Best friends with Indra, the King of the Gods, tutor to the Apsaras in the art of lovemaking, Kamadeva lives a dream life in the magnificent Kingdom of Amaravathi - until danger strikes when he incurs the wrath of Shiva because of a preordained curse. Follow Kama as he hurtles towards his destiny and the Destroyers dreaded third eye. Find out if he will rise from the ashes to reign supreme as the King of Hearts or if he will be doomed to spend an eternity as Ananga - The bodiless one
In Kamadeva - The God of Desire, the author masterfully marries imagination with stellar research to bring to vivid life one of the most intriguing Gods of the Hindu pantheon. Laced with wit and narrated in contemporary flavour, Kamadeva will take you on a rollicking ride into the heart of desire and its tantalizing dark side.
In the time of Mythology retellings, most authors are going back to retell us the epics of Mahabharata and Ramayana over and over again and I have to admit, I quite enjoy them. Anuja Chandramouli has previously told us the story of Arjuna, which was a well researched and well narrated story. So, when I was approached to review this book, my first instinct was to accept - afterall, I had already read and enjoyed this aythors work. Secondly, I have never read much about Kamadeva other than the very brief guest appearances in other novels. So, I was quite curious about the subject as well.
Kamadeva - the God of Desire, was born to Lord Brahma. He plays his part in the world of Lords as a friend to Indra, husband to Rati and a tutor to the Apsaras. But because of a preordained curse, he faces the wrath of Lord Shiva, the destroyer. Rati and Kamadeva are then reborn on Earth. Kamadevas destiny unfold in the pages as the readers are taken on a ride. Everything seems to be a part of a much larger plan.
The best part of the book is that Anuja Chandramouli makes her characters very human. Yes, she is telling the story of the Gods, whom we hold with such reverance, yet she humanizes them in such a way that a reader can actually relate to the character and situations. The dialogue delivery in our everyday language adds to the allure of it. The book also discusses some topics that are very relevant in our society. It is very apparent that that the author has put in some quality research time while developing the plot and apllaud the author for that. The language and the narration compliments each other by maintaining a certain balance. The author has a very refined language and it is a pleasure to read her prose.
The only drawback of the book is its pace. While the plot and the language makes up for part of it, I think there were sections in the book that I could do without.
Overall, this book makes for a really interesting read. It will surely attract the Mythology lovers as it portrays a little known character.
Kamadev! Would indeed love to read more about him! Thanks for such an awesome review..
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