I have first seen this book's cover reveal by Westland and I got curious about it. At that time, "Tarikshir - The Awakening" by Khayaal Patel was just released and all I could find on the internet was blurb of the book. Still, I betted on my gut feeling and selection of Westland publishers. And once again I was proven right. The book was a roller coaster ride of multiple genre touches.
Book Blurb
A small princely state in Rajasthan is the last bastion of resistance against the might of the British Empire. While unrest surrounding the sudden death of the king of Devangarh grows, young prince Rudra Pratap Chauhan prepares to ascend the throne.But the kingdom is in turmoil. The Devangarh army is outnumbered and the British forces are closing in. To make matters worse, Rudra discovers the king’s death may not have been accidental after all. The strange appearance and disappearance of a mysterious hooded stranger and a series of ritualistic murders in which the bodies have been drained of blood, spread panic across the realm.As Rudra struggles to manage his new responsibilities and investigate his father’s death, dark secrets will be uncovered that will disrupt life as he knows it.
The story goes like this after the war of Ramayana, Hanumana had hidden certain secrets and had entrusted the security of human (against supernaturals) to a certain group of people. During Britisher's era in India, a powerful Rajput Kingdom Devgrah was threaten by Britishers' to subjugate to Queen. The current king of Devgrah (being a proud Rajput) kept freedom above everything. His son, Rudra - Yuwaraja, had recently finished his training and he wanted to impress his father. Our protagonist is Rudra. When peace talks didn't work out with Britishers', the inevitable war knocked their doors. In the chaos of war, Rudra's father was found dead. The surrounding facts and the gut-feeling told Rudra that death cannot be natural. He started working on the clue found around his father's death site. But things he uncovered were far sinister than just death of his father - an evil Tarikshir is waiting to be unveiled.
I hope I haven't revealed much. Now coming to what we got from the story. Khayaal Patel has done a wonderful job here. You will find thriller, horror, mystery, suspense, mythology, and action. The story started with mythological fiction tone, then shifted to historical fiction mode, then after it kept switching between mystery, action, and fantasies. The book is written for almost all age groups. Even middle grader can enjoy it. The language usage is simple. The flow of the story is straight. You don't have to switch timelines to understand it. You can see the clear thought process of the author the way he has visualized the plot.
The only weakness I found was super fast pace, maybe that is needed for said genre. Baring few things here and there, overall characterization and storytelling made the book a sure-shot page turner. India needs such light reads which can maintain tempo and interest of readers throughout the story. You will love this book if you have enjoyed Indian Mytho-Histo-fictions.
A fun fact - You can find zombies in the story.
Coming to ratings
- Cover - 4/5
- Concept - 4.5/5
- Characters - 4/5
- Overall - 4/5
Reviews from other readers can be found at GoodReads
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