he assume his place in the pantheon of the gods? In a compelling saga, blended by history, spiced by legend and mutated by myth, Rajiv G. Menon transforms ten years of research into a lightning rod of an action adventure that streaks into your consciousness with the speed of Indra’s thunderbolt.

 

My Review:

 

Thundergod: The Ascendance Of Indra is a complete high-octane read from the outset. Being an ardent mythology buff, something in me (I call it curiosity) prompted me to read this one, if only to know how the author had portrayed a less popular God like Indra!! The Hindu has described this book as “a story of unbridled flamboyance from a debutant author”, so yes - unbridled it is and how!! Mediocre doesn’t settle it for the author, the events here are at the extremum -  swashbuckling action, bloodbath, heartbreak, amorous dalliances, revenge, cowardice, conspiracies, shifting loyalties – you name it & it has got it.

 

The story kickstarts with King Daeyus (who is the chief of Devas – a clan of barbarian warriors) leading his men on a mission across the vast sandy stretches of the Karakum Desert. So brave and virile he is, (The way his character is sketched, I am compelled to imagine him as Gerard Butler from the movie “300”), that even the Earth Goddess Gaia, who being an Elemental is forbiden from consorting with humans, cannot resist him. The result of this brief tryst is Indra – whose birth is prophesied and who is destined to unite the sons of Aditi. However, from the moment Indra is even conceived, forces of nature & human beings alike start concocting to annihilate him. However, destiny’s child – Indra remains protected by supernatural powers and guarded by the warrior sage Mitra.  As the years proceed, Indra grows up in a vortex of treachery, tribal incumbency and splintering loyalties. On attaining adulthood, Indra claims his birthright position as well as his childhood sweetheart’s hand in marriage. However, on the other hand he loses her love in a series of unexpected events and is left heartbroken in a single stroke. A heartbroken & brave warrior never fears anything and needless to say, what follows next is Indra’s ambitious quest - first to conquer the vanquishers of his father & then the kingdoms of the unmapped world. The author charts Indra’s journey as he turns into a war machine and attains a new high after every conquest. Supporting him in the carnage are his brothers who are bound to him by a blood oath – Agni, Vayu, Varuna & Soma. Finally, the hunter becomes the hunted and Indra finds himself ensconced in Swarga after he fulfils his prophecy.

 

The author has created a plot which resembles a grand game of chess, where many players are introduced and their roles constantly oscillating between being a pawn or a knight. The plot is replete with testosterone-charged, adventuristic voyages of the protagonist. The most striking part, however, is Indra’s metamorphosis from an innocent, mortal lad to an alpha male to finally a God!! As a reader, I found him endearing, sympathized with him, watched him run high on heady brews as well as ambition, plough down entire armies of humans & other creatures alike and finally deteriorating into a power hungry king. The author has not created stereotypical perfect God but has a sketched a very flawed protagonist with whom the readers will share a love-hate relationship. Another major highlight of this novel was the author’s earnest attempt in meshing together Indian mythology & world history. His love for Greek & Indian mythology as well as meticulous research is clearly evident in this read.

 

While the plot is packed with pace, it also includes a lot of graphic war & erotic details. While at the start they seem inevitable, page after page of war scenes in all its glory of bloodshed becomes repelling and slows down the pace of narration. Secondly, the author has filled the plot with motley of characters & frankly, I was overwhelmed by the vast array of characters. Also, whilst doing so, the author has wonderfully developed Indra’s character but whilst showering all his attention on Indra, the author has not done justice to the secondary characters. Especially, the characters of Vayu, Varuna, Agni & Soma are not fleshed out properly neither is their equation with Indra. And lastly, with all the anticipation for the final battle building up, the ending seems to be rushed & abrupt which left me absolutely unsatisfied.

 

When this read came out, it garnered a lot of mixed reviews. And after reading this one, I got a feeling very much like that – mixed emotions!! While the author has to be lauded for a beautiful & bold debut effort, I also wish to read a more crispier plot in the sequel sans a little bit of gore. All in all, this is a complete page turner that will keep the reader hooked.

Those Pricey Thakur Girls by Anuja Chauhan

Title : Those Pricey Thakur Girls
Author : Anuja Chauhan
Genre : Fiction / RomCom
Publisher : Harper Collins
Pages : 400
My Rating : 8/10
Reviewed For : MySmartPrice / IQR

Blurb:

In a sprawling bungalow on New Delhi’s posh Hailey Road, Justice Laxmi Narayan Thakur and his wife Mamta spend their days watching anxiously over their five beautiful (but troublesome) alphabetically named daughters.

Anjini, married but an incorrigible flirt; Binodini, very worried about her childrens hissa in the family property; Chandrakanta, who eloped with a foreigner on the eve of her wedding; Eshwari, who is just a little too popular at Modern School, Barakhamba Road; and the Judges favourite (though fathers shouldnt have favourites): the quietly fiery Debjani, champion of all the stray animals on Hailey Road, who reads the English news on DD and clashes constantly with crusading journalist Dylan Singh Shekhawat, he of shining professional credentials but tarnished personal reputation, crushingly dismissive of her state-sponsored propaganda, but always seeking her out with half-sarcastic, half-intrigued dark eyes.

Spot-on funny and toe-curlingly sexy, Those Pricey Thakur Girls is rom-com specialist Anuja Chauhan writing at her sparkling best.
 

My Review:

 

Having read the Zoya Factor & Battle for Bittora by Anuja Chauhan, you can be sure of two things – first one is that you know from the start that the story will follow predictable patterns and the protagonists are going to end up with each other. Yet even after knowing the foreseeable happy ending, the factor that keeps you hooked is the absolute laugh riot that Anuja’s novel promise to be. Secondly, you can be sure that you are in for some major drama which is peppered with some good old mushy romance & some solid Old Delhi masala. And with her latest release, Anuja Chauhan gives you just that.

 

Justice Laxmi Narayan Thakur is blessed with 5 daughters, who are named alphabetically from A to E. However, each of them is as eccentric & as different from each other as the colours of rainbow. Amongst them, Debjani is the Judge’s favourite & the protagonist of our story. Debjani aka Dabbu is the quintessential fiery lassie with an absolute preoccupation for stray animals & losers. She has just started her career of being a newsreader at DD (not Door Darshan!! It’s DeshDarpan), landed up in trouble & is quite some damsel in distress courtesy our hero – yummy & delectable - Dylan Singh Shekhawat who is an investigative journalist. Obviously, we know that D-for-Dylan & D-for-Debjani are “The Couple” but what the reader really has to look forward to is the D-for-Dhamaal & Dhamaka that would be accompanying the plot!! Set in pre-liberalisation New Delhi, Those Pricey Thakur Girls is a typical love story with a few complexities, misunderstandings, clichés and a potpourri of characters each displaying varying levels of bizarreness.

For those who have read Pride & Prejudice by Jane Austen, Those Pricey Thakur Girls will bear a striking resemblance to the classic albeit with the backdrop of Delhi in 1980s. However, Anuja has given her own unique, hilarious spin to the classic elements & has churned out a desi laugh out loud encore. Undoubtedly, the most enjoyable part of this read is its narration which was brisk with equal parts of romance, sarcasm & drollness. Perhaps the best part about Anuja Chauhan’s writing is that she develops the secondary characters as good as the protagonists. The characters are very well etched & each has a distinctive voice of their own. However, I found the story a bit of a drag in few parts. The plot would have been a bit more crispier sans 30-40 pages. But since this is an absolutely witty & funny romp, you will breeze by the bulk of the book a lot more easily. Go ahead, reserve this weekend for this read!!!

P.S. Here’s some good news for fans of Chauhan - Coming soon is the second part in the series – The House That BJ Built...looks promising!!


(The review copy has been provided by MySmartPrice. This review is entirely my own personal & honest opinion. I do not receive any kind of payment or monetary gains for my review.)

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JFK by Jhangir Kerawala

Title : JFK
Author : Jhangir Kerawala
Genre : Mystery / Fiction
Publisher : Grey Oak / Westland Books
Pages : 225
My Rating : 8/10
Reviewed For : MySmartPrice / IQRC 2013

Blurb:

JFK ... A dying man’s last word ... A plea, an accusation or a clue? That’s what the police couldn’t figure out. What they did know was that they had serial murders in broad daylight, and just one suspect with little motive ... Jatin F. Karunamoi, the dead man’s best friend. Jatin is no hero; he’s an unemployed 50-year-old, desperate to find a job. But his only hope for a life of dignity lies in him finding the real killer. As he jumps headlong into the investigation he has little idea what he’s getting into ... a hunt for the faceless murderer. Each step Jatin takes to unravel the mystery brings him closer to insanity as he encounters unimaginable situations, devious characters, intrigue and ... death. In this fast-paced thriller set in Kolkata, debut ant novelist Jhangir Kerawala brings the reader face-to-face with the ugly underbelly that looms large beneath the bright lights of urban India.

My Review :

When I first saw the title JFK, I like many others thought this book was about the late U.S. President & his assassination. But then on reading the blurb, I realised that it had nothing to do with any of it. In fact this was a very much desi read, set in the City of Kolkata and partly in Uttar Pradesh, promising to take the reader on a roller coaster of a ride with its fast paced thrill. A unique title, an intriguing blurb but a dull cover page set against the backdrop of Kolkata seemed a rather interesting combination.

In one word, JFK can be described as your good old “whodunit”!! It starts with the murder of an old man – Ram Prasad Yadav on a dark night. Next we know, our protagonist i.e. Jatin’s best mate – Manish is also killed the same night by the same gun. While the author keeps Ram Prasad’s identity & story under the wraps till we reach the middle of the read, Manish is described as a “decent man with no enemies”!! So who would want to kill a man like Manish?? This is what Jatin has to discover & this is his story as he juggles between trying to find out his best friend’s murderer & resolving his own personal issues. Manish in his last dying moments, gives a call to Jatin & utters just 3 alphabets – “JFK” which are the only clue that Jatin has. As Jatin decodes the clue & stumbles upon the many secrets of his otherwise best friend Manish, he realises that Manish was not what he seemed to be. Armed with this knowledge, Jatin sets out on a hunt which not only takes him to the real killer but also changes his entire perspective of life.

On first impressions, this story might seem like any other thriller but this one stands out in a number of ways. Firstly, the protagonist – Jatin is not your average young, dynamic hero. He is a  50-year old unemployed man who is dealing with what we can all relate to as mid-life crisis. Unemployment, financial crisis, family issues - amongst all these troubles, his only haven is his mate – Manish but when Manish is murdered, Jatin is thrown headlong into a maze of intricate lies & ghosts of pasts.

Secondly, the author has introduced this unique spin through which emerges the second protagonist – Ram Prasad Yadav. The readers get to know about his story & struggle only when they reach the middle of the plot but once it is out, it surpasses even Jatin’s struggle. The author has portrayed Ram Prasad Yadav in all shades from white to grey but the sheer grit & determination of this character & his lone crusade stands out amongst the rest. Thirdly, the author has outlined a plot that is very relatable, grounded & real. He has also addressed the various evils that still exist in our society despite its modernity & has tried to create an awareness. And lastly but perhaps the best part of this story was the fact that the author has highlighted a very important and basic human trait. All of us have hidden secrets, every person is not exactly the same as he portrays himself in front of the society, family or friends. Through almost every character, the author has played up this point.

Along with Jatin & Ram Prasad Yadav, the author has also included a motley of characters & various sub plots which add to the mystery of the plot. The author’s style of writing is reader –friendly, in other words, it is easy to read. However, there were a few sub-plots which were not concluded properly in the end and that left me unsatisfied. Also, the story seemed to drag in the last few pages, it could have been crispier. This is not a classic nor a glossy read but if you are looking for something that will keep you hooked till the end then JFK is the one for you. Kudos to the author for his debut effort.

(The review copy has been provided by MySmartPrice. This review is entirely my own personal & honest opinion. I do not receive any kind of payment or monetary gains for my review.)

About MySmartPrice (MySmartPrice – Easiest Way To Get The Best Price)

MySmartPrice is an online price comparison engine which let you find the best price of products in Mobiles, Books, Cameras, Electronics, Computers, Appliances and Personal Care products. MySmartPrice also provides the user with Deals and Coupons making the online shopping more rewarding.