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kaitlinlovesbooks's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Moderate: Death, Misogyny, Violence, Medical content, and Grief
Minor: Adult/minor relationship, Emotional abuse, Blood, and Pregnancy
micaelamariem's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
Vaishnavi Patel is a Chicago-based law student who enjoys writing about the intersectionality of feminism and Indian mythology. Her novel debut, Kaikeyi, explores the villain of the Ramayana myth. In the original myth, Kaikeyi is known as a jealous queen who exiles Rama so that her son may sit the throne. However, Kaikeyi is an epic that explores her coming-of-age, her faith, her purpose, and her reasons behind the exile.
I found this book to be very interesting. I know little of Hindu mythology and had never heard of the Ramayana before. Naturally, as I read, I did some googling to see what had happened in the original. What I did find were other reviews of this book saying how far from the original it swerved and how in some aspects, the portrayal of Rama can be damaging to the portrayal of the Hindu faith. So, with this in mind, I'm going to review this more like an original story instead of a retelling.
I loved the feminist themes in this book and how it showed that progression is slow. Kaikeyi at one point felt like she had made no changes for women, but throughout her life she aided smaller, subtle ones that helped shape a better society. And as a feminist and a woman, I love books with these themes.
I also thought the portrayal of Kaikeyi's asexuality was done well--only shown in a few subtle sentences and not something that defined her as much as her love for other people.
I loved seeing the work of the Binding Plane and found it very interesting, especially in my Google searches to find that such a concept does exist in the Hindu religion.
I did find some parts slow-going, though perhaps this is because it is an epic and spanned over a lifetime. I also didn't like how Ravana was introduced a few times, and then never really seen again until he went full-asura. I wish there was more of him or he was there not at all. I'm not sure it added much to the narrative anyway.
Overall, I did enjoy the book, with the caveat that I know this is fiction and does not define Hindu beliefs, as I know that was an issue brought up by many. As an original work, though, I would rate it four stars, and I'd love to explore Indian mythology further.
Graphic: Death, Domestic abuse, Infertility, Infidelity, Miscarriage, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Sexism, Violence, Grief, Death of parent, Pregnancy, Fire/Fire injury, Abandonment, War, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism
torturedreadersdept's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Graphic: Animal death, Body horror, Death, Misogyny, Sexism, Violence, Blood, Grief, Death of parent, Murder, Fire/Fire injury, Abandonment, Colonisation, War, and Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Child death and Pregnancy
emfass's review
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
Graphic: Misogyny, Sexism, and Pregnancy
Moderate: Death, Infertility, Violence, and War
booksthatburn's review
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
She was concerned about getting married and it takes someone pointing out how she's isolated herself before she begins trying to build a life and connections in her new home rather than just mourning the unsupervised freedom she had as a child. Once she gets to know them, Kaikeyi loves her husband and his other two wives. Her identity as a mother is central to the second half of her story, and she loves all her sons (though she only bore one of them). The worldbuilding includes detail about Kaikeyi's clothes and surroundings every so often, such as when she chooses a particular sari for significant moments. I prefer stories which don't rely heavily on detailed descriptions of the characters' surroundings, and this was a good level for me.
Kaikeyi's narration includes periodic comments about how she didn't know certain things would make everything turn out so badly. The turn, when it happens, is so close to the end that I was starting to think her warnings would be for nothing. Most of the story is spent showing how she conducted her life and gained influence with the help of the binding plane, and the way she did her best to recover from some early mistakes when she was first learning how this power worked.
I'm not already familiar with the Indian epic this is reimagining, and I didn't need any familiarity in order for this to be a moving story with memorable characters. I enjoyed reading it, and will probably try to read the Ramayana if I can, since it's piqued my interest.
Graphic: Death, Misogyny, Sexism, Violence, Blood, Grief, Murder, Fire/Fire injury, and War
Moderate: Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, and Pregnancy
Minor: Physical abuse and Sexual content
leahrosiee's review
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Graphic: Misogyny, Sexism, Grief, Religious bigotry, Gaslighting, and Classism
Moderate: Infertility, Violence, Death of parent, and Fire/Fire injury
Minor: Physical abuse, Sexual content, Pregnancy, and War
just_one_more_paige's review against another edition
- 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? No
5.0
Graphic: Death, Infertility, Misogyny, Sexism, Violence, Blood, Religious bigotry, Death of parent, War, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism
Moderate: Bullying, Murder, Pregnancy, and Fire/Fire injury
Minor: Domestic abuse
regen20's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.0
Graphic: Infertility, Misogyny, Sexism, Violence, Abandonment, and War
Moderate: Fire/Fire injury
Minor: Pregnancy
bluejayreads's review
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Graphic: Death, Misogyny, Sexism, Grief, and Abandonment
Moderate: Gore, Violence, Blood, Death of parent, and War
Minor: Animal death, Domestic abuse, Infertility, Religious bigotry, and Pregnancy
Forced marriage, sexual content with dubious consent (mentions)savvyrosereads's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
A feminist retelling inspired by the Ramayana, Kaikeyi tells the story of Radnyi (Queen) Kaikeyi of Kosala and her journey through magic, motherhood, and the destruction (and salvation) of her family and kingdom.
“It was a child, freer than her mother had been.”
I adored this book! I love a feminist retelling, but it’s no secret that many of them have a tendency to be slow and a bit boring in sections. Not so here—Kaikeyi is action-packed and engaging from the very beginning, and Kaikeyi herself is a delight of a character who I was rooting for the whole way through. So much happens in this book that it isn’t easy to summarize (or even review), but I laughed, cried, and was thoroughly enthralled by the story and all the side characters (especially Kaushalya and Lakshmana, my faves).
I will also add that even though I went into this with pretty minimal knowledge of the Ramayana/any source myths, I never felt confused about the world or the events taking place. In fact, while I’m sure those who grew up with these myths will also enjoy the book, I think I was even more enchanted because everything was new to me—so if you’re intimidated by this book for those reasons, don’t be!
Bottom line: if you enjoy mythology and retellings, you absolutely have to read this one.
Recommended to anyone, but especially if you like: feminist retellings; Hindu epics; fantasy meets mythology.
CW: War/violence/injury/death; death of parent; abandonment; discussions of infertility; discussions of child death.
Graphic: Misogyny and Sexism
Moderate: Death, Violence, Grief, Death of parent, Pregnancy, Fire/Fire injury, Abandonment, War, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism
Minor: Infertility and Infidelity