Review: Sinners - The Dawn of Kalki by Naveen Durgaraju

Sinners - The Dawn of Kalki by Naveen Durgaraju

(I received a free print copy of this book from the author in exchange for an honest review.)

The world has ended.

It is prophesied that when sin reaches its pinnacle in kaliyuga, Kalki, the final avatar of Vishnu will descend upon earth to cleanse the world. Now, a mind-scrambling psychic wave from a child whom many believe to be Kalki, has caused unprecedented doom, heralding the apocalypse.

The tattered ruins of the Indian wastelands are now populated with clueless survivors, dangerous factions and their grim motives.
Heroes rise and fall, men and monsters duel and humanity collapses in this radiation filled land of despair, dread, sharp claws, dull knives and old guns.

Amid plots of treachery, betrayal, love, revenge and stark terror, the innocent and the wicked clash with and often among each other for survival.
Will those who survive, overcome these odds and their own inner demons? Or will they succumb to the wrath of the wastelands?

Because at the dawn of Kalki, death comes alike to both the saints and the sinners!

GOODREADS // AMAZON

(For my friends who do not know the Hindu mythology, Kalki is to be the tenth avatar of Lord Vishnu who will appear at the end of Kaliyuga, the present epoch, destroy all that is bad and usher in the next ‘Golden Age’)

So what were my thoughts as I read this book? And I generally have a lot of thoughts which is why I’m a reviewer and also why my reviews are so long you’re probably falling asleep right now. (I’ll give you chocolates if you stay up.) ( #notbribing)

• Mythology, Science Fiction and dystopian blend done right! I haven’t read ANYTHING like this before so full points for originality. Bringing mythology and technology together isn’t the easiest thing. Mythology by itself has a rustic, antique-y feel that we love and to bring it together with science fiction could go incredibly wrong if the magic of mythology is no longer there. Author Naveen Durgaraju stays true to the mythology while bringing in his uniquely scary and creepy dystopian world.
• Hy I’m Uma. I like dark fantasies and lots of blood. And no I’m not a vampire. This book is so BLOODY! And just so creeptastic at places. 100% recommended for readers like me who are just evil dark queens at heart.
• I wasn’t very onboard with the romance? It was a combination of insta love and love triangle that I found annoying. It felt pretty unnecessary for the plot? Like it was just there for the sake of a romantic subplot in the novel.
• The writing was rad. I mean this book is totally quotable! Also if you like quotes and poetry you should totally follow the author’s instagram where he posts AMAZING quotes. I absolutely enjoyed having the writing give me goosebumps every now and then.

"Forgiven, Forever

We do not bleed... for we are not men

We do not weep... fir we are not troubled

We do not bow... for we are not bound

We are the living and we are the judged

But we do not die... for we are the forgiven

Forgiven, Forever"

• Multiple PoVs - I’m on the fence about this one. I generally like them because they give us the whole picture and I definitely wanted the whole picture with this book what with the numerous questions that pop up. But I think it could have been edited better. At the very beginning, when the PoV first changed it was so abrupt I was like huh?
• World building was absolutely on point. There is a sect of people who call themselves “The Sinless” and have built their own little city with their own culture, rules and such. In a similar way “The Forgiven” have brought together people in the caves and built an establishment there. I loved how the author builds these little cities and how he draws parallels between the different ways of living.
• Different kinds of characters is my jam. But in books with many characters I’m always afraid they’ll all gonna sound the same and then I won’t be able to tell them apart. I didn’t have to worry about that in this book. Each voice was unique and every person had a unique personality that made them stand out.

This is such a unique read that mixes various genres like mythology, science fiction and horror. I did have trouble with the romance but it doesn't deviate from the main storyline too much. The book has a cinematic quality to it and while I felt the writing could have been more edited, it is nevertheless an entertaining story that leaves readers asking for more. Looking forward to book 2!

Actual Rating - 3.5

Do you like books that are a blend of various genres? Which genres do you like to see together?

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