WAR OF LANKA - RAM CHANDRA SERIES BOOK 4 BY AMISH TRIPATHI

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I have watched plenty of shows based on Ramayana and Mahabharata in the past, and this book piqued my interest because of its mixed opinions. And I have to admit that this book is slightly different from the Ramayana I have known.

War of Lanka is the fourth book in the Ram Chandra series and is a retelling of Valmiki's Ramayana. The book follows the events that take place after the abduction of Sita by Raavan. 



Though this book maintains the core values of Valmiki's Ramayana, it's written in a completely different dimension with a more logical explanation of the events that took place. They appear more human than mythical.

The author's thought process is incredible as he adds a fresh perspective to the tale through his eyes. It feels refreshing to read it from a different viewpoint. Even though the book is stretchy and repetitive, and one might not miss much even if they skipped a few lines here and there, the war scenes and fight sequences were well narrated. 

Though the book treated all the characters equally well, the central characters were sometimes overshadowed and sidelined. Raavan and Vedavati's relationship was Heartwarming, yet the over-whitewashing of Raavan's nature felt very deliberate and unconvincing.

I cannot offer you my opinion on the lucidity of the language because I was utterly shocked to read terms like "Bro", "bingo", "Hanu Bhaiya", or "Hans" as a short form for Hanuman, which sounded very off considering the period the story falls in. But I haven’t read the other books in this series, so I cannot know if it’s the pattern of the series or not. And even if you haven’t read the previous books, this one can still be treated as a standalone.


MY REVIEW: 3/5

Thank you @harpercollinsin for the reader’s copy.

This is a part of Blogchatter’s TBRChallenge


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