The Krishna Key by Ashwin Sanghi- A book review:

The Krishan key by Ashwin Sanghi:
A book review

ISBN Number: 9381626685

Edition Language: English

Published Date: 24^th August 2012 by Westland

Page Count: 475

This book alternates between the Mahabharata times; the story is told by none other than Lord Krishna in the first person and present day sketch, which revolves around the protagonist, Historian Ravi Mohan Saini.  

It is believed that Vishnu has reincarnated nine times till now and will take last and final birth as Kalki Avatar in Kalyug; hence called Dashavatara. This story revolves around the eighth and tenth avatars of Vishnu.

Though research done by the writer is as usual thorough and he knows where to use which information. The story line is riveting and forces you to turn pages, even though your eyes get tired and want to drift off in dreams. It’s like reading Dan Brown of Indian mythology, rather a theology. Though, I will not compare the two as both are of different eras and have a subtle difference in writing style, which can only be chalked down by someone who has read both the authors.

Though it's a fiction, the author tried every possible piece of information present in this world to make you think-‘Ya, that should be the case’, for example, the angle deduction of Mount Kailash and can it be manmade and store some kind of secret which makes the government ban people from trekking there, or the concept of 108 and the divinity attached to it and many other cases which I leave for you to discover.

The characters are well placed and doesn’t overshadow each other and know their cue very well. The concept or the way of killing has been linked with mythology and feels really appealing and informational. The journey they take and how the decipher the code to reach Somnath temple, Gujarat and Taj Mahal, Agra makes you wish to travel like them. The authenticity of base camps to Mount Kailash shouts out loud about the hard work Ashwin Sanghi has put in the research for this book.

In between there is a chance, that you just want to read the present day scenarios and want to skip the Lord Krishna’s depiction of Mahabharata if you have read or seen on television before, but I will urge everyone to read each and every line of Krishna’s depiction because it's written beautifully.

It’s a story of deceit, love, murders, exploration, research, history, mythology, theology, adventure and what not. A perfect read and since I finished this book in less than three days, it means this book asks for your attention as I stole a lot of time from my sleep and office to read it in one go as much as I could.

Rating time:

Disclaimer- The rating is based on my personal thinking and can vary person to person. The scoring has been done out of five. I believe each book is readable and imparts knowledge irrespective of the rating. Though, the rating can make your choices easier and can save you from making some good choices from better choices in your reading life cycle.

Stylistic invention means the way the narrative has been written and the innovation brought into structure sentences and paragraphs. Craftsmanship depicts the natural flow of the words and dialogues and the when reading aloud the dialogue sounds credible and expressional. Characters can be round drawn or can be skillfully drawn having a real life of their own- Dress, style, speech, beliefs, social situation, sexuality, age, gender, wealth and other socioeconomic factors. Credible dialogues mean whether the dialogues can be used directly in the movie and won’t lose their lustre upon usage.

Plot and narrative stamina: 3.5        

Stylistic Invention: 3.0

Craftsmanship: 3.0

Characters: 4.0

Credible Dialogue: 4.0

Overall: 4.0

The book review from the same author:

The Rozabal Line

The Chanakya's Chant