Book Review - Kartikeya The Destroyer's Son by Anuja Chandramouli

We have heard many stories about Ganesha, but stories of his brother Kartikeya were limited. I was always curious about Kartikeya so this book was enlightening for me.

Book Blurb

Unravel the puzzle that is the mysterious and misunderstood son of Mahadeva.

Kartikeya was born from the flames of a desperate need, an ardent desire and an utmost devastation. In him was distilled the terrible powers of Mahadeva, at its fiercest and most deadly. Although he fought many wars and slew many tyrants, his gifts to humanity have always been those of mercy, compassion and love. What makes this possible?

For Kartikeya, there have always been more questions than answers. Did he really walk away from his family over a piece of fruit? What about the women in his life—was he the ravisher he is at times accused of being, or the protector of women? Was he the violent warrior who revelled in bloodlust, or a gentle family man? What was his relationship with his more popular sibling, Ganesha?

Anuja Chandramouli weaves together myth, imagination and folklore while looking to answer these questions and recreates for modern readers the story of one of the most enigmatic gods—Kartikeya.

The Kartikeya is the first son of the destroyer Shiva and the goddess Parvati. He was also chief commander of Deva's army. The purpose of Kartikeya's birth was to kill Asura king who has taken charge of heaven and to restore the place of Indra as king of heaven. Kartikeya was a benevolent warrior and a generous soul. The handsome God was also popular amongst the female and every female irrespective of race loved him.

To my surprise, in this book the antagonist was the God of heaven Indra, whose character was shown as greedy and hungry for power. Also, the story of the birth of Ganesh was quite unexpected as I know a bit different version of the story. The book has some adult content so you can't read this book to kids.

I liked this book throughout only the end was a bit odd for me. But overall it was quite enlightening, spiritual and good read.

Talking about ratings

1. Cover - 4.5/5
2. Content - 4/5
3. Characters - 4/5
4. Concept - 3.5/5
5. Overall - 4/5

Book can be found at Amazon & Flipkart

Review from other readers can be found at GoodReads