"Night of the Raven, Dawn of the Dove" by Rati Mehrotra - A fantasy !
This book is published by Wednesday books in 2022 and has 352 pages.
Hemlata, Queen of Chandel has saved Katyani, orphan daughter of their vassal king using forbidden magic that formed a blood bond between them dignified by a tattooed butterfly on Katya's neck. Now Katya is second in command of Royal guards. She is tasked to escort Crown Prince Ayan and Prince Bhirav to Gurukul of Acharya Mahaveer to Nandovan. The three teenagers go to Gurukul of Acharya Mahaveer to learn statecraft, ethics and monster banishing. Here Katya meets Daksh, son of Acharya. They are summoned back to Ajaygadh when a tragedy strikes and Katya is held responsible.
How can Katya absolve herself? What is her real identity? Who is the kingpin of the conspiracy? Can there be any spark between her and Daksh?
It's a story of deceit, duplicity and betrayal. Every time Katya is at the receiving end? Her bondage enslaves her. Everything she believes turns out to be a lie. But she doesn't give up. She fights back till she reaches to the root of everything and then tries to right the wrong.
It's a very graphic story. It feels like this story can be made into a good movie. I even started casting while reading the book. So, Alia Bhat will play Katya. Hritik will play Daksh. Irfan Khan will play Acharya. Ranbeer Kapoor or Shahid Kapoor will play Bhairav. Vikrant Massey will play Ayan. Shweta Tiwari will play Hemlata. The list goes on....
The story happens in ancient India where the pace of life was slow, but the pace of story isn't. At times it drags (in tunnel) but recovers soon after. There are several non human beings like Vetal, Pret, Yatu, Pishacch etc. There is magic, boons and curses. This makes the story exotic. The book also has a good book cover
Why did I read this book? Goodreads ratings.
What I didn't like? Story drags.
What did I like? Character of Katya. Chemistry between her and Daksh.
Recommend reading.
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