Book Review by LITEROMA PUBLISHING SERVICES :: ‘Harappa - 1: Lure of Soma’ by Dr. Shankar N Kashyap (5th Review)
** Thanks to the author for gifting us a review copy of the book. **
** Thanks to our reviewer TK Mukherjee for reviewing the book on behalf of Literoma. **
‘The lure of Soma’ is the first of the Harappa trilogy written by veteran author Shankar Kashyap. It’s based on the history of ancient Indus Valley Civilization. However, the characters built and the events described are based on author’s imagination. All throughout the book, the work of imagination gets boosted by the author’s vast knowledge of history and literature surrounding the Vedic ages and ancient inhabitations at the Indus belt. That exclusive knowledge makes the novel look really authentic. Attempting a topic like this is a challenging choice in itself and Mr. Kashyap had pulled it off brilliantly.
What sets the book apart from other books of the same genre is the amount of detailing in terms of description, characterization and scene setting. The description part makes this book a must read for both the history lovers and literature lovers. The book really reconstructs the civilization of Harappa perfectly and makes the readers feel for the characters. The protagonist Upashantha seems authentic and his account takes the reader through a roller coaster ride of emotions unlike the central character depicted in a recent Bollywood release on its twin civilization (name purposely witheld).
Overall, Literoma rates this book as 4.6*/5*. This is one of those books which sets the tone beautifully for the next two books of the trilogy. We are sure the readers will start looking for the sequel immediately after completing this book.
** Thanks to our reviewer TK Mukherjee for reviewing the book on behalf of Literoma. **
‘The lure of Soma’ is the first of the Harappa trilogy written by veteran author Shankar Kashyap. It’s based on the history of ancient Indus Valley Civilization. However, the characters built and the events described are based on author’s imagination. All throughout the book, the work of imagination gets boosted by the author’s vast knowledge of history and literature surrounding the Vedic ages and ancient inhabitations at the Indus belt. That exclusive knowledge makes the novel look really authentic. Attempting a topic like this is a challenging choice in itself and Mr. Kashyap had pulled it off brilliantly.
What sets the book apart from other books of the same genre is the amount of detailing in terms of description, characterization and scene setting. The description part makes this book a must read for both the history lovers and literature lovers. The book really reconstructs the civilization of Harappa perfectly and makes the readers feel for the characters. The protagonist Upashantha seems authentic and his account takes the reader through a roller coaster ride of emotions unlike the central character depicted in a recent Bollywood release on its twin civilization (name purposely witheld).
Overall, Literoma rates this book as 4.6*/5*. This is one of those books which sets the tone beautifully for the next two books of the trilogy. We are sure the readers will start looking for the sequel immediately after completing this book.
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