Nine: Curse Of The Kalingan by Shobha Nihalani - A Review

This book is for those who love reading Mythology books and who admire/get a kick by experiencing a well researched subject. 

Nine: Curse Of The Kalingan (Book - 1) is a modern tale which has been brought out by the author from the depths of ancient history. This book is fantasy thriller. The Kalinga war, fought by Emperor Ashoka, took place in 261 B.C. The war brought enormous destruction, death, and devastation. This was the war which brought about a profound change in the most famous Mauryan Emperor. The war shattered the Emperor, who then converted to Buddhism and pledged never to wage a war again.

The society of the ‘Nine’, founded by Ashoka, protected their knowledge and power fiercely, and kept this wealth of wisdom a closely guarded secret. This secret could prove to be very dangerous for mankind if it were to be placed in the wrong hands. In order to ensure peace, these secrets were handed down the generations. It is believed that these secrets still exist, and their keepers and protectors live normal lives as preachers, teachers, and scientists.

Unfortunately, Ashoka’s desire to keep the peace of the land is about to be shattered. The war of Kalinga also gave rise to an angry spirit, the spirit of one killed brutally in the war. This spirit is bent on avenging the Kalinga Empire. His intention is to rule the world and to change its destiny, and for this he needs the hidden knowledge, the power of the Nine.

The story then unfolds in the present with the spirit possessing a young man, Jeremy, in order to complete this task. This possessed man then sets out to kill each of the Nine. Three of the nine are dead, and the rest of the members disappear. Only three people can now stop this dangerous spirit, Tara, the chosen Trinity nurse, Akash, a DJ, and Zubin, a forensic expert. These are the three who are chosen to protect and carry forward the secrets of the Nine.

As they reside in different parts of the world, they decide to travel to Tibet. There, they meet a Dutch woman, Lise, who knows the secret locations of the nine ancient texts that have to be brought to the hidden kingdom in Tibet. In Tibet, a monk enlightens them about their powers and how they can use them to defeat the Kalingan spirit. Then unfolds their dangerous and thrilling journey, their fight against this deadly spirit to protect the secrets of the Nine and to save the world from destruction.

Book’s back cover page tells all what’s book all about and it makes no sense for me writing it all again. As I will be spoiler here then. To get all the answers, you should read the book.

Now, Review Time –

The book has two parallels - the story and queries related to spirituality - both in equal measure. Author has explained everything from past in very perfect manner. Readers looking for spiritual enlightenment will find this book more satisfying. Thrilling action scenes will turn your world upside down. Sometimes after reading all detail, readers concerned about the story-line will prefer to skip some paragraphs to concentrate on the story. Mythological books require a lot of research and the author has done complete justice in this department. The book is almost error-free. Narrition skills of author are awesome. I loved the way she has described every scene. Book is written at its best, in perfect possible manner. 

This book was definitely a page turner for me. I personally enjoy mythological books. And this is the book I loved from the core. The audience of this book is not restricted to youth but can also target readers with 30-45 age group as they can relate to mythology more than youths. I would like to rate this book 4.5/5. I highly recommend this book to those who love reading mythological/historical book. You will surely love this. Give it a try!