Fantasy fiction holds a special place in my heart as a reader, because through the genre, I escape into another world that is completely fictional and I don’t have to imagine that it may be real, the world may exist. I know it doesn’t, and I can enjoy it for that. Ritu’s books have been on my wishlist for a while now. I don’t quite know why it has taken so long for me to read her novels, but I found a copy of Hilawi recently and enjoyed reading it.
I’ve grown up reading or hearing tales from Indian mythology, and from other places as well. I think even recently, if you take books like the Harry Potter series, Spellweaver, Luwan of Brida etc. a theme common to most if not all of these books is the fight between good and bad, and in most cases, the triumph of the former against the latter. Hilawi is also such a tale. The first thing that intrigues you of course is the title. The cover is okay, when you compare it to what her book’s cover designs are these days.
Hilawi is the story of twins Gigi and Vir Ojha, and their friend, Vir’s girlfriend Madhur. They stay in London, but are summoned back to India. Their lives change when they realize they are the guardians of a shield, heavily guarded because of its nature.
Fantasy fiction warrants a quick, magical plotline which flows well. Hilawi has that from the get-go, but sort of slows down towards the end. It warrants interesting characters, and Hilawi has that too. The language is simple, and can be enjoyed by anyone. I’d say it’s a good travel book, because it keeps you engaged for a while easily. I’d say it warrants a sequel too. Hope Ritu delivers it!
In A Gist:
Positives: Title, characters, plotting
Negatives: Slow ending
About the author:
Ritu Lalit is a blogger-turned-author. Her desire to live in a dream world couldn’t be suppressed so she writes fiction now.
Book Details:
Title: Hilawi
Author: Ritu Lalit
Genre: Fantasy
ISBN/ASIN: 9788179917190
Publisher: Popular Prakashan
Price: INR. 125
Shared with
1) First Reads Challenge at b00k r3vi3ws
2) Indian Quills 2014 at Tales Pensieve.
Reviewed by Leo
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