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veritas19's review against another edition
4.0
I loved that all of the POV's for this book were non-white and were Indian and especially that the story took place in a fantastical version of Medieval India. I do not often find YA books about characters from India, let alone written from their perspective without being a side character or having a white savior or being some sort of sidekick. It took some time to get into the plot and world build but I really enjoyed it, especially the last 100 pages or so. Great read for anyone looking for diversity and a fun fantasy read.
rachelannak's review against another edition
So I made it 88% of the way through and decided to DNF. I read this as an audiobook. I can’t quite put my finger on why I’m not interested in finishing the book, but I’m just not, so I won’t!
bookwyrmjulia's review against another edition
5.0
I loved this. It's full of magic and mythology and I can't wait to see how the author unveils the rest of the story in the next book!
ashi_reads's review against another edition
4.0
Reading every page of this book was a pleasure!
Hunted by the Sky is an Indian myth based fantasy novel. In a kingdom where any girl born with unusual birthmark are captured by the king's men, a girl in a small village has a star-shaped birthmark on her arm. She and her parents try to stay hidden but are found and this leads to her parents murder. On the run, she comes across a group of rebel women - Sisters of Golden Lotus.
They train her, nurture her and teach her how to fight with magic. This girl, Gul wants revenge for her parents murder and wants to kill the king.
She has to infiltrate a highly fortified castle, in finding the way she meets Cavas, a boy who thinks has no magic, yet has one of the rare form of magic. This is story is of two people who are falling for each other in the midst of class differences, vengeance and people hell bent on killing Gul.
This book is absolutely spectacular. I was hooked from the first page. The way the author has built the world around India myth, the use of Hindi is seamless, being an Indian that made me happy. Gul and Cavas characters felt so real, they weren't some perfect person that people around them immediately looked upto. All in all, this book was everything I hoped for and more. I cannot wait for the next book.
Hunted by the Sky is an Indian myth based fantasy novel. In a kingdom where any girl born with unusual birthmark are captured by the king's men, a girl in a small village has a star-shaped birthmark on her arm. She and her parents try to stay hidden but are found and this leads to her parents murder. On the run, she comes across a group of rebel women - Sisters of Golden Lotus.
They train her, nurture her and teach her how to fight with magic. This girl, Gul wants revenge for her parents murder and wants to kill the king.
She has to infiltrate a highly fortified castle, in finding the way she meets Cavas, a boy who thinks has no magic, yet has one of the rare form of magic. This is story is of two people who are falling for each other in the midst of class differences, vengeance and people hell bent on killing Gul.
This book is absolutely spectacular. I was hooked from the first page. The way the author has built the world around India myth, the use of Hindi is seamless, being an Indian that made me happy. Gul and Cavas characters felt so real, they weren't some perfect person that people around them immediately looked upto. All in all, this book was everything I hoped for and more. I cannot wait for the next book.
deviki's review against another edition
3.0
Books I've read and provided detailed reviews over the years but all data is lost after accidental deletion and GD refuse to restore it back.
Adding books back to my library for my own reference and tracking purposes
Adding books back to my library for my own reference and tracking purposes
magaramach's review against another edition
1.0
DNF at 23% - nothing about the plot or the characters was appealing to me as something I hadn't read in a different setting a hundred times before, and while I kept waiting for something to go differently I eventually accepted it wasn't going to.
persnickety_9's review against another edition
2.0
I gave this book only two stars because it really was “just okay.” The world was so fascinating, especially as I’m not as familiar with Indian culture, so I loved that this was set in medieval India. But that’s about all I loved. It felt as if every loophole and troupe imaginable was shoved into this story. I was so disappointing. It could have been so good, but the plot holes and randomness of the book really turned me off.
jennifermreads's review against another edition
2.0
Received advanced reader copy from publisher at PLA 2020
{Actual rating 2.5 stars}
After her parents are murdered by Raja Lohar’s soldiers, Gul is on the run. She is rescued by the Sisters of the Golden Lotus who train her and help her uncover her magic. But Gul only wants revenge.
The India-inspired world was intriguing. Asian-influenced stories are finally making their way into the book market and often their stories feel fresh & unique. But, instead, here, the premise of taking-down-the-king feels tired and overdone. The interesting setting and cultural influences could not save the overall plot. Even with the introduction of magical and non-magical characteristics weighed down the story; it never felt distinctive. For me, the most interesting characters were Kali and Amira, two secondary characters we did not get to see enough of.
I feel that I may have COVID-19 weariness. I do see myself having difficulty in maintaining my concentration while reading. And, with fantasy, concentration and complete immersion in the world is essential. Maybe, if I had read this advance copy at a different time, I would have had a different experience.
{Actual rating 2.5 stars}
After her parents are murdered by Raja Lohar’s soldiers, Gul is on the run. She is rescued by the Sisters of the Golden Lotus who train her and help her uncover her magic. But Gul only wants revenge.
The India-inspired world was intriguing. Asian-influenced stories are finally making their way into the book market and often their stories feel fresh & unique. But, instead, here, the premise of taking-down-the-king feels tired and overdone. The interesting setting and cultural influences could not save the overall plot. Even with the introduction of magical and non-magical characteristics weighed down the story; it never felt distinctive. For me, the most interesting characters were Kali and Amira, two secondary characters we did not get to see enough of.
I feel that I may have COVID-19 weariness. I do see myself having difficulty in maintaining my concentration while reading. And, with fantasy, concentration and complete immersion in the world is essential. Maybe, if I had read this advance copy at a different time, I would have had a different experience.
shannonxo's review against another edition
4.0
Guys. GUYS. Why don't you have this book yet? There can be no excuse now that it's out in the world. This is a tale overflowing with magic and revenge and girls taking the world into their hands and I couldn't get enough of it!
This is the second medieval Indian fantasy series I've started reading this year and I have no intention of letting HUNTED BY THE SKY be the last. To be fair, this one is Indian with a mix of Persian in the mythology, which I thought gave this world a very unique feel. In this story, girls are kidnapped from their families if they have a mark in the shape of a star on them. All because of a prophecy that says the girl who bears this mark will be the end of the king. And the Sisters of the Golden Lotus, a female rebellion group with some interesting connections, believe that Gul, the girl starring on that gorgeous cover, is the chosen one. Now, hang on, don't go walking away because you think you're tired of that trope. Don't go, because you haven't seen what this book does with it. And it does not disappoint! I was so wrapped up in the story that I didn't even realize that was the trope until writing this review.
People in this world are divided by whether or not they have magic. Magi and non-magi. And, as you might be able to guess, one of these is more valued than the other, which is a real shame. Those without magic are shoved into tenements, which are essentially slums where they all struggle to get by. Over the years they have been stripped of many rights, like education. Magi, on the other hand, are not always much better. They still find themselves forced to sell their services at the flesh market for the opportunity to work. I loved the variety of magic in this world. Some people can whisper slash control animals, others can suss out the truth with a touch, wipe memories, conjure water and fire, and so on.
Now, we get a taste of either side. The magi and the non-magi. Girl and boy. Gul and Cavas.
Gul is introduced to us by watching her parents be murdered as Sky Warriors hunt for her. All on account of her star mark. When she is taken in by the Golden Lotus rebels, Gul spends the next two years plotting her revenge on the Major and the King who took her family from her. But there's a tiny problem in that she has no idea how to work her magic. It never showed like other magus children's and she struggles with figuring out how to bring it forth. She does have the ability to whisper to animals, which plays nicely into her character. I really liked Gul. She is a fierce young woman who knows what she needs to do and will do it, come hell or high water. I have no choice but to admire.
Cavas is a non-majus who works in the palace stables. But that is only his day job. His other task is sharing palace information with a mysterious stranger in return for the money to buy his father medicine. Together, they live in the tenements I mentioned earlier, and Cavas' father has contracted tenement illness. This lives him sick and weak, leaving Cavas to do what he must to keep him alive. I didn't like Cavas as much as I did Gul, but he's impossible to not like. He has a big heart and often thinks more about others than himself. When it suits him that is. Magi aren't too high on his list.
Which makes the relationship between Cavas and Gul so entertaining at times. Neither of them seems to like the other, but they are drawn together by what could best be described as fate. And when you consider how they meet? Wowee, it was inevitable. There is a grudging agreement on Cavas' side to help Gul get into the palace so she can enact her plans of revenge, and what transforms was really sweet.
Speaking of wowee, there were a lot of WOW moments throughout this story. The plot is surprisingly unpredictable. I thought I had it pegged a few times, and I love when I'm proven wrong. The events once in the palace, the ending, didn't see any of it coming. Now, while I really did enjoy this book—I finished the last half in one day and definitely see myself re-reading this in future—I did struggle to follow along sometimes. I don't know if I just wasn't paying attention or things weren't explained in a way that clicked for me, but there were a few people and a few action scenes I had troubling remembering or understanding. And of course, with how action packed this book is, you miss one thing, it makes a few things confusing after.
I really did love this book, and cannot wait to see what the sequel will hold!
This is the second medieval Indian fantasy series I've started reading this year and I have no intention of letting HUNTED BY THE SKY be the last. To be fair, this one is Indian with a mix of Persian in the mythology, which I thought gave this world a very unique feel. In this story, girls are kidnapped from their families if they have a mark in the shape of a star on them. All because of a prophecy that says the girl who bears this mark will be the end of the king. And the Sisters of the Golden Lotus, a female rebellion group with some interesting connections, believe that Gul, the girl starring on that gorgeous cover, is the chosen one. Now, hang on, don't go walking away because you think you're tired of that trope. Don't go, because you haven't seen what this book does with it. And it does not disappoint! I was so wrapped up in the story that I didn't even realize that was the trope until writing this review.
People in this world are divided by whether or not they have magic. Magi and non-magi. And, as you might be able to guess, one of these is more valued than the other, which is a real shame. Those without magic are shoved into tenements, which are essentially slums where they all struggle to get by. Over the years they have been stripped of many rights, like education. Magi, on the other hand, are not always much better. They still find themselves forced to sell their services at the flesh market for the opportunity to work. I loved the variety of magic in this world. Some people can whisper slash control animals, others can suss out the truth with a touch, wipe memories, conjure water and fire, and so on.
Now, we get a taste of either side. The magi and the non-magi. Girl and boy. Gul and Cavas.
Gul is introduced to us by watching her parents be murdered as Sky Warriors hunt for her. All on account of her star mark. When she is taken in by the Golden Lotus rebels, Gul spends the next two years plotting her revenge on the Major and the King who took her family from her. But there's a tiny problem in that she has no idea how to work her magic. It never showed like other magus children's and she struggles with figuring out how to bring it forth. She does have the ability to whisper to animals, which plays nicely into her character. I really liked Gul. She is a fierce young woman who knows what she needs to do and will do it, come hell or high water. I have no choice but to admire.
Cavas is a non-majus who works in the palace stables. But that is only his day job. His other task is sharing palace information with a mysterious stranger in return for the money to buy his father medicine. Together, they live in the tenements I mentioned earlier, and Cavas' father has contracted tenement illness. This lives him sick and weak, leaving Cavas to do what he must to keep him alive. I didn't like Cavas as much as I did Gul, but he's impossible to not like. He has a big heart and often thinks more about others than himself. When it suits him that is. Magi aren't too high on his list.
Which makes the relationship between Cavas and Gul so entertaining at times. Neither of them seems to like the other, but they are drawn together by what could best be described as fate. And when you consider how they meet? Wowee, it was inevitable. There is a grudging agreement on Cavas' side to help Gul get into the palace so she can enact her plans of revenge, and what transforms was really sweet.
Speaking of wowee, there were a lot of WOW moments throughout this story. The plot is surprisingly unpredictable. I thought I had it pegged a few times, and I love when I'm proven wrong. The events once in the palace, the ending, didn't see any of it coming. Now, while I really did enjoy this book—I finished the last half in one day and definitely see myself re-reading this in future—I did struggle to follow along sometimes. I don't know if I just wasn't paying attention or things weren't explained in a way that clicked for me, but there were a few people and a few action scenes I had troubling remembering or understanding. And of course, with how action packed this book is, you miss one thing, it makes a few things confusing after.
I really did love this book, and cannot wait to see what the sequel will hold!
misssleepless's review against another edition
Did not pay enough attention to give this a fair rating