Vengeance of Indra (Vikramaditya Veergatha #3) - Book Review

In case you don't know, Vengeance of Indra is a long-awaited sequel to the Conspiracy at Meru, Third book of Mytho-fantasy Vikramaditya Veergatha series written by Shatrujeet Nath. The book was released on 5 February 2018. It is available in paperback format and also available on Amazon Kindle. The book consists of 375 pages just like the previous two books of this series. 

    I have completed reading the book, so I thought I post a review here for those who read my blog. I was confused first. Whether to write in-depth details of the book or just post a spoiler-free review. 

Because there are people who have,

1. Read Guardians of Halahala & Conspiracy at Meru and very much liked it. In that case, you might have already completed reading it. And this review is more than enough for you. 

2. Read Guardians of Halahala & Conspiracy at Meru and didn't like any of them. If so, I hope this review might change your opinion. 

3. Haven't read any of them. And you're just messing around here. So it's better to read the first two books. Because reading this post might just be a big confusing spoiler for you.   

But finally, I have decided to write a spoiler-free review. There are so many things I want to write here, but for now, just a simple review would just do as well. Later on, I would write individual posts on different topics from the books.  

All right, so the readers have one question in mind. Is it as good as the previous two? 

The answer is.... yes. This is a very nice book. I feel Conspiracy at Meru was better than this one. But that is just because in every well-written series, the second book is always the most popular and favourite of the readers. As most of the characters are introduced in the first book. The adventure and mysterious part begins in the second book. It is also famous by the time it published if readers liked the first one. And hence the popularity. 

Those of you who have been following things here knows how much I like reading mythology, fantasy and science fiction books. That's why I was delighted to find Shiva Trilogy a few years back. Although there isn't magic like things in the Shiva Trilogy, I really liked it. Vikramaditya Veergatha series is as good as this one. Perhaps better. Shatrujeet Nath has put many efforts in writing the series. 

Read Immortal India review.  

Okay, I'm off on a tangent again. Let's get things back into focus. I often suggest this series to people, alongside Shiva Trilogy, Kingkiller Chronicle, Hitchhiker's Guide to Galaxy and many others. 

And why do I recommend these?

Because they are awesome. it's a whole new world. There is science, there is a magical system that gives pleasure to read.

There are very fewer action scenes in Vengeance of Indra compared to Conspiracy at Meru. In previous books, the council of nine finds their powers. Kshapanaka was immune to venom, Shanku could disappear at wish, Amara Sinha's remarkable Man-Lion transformation, and Varahmira's shield that protected him from Ahi's venom. But we didn't know the strengths of Ghatakarpara, Dhanavantari and Acharya Vetal Bhatta. Hopefully, you will find some of the answers. 

One thing I didn't like about the books is there aren't many conversations between Vikramaditya and Vishakha. Right from the first book, Vishaka was dealing with illness. But I think the author might have kept it that way because Shukracharya used that as a way to make a deal with Vikramaditya. But make no mistake, Vikramaditya's love for her is very evident in the book. And there other characters that are totally in love but haven't expressed their feelings yet. I won't tell you their names though.    

    But since Dhanavantari is a member of a council of nine. He will ultimately discover his power and cure Vishakha in the end.  

The book also focuses on internal politics in Sinduvarta that includes states like Vatsa, Magatha, Vanga, Avanti, Heheya and Matsya. Nevertheless, there are many interesting plots. Which signifies how difficult Samrat's life has become. Dealing with different situations which separate him from his councillors. 

I'm definitely excited to see how despite all the difficulties Vikramaditya will secure Halahala and how he and his council are gonna fight against arch-enemy Indra and Hiranyaksha's armies. After reading book three and knowing Vikramaditya's background and Indra's anger over how the human King possesses the two most devastating weapons both Asuras and Devas have always wanted...

 Hellfire sword and the deadly Halahala. Samrat possesses both of them.

Can he be somehow forced to use Halahala in the final fight against Indra or Asuras?

Will Danav from Dandaka forests help Vikramaditya? 

What is Yaksha's intention?

Will the wily Shukracharya find a way to get hold of Halahala from The Ghoulmaster? 

Will Vishaka ever recover and can she guide him?

What are Dhanavantri's powers?

Can Vikramaditya stop Shoorsena in his evil plans?  

Will Kalidasa ever come back to Vikrama or will he help Hunas to conquer Sinduvarta?

  

I have many questions after reading these books. Which truly makes these books awesome! 

There is a beauty in Shatrujeet Nath's writing. And it's a beautiful book to read. A good sense of storytelling and a wonderful sense of pacing. 

Anyway, I thoroughly enjoyed the book. As much as I guessed I would.....

So, I recommend that you give Vengeance of Indra a read, after reading the first two books, Guardians of Halahala and  The Conspiracy at Meru if you have an interest in reading Indian mythology or fantasy series.