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worldsunlikeourown 's review for:
Aru Shah and the City of Gold
by Roshani Chokshi
Read more reviews on my blog at Worlds Unlike Our Own.
4.5 stars
I can’t remember the last time I enjoyed a middle-grade read this much! I didn’t realize that this series was being extended by another book until late March of this year (clearly, I need to pay more attention to bookish news), and while I always thought this series should have 5 books (because, well, 5 Pandavas), I’m not a huge fan of series extensions this late into the story. However, there was no reason to worry at all. This book was as amazing as each one before it, and with the introduction of Kara, who claims to be the Sleeper’s daughter, the plot took an intriguing twist that I had my fingers crossed for ever since the cliffhanger at the end of Tree of Wishes.
Our protagonists are growing up with each book, and it’s nice to see that while they do feel more mature, the hilarious banter and the lighthearted mood remains as it used to be. Roshani Chokshi writes amazing characters and despite everything being narrated from Aru’s perspective, I feel like I’ve gotten to know all of them equally.
On an unrelated note, I really liked the part where the group has to complete certain quests for the God Kubera in order to get his army and a powerful weapon, particularly how this sequence took the time to highlight a couple of lovely Vedic stories. The only thing I was a little disappointed about was that with the introduction of the City of Gold, I was expecting more of Ravana given the cover of this book, but it was used as more of a setting to introduce a variety of other characters.
For anyone who is familiar with Hindu mythology and the tales from the Mahabharat, the major twists at the end will not be a surprise since there are some pretty blatant hints dropped throughout the book as to who Kara really is, and once you’ve gotten that far, the fall out of that information is not too much of a stretch to figure out either. If you’re newer to this though, sit back and enjoy the reveals because this definitely won’t be predictable! I thoroughly enjoyed this book and read it in one sitting. The sequel can’t get here soon enough! Highly, highly recommended!
4.5 stars
I can’t remember the last time I enjoyed a middle-grade read this much! I didn’t realize that this series was being extended by another book until late March of this year (clearly, I need to pay more attention to bookish news), and while I always thought this series should have 5 books (because, well, 5 Pandavas), I’m not a huge fan of series extensions this late into the story. However, there was no reason to worry at all. This book was as amazing as each one before it, and with the introduction of Kara, who claims to be the Sleeper’s daughter, the plot took an intriguing twist that I had my fingers crossed for ever since the cliffhanger at the end of Tree of Wishes.
Our protagonists are growing up with each book, and it’s nice to see that while they do feel more mature, the hilarious banter and the lighthearted mood remains as it used to be. Roshani Chokshi writes amazing characters and despite everything being narrated from Aru’s perspective, I feel like I’ve gotten to know all of them equally.
On an unrelated note, I really liked the part where the group has to complete certain quests for the God Kubera in order to get his army and a powerful weapon, particularly how this sequence took the time to highlight a couple of lovely Vedic stories. The only thing I was a little disappointed about was that with the introduction of the City of Gold, I was expecting more of Ravana given the cover of this book, but it was used as more of a setting to introduce a variety of other characters.
For anyone who is familiar with Hindu mythology and the tales from the Mahabharat, the major twists at the end will not be a surprise since there are some pretty blatant hints dropped throughout the book as to who Kara really is, and once you’ve gotten that far, the fall out of that information is not too much of a stretch to figure out either. If you’re newer to this though, sit back and enjoy the reveals because this definitely won’t be predictable! I thoroughly enjoyed this book and read it in one sitting. The sequel can’t get here soon enough! Highly, highly recommended!