Age Of Hiblisk by Sumukh Naik

Title : Age Of Hiblisk
Author : Sumukh Naik
Genre : Fiction / Fantasy
Publisher : APK Publishers
Pages : 400
My Rating : 6/10
Reviewed For : Author / South Asian Challenge 2013 / First Reads Challenge 2013 / IQRC 2013

Blurb:

 

“Age Of Hiblisk: A Story with a Soul” is the journey of Prince William and Princess Sara, the protagonists, through the magical and spiritual worlds of Pantolis, Hiblisk, and Ikra. As their voyage unfolds, they realize the true motive behind the terror employed by the dark forces of Dushtt to claim supremacy over the lands of Pantolis and beyond. Every new revelation brings to light the methodical madness employed by the dark forces and secrets of Mother Nature, which have been safely guarded for ages by the various civilizations of the secret worlds. Their journey also introduces them to the divine forces that monitor the functions of the world and gives them access to legendary, mystical weapons and advanced spiritual knowledge which illuminates the flow of their understanding and actions towards various aspects of life. They use the knowledge gained, to try and bring peace, to their war ravaged lands and fight the ever growing might and influence of the mysterious dark forces that haunt their kingdoms. Will the light of all that is divine, fighting under the banner of Prince William and Princess Sara, flicker away into oblivion against the might of the dark forces under Dushtt, or will they survive?...Only time in her womb holds the answer, potent enough to change the outlook of the very world we live in.

My Review:

“Age Of Hiblisk: A Story with a Soul” is a fascinating and thought provoking novel that is difficult to classify in any one genre. That is because this read has an eclectic mix of fiction, fantasy, adventure, magic, spirituality and philosophy – all blended in together. Set in the magical and illusionary worlds of Pantolis, Hiblisk and Ikra, this read charts the magical & spiritual voyage of a prince and a princess who set out to reclaim the balance of nature which has been perturbed due to rise of evil forces and which is threatening the very existence of their world.

The story commences with mysterious & grisly occurrences taking place in the Himra forest of Zyren village which resides on the border of the two disputing kingdoms - Jaguar and Ivory. Naturally, the peace loving villagers are terrorized and after futile attempts at trying to get to the root of the problem, they turn to seek the help of the prince of Jaguar as a last resort. Prince William, being the kind & fair ruler that he is, decides to help the villagers to relocate. However, in an unfortunate turn of events he himself gets trapped by the soldiers of Ivory and has to surrender. What seems as unfortunate at first glance, turns out to be destiny’s play later as the Princess of Ivory – Princess Sara joins hands with Prince Williams to ward off the evil forces. Helping them on their quest is the mysterious 11th Master of the “Order” – this Order is responsible to maintain the equilibrium in Pantolis & ensure its smooth functioning. The 11th Master who is the most powerful master in the Order recognizes William and Sara for the pure souls that they are and bestows them with magical powers. He then sends them on the expedition of setting the balance of good & evil right in order to save Pantolis. Thus, begins their journey in the magical land of Hiblisk where they go through various adventures and learn the valuable lessons of life & gain advanced spiritual knowledge from the various encounters in the magical land.

The most striking part of the read was the point that the author has put across which is quite different than the usual “good-always-beats evil-and-turns triumphant” tales that are abundant. In this read the author has explained that it always takes the balance between the good and the evil to maintain a state of tranquillity in the world and in its beings. Excessiveness of even one thing will ruin the order and create chaos. Another highlight of the read was the author’s imagination – Sumukh has without any effort created the worlds of Hiblisk, Pantolis & Ikra in its finest details and has blended them together seamlessly. The portrayal of the different characters, beings and scenarios make a major part of the read an engaging one inspite of it being based in a land of magic and illusion. Also, through William and Sara’s journey, the author has made an attempt to explain various philosophical as well as spiritual aspects of life. The maps provided at the end of the read prove to be helpful aids while reading the novel.

Coming to the drawbacks, the major sore point was the connect. The author has followed a rather weird pattern in naming the characters & places throughout the read. While he started off with western names, as the read proceeded, the names turned Indian and the mix of Indian & non-Indian names didn’t really blend well. Secondly, the initial  pace of the read is a bit slow and it takes a patience on the part of the reader to move over to the more interesting part of the read. The major focus of this read is philosophy and hence, the plot consisting of almost no suspense has turned predictable. Also, the novel could do with better editing for a more more crispier and tighter plot.

To give the debut author credit, the reader gets much more than they bargained for. The language is simple which makes it an easy read. The read is packed with subtle yet beautiful messages on spirituality and philosophy. Kudos to the author for following the unconventional path and experimenting with a new genre for a debut work.