Bloodbath (The Empress of Indraprastha #4)-Sonali Raje

Book: Bloodbath (The Empress of Indraprastha #4)
Author: Sonali Raje
Publisher: Vishwakarma Publication

I was provided a media copy of the book in exchange for an honest review.

Discover the science of war. Be enthralled by intense political debates and failed negotiations. Understand battle strategies from the mastermind, Krishna, and indulge in his philosophical and psychological mind-games with comrades and combatants alike. Explore the tenuous skill of intelligence-gathering and providing critical logistical support to the soldiers, along with the royal women of Indraprastha. Uncover the glories and horrors of war, of despicable cowardice and magnificent valour, of ethics and morals. Continuing with themes of women's empowerment, gender equality, and maternal support for married daughters, in this installment, recognize the importance of the inclusivity of differently abled individuals. Appreciate the unique skillset they bring to a task, in this modern-day fictional recreation of the Mahabharat, with lessons for current times. Continue the journey with the indomitable Empress of Indraprastha, as the warriors assemble at Kurukshetra in an annihilatory - Bloodbath.

Sonali’s retelling of the great epic continues and in this book, we see the events as they happen in Kurukshetra. Picking up from where she left off in Book 3, Sonali presents the story of the war in her own words. Throughout the book, we see the idea of ethics and morality being presented and questioned, repeatedly as the war progresses. Sonali’s writing is powerful, and the visuals that she presents are so intense that some of them bring literal tears into your eyes as you read them. Abhimanyu’s death scene is one of them. The sheer description of the scene and how Draupadi reacts to it was something I can never forget. Another scene that stayed with me was when she describes the tax Panchaal was supposed to pay to Hastinapur, and how she presents the payment in kind. Another aspect of the book that stood out for me was how Sonali writes the pettiness of the characters, and while this might seem like an odd part in a book review, that pettiness makes the book enjoyable. While the first half of the book was focused a bit more on the war, I loved how the second part of the book focusses on the horrors of war and how it impacts the people left in the aftermath of such a conflict. This book also features a few call backs to the previous books in the series, and the scene where Karna’s birth is revealed is one such scene which stands out as a brilliantly written one, specially with the emotions it draws out from the reader. Coming to the climax, the last line of the book is chilling, and knowing how Sonali is surprising with her writing, Book 5 promises to be even more gripping than this one.

Coming to the characters, we have met most of our primary characters in the previous books, and as an extension of the previous books, there is not much to talk about character development, however there are few instances that do deserve a mention. Abhimanyu’s character arc is something that has been told and retold many times, but I think the way Sonali’s presents his character was truly exemplary. Vrushali’s character arc also takes a wonderful turn in the book, and I think her presence in the scene under the tree was wonderfully penned!

Overall, Bloodbath is a wonderful addition to the series, and presents Sonali’s writing as one of the best retellings of the great epic. The book scores a 5/5 for me.

Grab a copy of the book on Amazon India or a bookstore near you!

Check out my review of the previous books in the series: