Kaikeyi – Vaishnavi Patel

Title: Kaikeyi

Author: Vaishnavi Patel

Genre: Fantasy

Plot: Kaikeyi is the only daughter of a raja. She’s also the oldest of eight, the rest are boys. She longs for the freedom her brothers have. After her mother is banished, Kaikeyi looks through the library and learns from them. She learns she has a magic ability. She also begs her twin brother, Yuddhajit, for sword, spear, archery, and chariot lessons. Kaikeyi also decides to learn about the royal court. When her father decides to marry Kaikeyi to a neighboring country’s raja, she protests. With the help of her handmaiden, she learns to accept her new role and flourish, as an advisor, mother, and protector. She helps other women in the kingdom and starts to make progress for women. But will it be enough? Or will someone threaten and take away all Kaikayi’s worked for?

Rating: 4.4 – a good story about making changes

Opinion: This was a great book. I wasn’t sure I’d like it or what to expect. It wove Indian mythology in with some modern ideas beautifully. I was expecting the book to be more about Indian mythology and legends. I didn’t expect it to follow Kaikeyi. But this book was great because of the great world building and great story telling. I enjoyed learning more about Indian culture and some of their legends and mythology. With how long this book was, I shouldn’t have been surprised with all of the time jumps to follow Kaikeyi through her life. With all that’s going on in the world today, I felt like the author drew on some parallels for her story. It wasn’t too obnoxious though and well done. Overall, I really enjoyed this book for its imagery, storytelling, and fantasy. I recommend this book for anyone who loves mythology and fantasy books.