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4.16 AVERAGE
4.16 AVERAGE
challenging
reflective
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
This book, this book. It has become my favorite. Probably because I’m reading it from the perspective of someone who grew up with tales of Rajput glory—especially the great house of Mewar. And then there’s Meera Bai, her devotion to my favorite god, Krishna.
What’s not to love about the premise itself? And the writing—oh, the writing—is the icing on the cake. We stay in Maharaj Kumar’s head for all 600 pages, experiencing his wars, scandals, and inner turmoil. Surrounded by so many, yet so alone.
I always had a distinct image of him from the stories of Meera Bai—a saintly husband of a saint, who died too early but stood by her side. But this book offers a glimpse into what could have been.
It’s not strictly factual, mostly fictional, but it feels real. Like something that might have happened. And I’m in love with it.
Amazing! This might just be my favorite book ever. Is it because I connect with the deep historical and spiritual significance tied to my caste? Maybe. But it is so well written. Yes, the author took liberties with facts, but would the prince not have gone through all this? Who are we to say otherwise?
Written from the perspective of Meera Bai’s husband, this book weaves together history, love, culture, war, and endless contemplation.
I can’t even begin to list everything it holds. I’m absolutely smitten!
What’s not to love about the premise itself? And the writing—oh, the writing—is the icing on the cake. We stay in Maharaj Kumar’s head for all 600 pages, experiencing his wars, scandals, and inner turmoil. Surrounded by so many, yet so alone.
I always had a distinct image of him from the stories of Meera Bai—a saintly husband of a saint, who died too early but stood by her side. But this book offers a glimpse into what could have been.
It’s not strictly factual, mostly fictional, but it feels real. Like something that might have happened. And I’m in love with it.
Amazing! This might just be my favorite book ever. Is it because I connect with the deep historical and spiritual significance tied to my caste? Maybe. But it is so well written. Yes, the author took liberties with facts, but would the prince not have gone through all this? Who are we to say otherwise?
Written from the perspective of Meera Bai’s husband, this book weaves together history, love, culture, war, and endless contemplation.
I can’t even begin to list everything it holds. I’m absolutely smitten!
I stumbled upon Cuckold by sheer chance and decided to make this my "great summer read", given its size. I was drawn in from the very first chapter; both by the prose as well as the premise. Nagarkar's protagonist is the little known husband (and a prince in his own right) of the famous Meerabai. This historical obscurity of the protagonist let's Nagarkar weave a deeply layered and complex story of an equally complex and layered man. Nagarkar makes Maharaja Kumar an immensely likeable man by also making him deeply flawed. The expositions on war strategies and the battle scenes are equally engrossing as the human drama of Maharaja Kumar's relationship with the many characters in his life (who are also incidentally very well drawn, even if in short succinct sentences). Nagarkar turns a popular folklore surrounding Meerabai on its head in the end and the prose is evocative enough to give me goosebumps.
I was not familiar with Kiran Nagarkar before this novel and midway through it, I was so enthralled that I decided to look up it's author. I then discovered not only the brilliance of Nagarkar, but also the sexual harassment allegations against him. It left me really conflicted and I was unable to continue reading the novel for a while. How do you separate the art and the artist, I kept asking myself. I don't have an answer to that. I did end up finishing the novel, but have remained conflicted ever since. So reader, you've been warned: this is a great piece of work but comes with a baggage.
I was not familiar with Kiran Nagarkar before this novel and midway through it, I was so enthralled that I decided to look up it's author. I then discovered not only the brilliance of Nagarkar, but also the sexual harassment allegations against him. It left me really conflicted and I was unable to continue reading the novel for a while. How do you separate the art and the artist, I kept asking myself. I don't have an answer to that. I did end up finishing the novel, but have remained conflicted ever since. So reader, you've been warned: this is a great piece of work but comes with a baggage.
This is the first historical fiction book I have read on Rajasthan. A fictionalised biography of Maharaj Kumar of whom little is known except that he was the son of the famous Rana Sangha of Mewar and the husband of Meerabai . Nagarkar has carried out a lot of research into Rajput history of those times and he sets his story against the backdrop of real events. The descriptions bring you to India in 1600. The writing is smart, fun and captivating. The author has chosen such a topic for his novel that is not very common in the history of fiction. To know the historical characters we do have to rely upon the history books or documents preserved in the libraries. That too sometimes seems boring. But Nagarkar has taken the boring and tough job and made his way to that bygone era. The novel is a work of fiction but sometimes he has taken literal liberties but that are too to suit his purpose of writing.
The story revolves around Maharaj Kumar. Married to a wife who loves someone else, he struggles to rescue Chittor from hostile elements - both internal and external. Maharaj Kumar is a brave warrior and a forward thinker who plans many grand and innovative schemes like a water and sewage system for the fort, a brilliant tactician who prefers to watch his enemy in action and then plan an attack as opposed to the straight on confrontation preferred by Rajputs of those times, who ultimately becomes a victim of his circumstances. Politics, scheming, spies, romance, affairs, eunuchs, concubines, cheating wives – everything is there in this novel. I felt transported to Kumbhalgarh and Chittorgarh and it was as if I had been there, the colours of Chittorgarh all coming alive in front of my eyes. It is an absolute page turner and is a must for people who are in love with Rajasthan and its splendour. There is a lot of research that has gone into this book and it is evident in the manner in which he describes the war strategies and the mechanism of gathering intelligence about enemy position etc. of those times. There is ample attention to detail and one feels as if one has known the characters personally for a long time.
I wish we could have more of such books which talk about the grandeur as well as the history of Rajasthan. To be honest I was looking for more of Ranga Sanga and Meera bai. And i felt drag in parts.
Interesting Read.
The story revolves around Maharaj Kumar. Married to a wife who loves someone else, he struggles to rescue Chittor from hostile elements - both internal and external. Maharaj Kumar is a brave warrior and a forward thinker who plans many grand and innovative schemes like a water and sewage system for the fort, a brilliant tactician who prefers to watch his enemy in action and then plan an attack as opposed to the straight on confrontation preferred by Rajputs of those times, who ultimately becomes a victim of his circumstances. Politics, scheming, spies, romance, affairs, eunuchs, concubines, cheating wives – everything is there in this novel. I felt transported to Kumbhalgarh and Chittorgarh and it was as if I had been there, the colours of Chittorgarh all coming alive in front of my eyes. It is an absolute page turner and is a must for people who are in love with Rajasthan and its splendour. There is a lot of research that has gone into this book and it is evident in the manner in which he describes the war strategies and the mechanism of gathering intelligence about enemy position etc. of those times. There is ample attention to detail and one feels as if one has known the characters personally for a long time.
I wish we could have more of such books which talk about the grandeur as well as the history of Rajasthan. To be honest I was looking for more of Ranga Sanga and Meera bai. And i felt drag in parts.
Interesting Read.
I am unsure, at the end of this delightful tome, who it is about. There is no reasoning with the majnoo. A brutal story.
When I first started reading Cuckold I didn't really like it all that much. It took a while to grow on me but eventually I fell in love with it simply because it was rooted in history.
History has always been one of my favourite subjects and to read about a prince about whom very little is known about historically was well, interesting. Cuckold is the story of Maharaj Kumar or Bhojraj as he is known (the eldest son of Rana Sangha of Mewar) and more popularly known as the husband of Mirabai (a Hindu mystic poet & saint who considered Lord Krishna as her husband).
Cuckold is a fictional story with history as its base. While most events are true, they are embellished by the author to create a sweeping masterpiece of powerful Hindu kingdom in the 14th century. It is a challenging book to read. Not because it is over 600 pages but because you'll find yourself using google to cross-reference all the historical things of note. And there's a lot to research - people, places, delicacies, monuments. The story itself is engrossing and entertaining. Safe to say, if you are a history buff, this book's a treat.
History has always been one of my favourite subjects and to read about a prince about whom very little is known about historically was well, interesting. Cuckold is the story of Maharaj Kumar or Bhojraj as he is known (the eldest son of Rana Sangha of Mewar) and more popularly known as the husband of Mirabai (a Hindu mystic poet & saint who considered Lord Krishna as her husband).
Cuckold is a fictional story with history as its base. While most events are true, they are embellished by the author to create a sweeping masterpiece of powerful Hindu kingdom in the 14th century. It is a challenging book to read. Not because it is over 600 pages but because you'll find yourself using google to cross-reference all the historical things of note. And there's a lot to research - people, places, delicacies, monuments. The story itself is engrossing and entertaining. Safe to say, if you are a history buff, this book's a treat.
What a brilliant piece of literature! This book had me in its throes, dragging me back to its side, no matter where I was, making me talk about it, think about it and not rest in peace till I finish it.
I loved the narration, the plot, the pace of the story, each of the characters for all their strengths and weaknesses and the story told.
Exceptional English literature like this on subjects like history are the reason why I read books, for the time travel I get to do.
I was in the palace at Chittor under the Parijat tree inhaling the breeze. I felt the dread as the ten thousand soldiers of Gujarat are massacred. I got scared for the Little Saint and her life. I felt the disgust at Rani Karmavati.
I felt for the Maharaj Kumar every time the circumstances made him a cuckold and I loved him for what he was, a flawed yet strong human being, a smart and great warrior, doomed lover, the forever son-in-waiting yet the courteous one. He felt like both the hero and the anti-hero, a character I haven't imagined too!
I felt every thing all the characters went through and I tasted adrenaline through the wars and smiled through the light moments.
I haven't read something this engrossing, larger than life and all-encompassing in a long time.
I loved the narration, the plot, the pace of the story, each of the characters for all their strengths and weaknesses and the story told.
Exceptional English literature like this on subjects like history are the reason why I read books, for the time travel I get to do.
I was in the palace at Chittor under the Parijat tree inhaling the breeze. I felt the dread as the ten thousand soldiers of Gujarat are massacred. I got scared for the Little Saint and her life. I felt the disgust at Rani Karmavati.
I felt for the Maharaj Kumar every time the circumstances made him a cuckold and I loved him for what he was, a flawed yet strong human being, a smart and great warrior, doomed lover, the forever son-in-waiting yet the courteous one. He felt like both the hero and the anti-hero, a character I haven't imagined too!
I felt every thing all the characters went through and I tasted adrenaline through the wars and smiled through the light moments.
I haven't read something this engrossing, larger than life and all-encompassing in a long time.
This is probably one of the best books I’ve read this year. It was funny, intense, dramatic, romantic and everything else. I loved the beginning and the middle and the ending. I fantasised about Greeneyes and I could somehow relate to the innermost thoughts of the Cuckold. I wanted to read more about Kausalya and Leelavati, a bit more about the Little Saint, but I made my peace with that nice ending Kiran has given to the story.