Author: Sitharaam Jayakumar
Publisher: Book Street Publications
I was provided a media copy of the book in exchange for an honest review.
What if someone you blindly trust turns against you?
The peninsular kingdom of Himadripuram is flourishing under the rule of
the just and able king Devdutt Narayan. The people are happy and content and
everything is just fine. But one summer, somewhere deep inside the corridors of
power, a conspiracy to overthrow the king is taking shape slowly. A conspiracy
that might tear the kingdom apart and render it helpless and hapless. Jagan
Mohan is the chief of the Himadripuram Khoofiya Vibhagh (HKV). During the
weekly meetings of the HKV, Jagan can sense an undercurrent of discontent among
the members. His gut instinct tells him that something is wrong, and he wonders
if one or many of the members have turned rogue. One of the members of the HKV
who tries to warn Jagan is found stabbed to death. Within a few days, another
member is killed. Jagan with the help of his able pupil and royal guard Vishnu
Sarma must unravel the conspiracy before it bursts like a volcanic eruption. Is
Jagan able to successfully stop the kingdom of Himadripuram from
disintegrating? Is he able to prevent it from succumbing to anarchy? Only time
can tell. He must tread very carefully as the conspirators are ruthless and
will stop at nothing.
The book has an interesting premise where the author has set up a fictional country in the ancient times. As the book opens, there is a note on the city by the author where he describes the setup which helps in connecting with the story. The book is told in a linear manner and the events have been presented in a comfortable pace, which helps in connecting with the plot. What I liked about the book was that the mystery of the whodunnit remains hidden till the end and as a reader, you are invested into the storyline. Another thing that works in the favour of the story are the details and how the author manages to build in multiple connections that unravel in the end. What did not work for me, however, was the monotonous manner in which the story has been told. While the blurb promises a conspiracy and adventure in the story, while reading you do not feel either of the things because the storytelling is quite flat. I felt that a lot of emphasis was put on the world building and not much of the storyline which led to the issues with the reading experience. Similarly, the climax fails to incite excitement because of the fact that time was not given and it seems as if it was written in a hurry and the details got missed.
Coming to the characters, Jagan’s character has been fleshed out in
detail in the book. I loved how the author has taken time to highlight various aspects
of his character and his equation with the other characters. Veer Narayan’s character
was a promising one, but again the emphasis and the development of the
character arc was not enough to build him up as a promising adversary. I felt
that the detailing in the character development could have been also improved a
bit.
Overall, the book is a decent read that scores a 3.88/5 for me.
Get a copy of the book on Amazon India.
Looks Interesting... Will give it a try...
ReplyDelete