Title: Warrior
Author: Olivier Lafont
Paperback: 384 pages
Publisher: Penguin Books India(November 24th 2014)
Genre: Mythological Fantasy
Read: eBook
Stars: ****/5
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Summary: (Goodreads)
In Mumbai, driven to its knees by a merciless blizzard, Saam the watchmender is cornered into an intolerable position. As Shiva's only earthly demigod child, it falls upon him to stop his indomitable father. Bred to war, son of destruction, Saam rides with six extraordinary companions into the horror of a crumbling world to face Shiva. He is forced to join hands with Ara, his half-brother he can never fully trust and take with him his own mortal beloved, Maya, on this desperate attempt to stop the End of Days. But his path is littered with death, danger and betrayal. Interweaving mythology, epic adventure and vintage heroism, this enthralling novel will change the way you see gods, heroes and demons.
My Review:
Note: Thanks Olivier Lafont for offering me your book to read and review :)
Cover: Eye-catchy!
Paper and font: Easy on the eyes.
Readability, language: Fast read with some big words.
Why did I choose this book: A demigod story based on Indian Gods and set in India was a must read, no?
The world as we know it is coming to an end. Shiva the destroyer has started the process of the End of Days. But the Gods have human children or demigods and Saam who is Shiva child has the potential to save the world. Can he and how he does it is the story.
The title doesn’t really say much about the story, however the blurb does catch the eye and sow a seed of interest. The cover reminded me of samurais and such, but not bad I’d say since it caught my eye.
The plot is new but very clearly inspired by Rick Riordan's Percy Jackson series. However there are a lot of elements that are different and new too. The main storyline is about saving the world but there are a lot of sub-plots too that explore Saam and his six companions past to build a complete jigsaw.
The story starts in present day Mumbai and then moves across India, across dimensions and between worlds as Saam and his party try to follow clues and undo the unravelling. Lamont has done a good job of describing the each location both real and fantasy and it is easy to visualise as your read.
Saam and his half brother Ara are the main characters of Warrior. They have a love-hate relationship and a past with many a story. Lamont explores the siblings relationship as the story unfolds unveiling their past a little bit at a time. There are a fair number of other characters too who are also well-fleshed and rounded to support the story and take it forward.
The objective of the story is clear within the first 10 or so pages of the book. Lamont then goes ahead through the tale to attain it. Though there are many sub-plots in the story, Lafont ties them all up well with the main storyline and leaves no loose ends.
He builds the narrative well and ups the pace towards climax, such that I was hooked to the book after a point. Warrior starts out really slow and then picks up pace and gets action-packed. If you can hold out for the first 20 or so pages, you’ll be stuck till the end.
Though the style of writing is somewhat inspired by Percy Jackson, the story is too Indian to hold on to Percy for long. Intwined intricately with Indian mythology and Gods, Lafont has done his research well and paints a vivid picture.
A very good effort for a debut novel. I’m going to be looking forward to more books from Lafont. Suitable for all ages except maybe kids, due to the blood and gore. If you are someone who loves mythology, especially Indian mythology and likes action-packed thriller type books, you must read Warrior.
About the Author:
Olivier Lafont is a French actor and author living in Mumbai, India. He has acted in Hindi films as well as over 80 television commercials. Apart from acting Lafont has also written the screenplay for the film Hari Om and is a regular columnist for MW and Men’s Health magazine. You can find out more on his website
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