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kefeshe's review
reflective
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
Beautiful and simple to read, it felt like I was having a conversation with a friend who was telling me about thier childhood. I really appreciated the layout and how each person or layer was lost and how it shaped Kalki's understanding of the world. It was a lot more reflective than I had expected, frequently sprinkling in major philosophical questions between the storytelling. I found myself on this emotional roller coaster with Kalki. It would be interesting to hear some of Ayya's perspective, what his motivation were and how he convinced those alongside him to brainwash a child that way.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Child abuse and Suicide
Minor: Mental illness, Transphobia, Terminal illness, Homophobia, and Cancer
viji's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.75
Content Warnings
Graphic: Mental illness, Transphobia, Physical abuse, Infidelity, Suicide, Grief, Child abuse, Self harm, and Death
renniewest's review
dark
emotional
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
i have mixed feelings about this book. it explores very a interesting concept of a child being manipulated into thinking he is a god, and it also explores questions of belief, faith, and the varieties of people with different types of beliefs. this book introduces some very meaningful conversations but i don’t know if any of them are done justice.
the abuse and manipulation kalki endures is very impactful, and it’s understandable that this would affect him as an adult when he realizes what he’s been through, but the book ends leaving kalki in a perpetual state of traumatized. i wanted better closure for him, and if i’m going to be honest he disappointed me in the end. i also really wanted him to give lakshman a big fuck you in the end, so that was really disappointing.
i also don’t like the attitude with which believers are depicted in many scenes, either with pity as victims of manipulation or blind idiots. i really don’t know what this book was trying to say.
the abuse and manipulation kalki endures is very impactful, and it’s understandable that this would affect him as an adult when he realizes what he’s been through, but the book ends leaving kalki in a perpetual state of traumatized. i wanted better closure for him, and if i’m going to be honest he disappointed me in the end. i also really wanted him to give lakshman a big fuck you in the end, so that was really disappointing.
i also don’t like the attitude with which believers are depicted in many scenes, either with pity as victims of manipulation or blind idiots. i really don’t know what this book was trying to say.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death of parent, Emotional abuse, and Gaslighting
Moderate: Death, Grief, Physical abuse, and Mental illness
hazmur's review
challenging
emotional
informative
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
I wanted to give the book 5 stars cause I really enjoyed the main plot line, but it had many issues that brought it down. It introduced characters that had very small parts in the books and didn't leave any meaningful impact yet had so much potential. The last act is super underwhelming it focused to much on the band element rather than what that made kulki feel, they briefly mention kulkis new job but never develop it further or show the track he would have to start on to get there.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Mental illness and Sexual assault
Minor: Death of parent and Cancer
ahliahreads's review
challenging
emotional
hopeful
mysterious
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.75
Content Warnings
Graphic: Suicide and Child abuse
Moderate: Adult/minor relationship, Alcohol, Cancer, Blood, Death, Death of parent, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Gaslighting, Grief, Medical content, Medical trauma, Mental illness, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Racism, Religious bigotry, and Vomit
spinesinaline's review against another edition
challenging
reflective
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Thanks to Legend Press for an e-ARC! Find my full review at spinesinaline.wordpress.com
This was very, very good and I loved how the story just so slightly shifted and revealed where we were headed as we got further in. Even the subtle aspects of the book, like what each section title ultimately represents, are so important to the story and our ultimate understanding of it and I loved these little nods that we discover throughout! So many of my thoughts are related to the latter half of the book so I’ll refrain from sharing too much to avoid spoilers but if anyone’s read it and wants to chat, let me know!
I was definitely not prepared for the twist, though of course we have hints of ‘what the heck is going on’, but the power of this writing comes not only from the author’s surprise in this twist but the implications of what these new discoveries will mean for Kalki’s sense of the world. Ultimately the book moves from a curious and fantastical story of a child god, to exploring more worldly concepts with Kalki as our eyes and ears.
The book is told almost primarily chronologically but there are a few moments within chapters where we’re suddenly in the present day with Kalki as he reflects back on his story. While I do like having this additional context of his current knowledge and hints of where he ends up, the present day moments were so infrequently mixed in, and usually within a flashback chapter, that it felt an odd change of the flow of the story.
The ending is where I have more issues, which of course I’ll keep vague to avoid spoilers. I was prepared to leave the book with many unanswered questions, which felt very realistic in how people’s lives progress, but the ending then hints that there are even more hideous secrets being kept. Except that after all these hints, we just get more of the same so the scene felt rather pointless, and then the book ended very abruptly.
This is still a book I’ll be thinking about long after I’ve put it down but I wish it could’ve embraced being open-ended more. I also really appreciated that the author ends with a land acknowledgment and includes many recommendations on Indigenous authors to check out.
This was very, very good and I loved how the story just so slightly shifted and revealed where we were headed as we got further in. Even the subtle aspects of the book, like what each section title ultimately represents, are so important to the story and our ultimate understanding of it and I loved these little nods that we discover throughout! So many of my thoughts are related to the latter half of the book so I’ll refrain from sharing too much to avoid spoilers but if anyone’s read it and wants to chat, let me know!
I was definitely not prepared for the twist, though of course we have hints of ‘what the heck is going on’, but the power of this writing comes not only from the author’s surprise in this twist but the implications of what these new discoveries will mean for Kalki’s sense of the world. Ultimately the book moves from a curious and fantastical story of a child god, to exploring more worldly concepts with Kalki as our eyes and ears.
The book is told almost primarily chronologically but there are a few moments within chapters where we’re suddenly in the present day with Kalki as he reflects back on his story. While I do like having this additional context of his current knowledge and hints of where he ends up, the present day moments were so infrequently mixed in, and usually within a flashback chapter, that it felt an odd change of the flow of the story.
The ending is where I have more issues, which of course I’ll keep vague to avoid spoilers. I was prepared to leave the book with many unanswered questions, which felt very realistic in how people’s lives progress, but the ending then hints that there are even more hideous secrets being kept. Except that after all these hints, we just get more of the same so the scene felt rather pointless, and then the book ended very abruptly.
This is still a book I’ll be thinking about long after I’ve put it down but I wish it could’ve embraced being open-ended more. I also really appreciated that the author ends with a land acknowledgment and includes many recommendations on Indigenous authors to check out.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal death, Blood, Death of parent, Domestic abuse, Grief, Injury/Injury detail, Mental illness, Physical abuse, and Suicide
Moderate: Alcohol, Cancer, Car accident, Confinement, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Sexual content, Sexual harassment, Terminal illness, Toxic relationship, Transphobia, and Vomit
kylieqrada's review
challenging
dark
emotional
informative
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
A solid 3 star read. This book was fascinating. We follow Kalki, a boy born with blue skin who is believed to be, and is raised as, the 10th and final incarnation of the Hindu god Vishnu. I learned so much about Hindu beliefs and culture through this book, and found that the author was able to convey the faith in a very multi-faceted way. The characters were so diverse and not treated in a tokenistic manner whatsoever, but rather woven into the story organically. I would be interested in Own Voices reviewers' take on the treatment of transgender characters in the story, although from my limited perspective, I thought the discussion of their history in India was handled fairly well. I enjoyed the narrative style that the story was told in, with Kalki looking back from the future and telling the story to the reader. With all of the intense abuse that takes place throughout the beginning of the story, this perspective gives some sense of hope that Kalki will make it through. While I did enjoy the latter portion of the story, seeing Kalki interact with his cousin and new friends in America, I didn't particularly like the way things wrapped up, and actually found myself imagining alternate endings. Overall, I think that while this book is very strong for the first 2/3 or so, the ending leaves something to be desired, and could have gone in a number of more satisfying directions.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Ableism, Blood, Cancer, Child abuse, Chronic illness, Death, Death of parent, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Gore, Grief, Medical content, Mental illness, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Religious bigotry, Sexual content, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Terminal illness, Toxic relationship, Transphobia, Violence, and Xenophobia
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