Reviews with content warning for Rape - The Immortal King Rao

I thoroughly enjoyed every page of this book. Vara has a talent for characterization through description of other characters through the eyes of the narrator; in a description of a few sentences (or fewer. usually fewer) one gets an immediate, visceral sense of a new character and also how their description defines the narrating character. This is not just appreciated but also necessary in a story that includes so many unique players, and it was done so well. The family-epic-style storytelling reminded me a bit of Eugenides's Middlesex; aptly a Pulitzer-winning novel while Rao was sadly only nominated.

Some have criticized the ending for feeling too rushed, or that the threads connecting each storyline were not strong enough to leave the reader satisfied. I disagree; I found the connections between each story to be rewarding and surprising. I do wish the end of Athena's story was fleshed out as much as the beginning was. Vara mentioned in her acknowledgements that this novel was a twelve year long project; perhaps she was simply sick of writing it, and for that I cannot blame her.

My favorite part of this novel is that it explores every aspect of the political. A theme I did not expect to come through so strongly and repetitively was that of the man's entitlement to the woman: her body, her children, her intellect. These parts were harrowing and deeply emotional, and as cathartic as one would expect.

Great stuff. I can see myself rereading in the future.

Content Warnings

jayisreading's review against another edition

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challenging medium-paced

2.75

Well, this was somewhat of a slog for me. I found that I wasn’t very invested in the story and its characters, though, it’s not to say that they weren’t interesting.

The sections that focused on King Rao’s childhood and adolescence were the most engaging to me, especially how the caste system and being a Dalit impacted him. Relatedly, it would have been nice if Vara expanded on the complex family dynamics and how it shaped the way King perceived the world.

I thought there were fascinating aspects to this book that weren’t quite realized, but they were there and had me think about the world we’re in today. She considers people’s heavy reliance on technology and its problems connected to capitalism, the alarming issue of climate change, among others. They may be set in a fictional world, but it’s one that seems to project a disturbing and very possible future in the real world.

I had two issues with the book, which might be why I didn’t enjoy it as much. One was that I felt that many of the characters weren’t as developed as they could have been, despite making multiple appearances. They often read as an afterthought or seemed a bit detached from the story. The other issue (and the main one) was organization. It took far longer than I’d have liked to understand how the story was being told. It all felt cobbled together in a way that took away from the themes that Vara wants to bring to the reader’s attention.

I think this is going to be one of those hit-or-miss books, depending on how you like your stories told. Whatever the case, some interesting points were brought up in the book that (barely) held my attention.

Content Warnings

bookwormjoshua's review against another edition

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challenging reflective 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

4.0

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