"Pradyumna: Son of Krishna', by Usha Narayan

Name of the Book : PRADYUMNA: SON OF KRISHNA
Author: Usha Narayanan

The Story :

‘I see a dark future that makes me quake,’ Devarishi Narada said. ‘One of these newborns will ravage the world and erase the name of Krishna from the face of the earth.’

As the world trembles on the threshold of Kali Yuga—4,32,000 years of unprecedented evil—it waits for a saviour to rise.

Meanwhile, in the dark netherland of the asuras, the meek Vama shudders as he learns that he is actually Pradyumna,
the son of Krishna. And that his journey has just begun.

From the asura kingdom to Dwaraka and then Kurukshetra, destiny forces him to battle monsters, angry
gods and blazing weapons, and overpower his own weaknesses. Will he be able to rise to the challenge in time to save
the world? Or is he the destroyer prophesied by Narada?

Pradyumna is the gripping saga of the rise of this mighty, swashbuckling hero whom all of humanity awaits.

My Review:

I'll start this with a little confession: Mythology is one of the two genres I always liked the least; the other one being horror. Wait; there's a third too; add erotica to the list. (sorry E.L James). Grunting over.

Coming back to Pradyumna, it is written by a writer who I revere, Usha Narayanan. Naturally, I had to give the genre, another try. It pleasantly turned out to be one of the better decisions I had ever made. Everything about this book is pure perfection; right from the way the writer has described the dresses worn by the kings and the queens, to the palaces, to the tightly-bound story line. 

Storyline: 

Everyone of us in India would probably know about the battle of Mahabharata between Kauravas and Pandavas, the Trideva, and the Lord Krishna. Not many of us though, would know about Vama, who Kalasura, the demon king had kidnapped and handed over to his queen Mayawati. Vama, who was KamDeva reborn, the diety of love, was taken care of by queen Mayawati, who was actually the reincarnation of his wife, Rati.  

The story goes on to tell how Vama turns out to be Pradyumna, the stolen son of Lord Krishna; and his story of turning from a lecherous weakling who was always surrounded by women; to a mighty warrior who goes on to defeat and kill mighty asuras in the war fields. 

I liked: 

It would be cliched to say 'everything', right? Alright, I'll try and name a few special ones. I liked that in spite of being a professional editor and a proofreader and reading the book twice, I couldn't find a single error I could put a finger on; which I must admit is a first for any book I've read, coming from Penguin factory. I'm sure the writer would have done extensive editing work herself, before handing it over to the publishers. 

The writer has also managed to keep a perfect balance between true mythological facts, and some scenes which fall in the category of truth-well-told.

What I loved is how the writer ends each chapter with a question, to be answered in the coming ones. A hook to keep the readers bound and enchanted; a masterstroke, Ms Narayanan, an absolute masterstroke.

I disliked:

that it ended. :)

My take:

GRAB IT TODAY; thank me later.

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About The Author 

Usha Narayanan 

Usha Narayanan is a gold-medallist with a Master’s degree in English Literature. She has had an eventful career in advertising, media and the corporate world, as creative director, features writer, web editor and communications manager. Her debut novel, ‘The Madras Mangler’, a suspense thriller, has received several positive media and reader reviews. Her next book is an epic fantasy,'Pradyumna: Son of Krishna,' published by Penguin. 

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