23 September, 2017

#BookReview :: Yama’s Lieutenant and the Stone Witch by Anuja Chandramouli

As Yama's Lieutenant, Agni Prakash, has diligently been tracking down demons and spirits that threaten peace on earth and dispatching them to his lord's thousand hells. Danger is a constant in his job, but this time an apocalypse threatens his entire world. Agni must go up against a terrifying sorceress-adept in the ancient art of stone magic-and her bestial army of demoniacal creatures who used to be humans before they were transformed into willing killing machines. The witch has a nightmarish vision for a new world that involves large scale culling of the humans-and it falls to Agni to stop her. He must find the Samayakalas, the mysterious keepers of time and reset the clock before all life is destroyed. However, any contact with the Samayakalas is forbidden to mortal and immortal alike and those who flout the ancient decree risk incurring punishment far worse than death. The price asked of him is an impossible one, but Yama's Lieutenant does not have a choice. Enlisting the help of old friends, he must submit to being borne across an ocean of death and destruction to find the Samayakalas before darkness engulfs them all. 



Full disclosure… This review (and future reviews of the books by this author) may be slightly biased. I have been reading Anuja Chandramouli’s books right from the time she made her debut with Arjuna. I have read three more books by her since then, making this the 5th book I am reading (and reviewing). She has slowly grown to be one of my favourite IWE authors with her steady delivery of quality content and lucid language.

Agni Prakash is back with a second adventure in Yama’s Lieutenant and the Stone Witch. The first instalment was Yama’s Lieutenant which was in a way a very dark tale. Agni is still reeling from the events of the last book. But with the help of Minothy, he is also dealing with it all the while disposing of demons that threaten the world. This time around, he is running against time and has to literally reset time before all goes to hell and brings forth an apocalypse that the humans may not survive. Agni is up against a sorceress who may very well be unstoppable.

Well, I would have ended that paragraph with, ‘Will Agni be successful in his quest?’… But then I thought – ofcourse he will be. He is Agni Prakash. The one thing that bugged me in the first book was the way Agni’s character was developed. The author has done a much better job with his character this time. We can clearly see his many shades and it is easier to connect to him. The other characters were also done well irrespective of whether they were repeat characters of new ones. Some had small but significant roles to play and they were handled really well. There are many elements in the plot and each of them had very exciting lines. Whether it be the angle that the sorceress plays or whether it is the concept of existence of Samayakalas, they can ensnare any fantasy lover. 

All in all, this was a very good follow up book that actually makes me hope that we will get to read more about Agni Prakash and his adventures in the future.


Review Copy received from the Author


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