This review will be posted on Goodreads at the beginning of the release week from 24/10.
Kaikeyi is a beautiful retelling of a poem that generally is seen to be about Rama. I came in with very vague knowledge of the story, the gods and surrounding characters and yet Patel did an amazing job at presenting the characters in such a way that you came to care about them and even with the impending knowledge of where the story leads to, you root for Kaikeyi to find the best solution.
It also has amazing asexual rep (possibly also aromantic), that is presented beautifully and never makes the character seem as less because of this or made to be a big deal.
Would recommend for anyone interested in retelling surrounding the people affected by Gods.
Thanks to netgalley and Little, Brown Book Group UK for this arc!

Kaikeyi is a beautifully written retelling of the Ramanayan from Kaikeyi’s point of view. We follow her through from childhood to adulthood. There is a feminist angle to the story. Her desire to be more than society expects her to be and also improve things for other women. It’s written in the first person so it is her voice she is telling us her story and it is one that had me from the opening chapter.

I’m not overly familiar with Hindu mythology but this was a story I couldn’t get enough of and sped through ravenously. I needed to know how KaiKeyi would react and what she would do next. Kaikeyi’s voice kept me engaged throughout. Her desire to make life more bearable for other women the desire to have agency herself and see that other women share in that agency is glorious to read about.The

One important aspect of the novel is the idea of the binding plane. Much of Kaikeyi’s understanding comes from her ability to manipulate the connections between her and her family and courtiers. From her early experiments to the experienced adept that she becomes.

Her story is the main focus, her journey from being a powerless child, to someone who is capable wields power and influence. Her relationship with the men in her life, her father, brothers, her husband and her sons. The relationships with the women in her life, is likewise fascinating as she moves from scared and isolated to the most respected of the Radnyi.

The key relationship in this novel is between Kaikeyi and Rama, there was a lot of this story which was unfamiliar and the crux is what is motivating Rama and why. He is the only other character who can use the binding plane.

There is an inevitability to the narrative. Kaikeyi as the narrator tells the reader time and again that this is not a happy story, that she is often painted as a villain and this is simply her giving her side of the story. I thoroughly enjoyed the novel though, I felt the ending peters out a little. That said, there is such a lot to think about with this novel, I really am intrigued and I now want to learn more about this mythology.

Overall I enjoyed Kaikeyi’s story. I have never come across the original myth and so this story was completely new to me.
I enjoyed the period of the book that captured Kaikeyi’s childhood into early adulthood and the magic system although simplistic was refreshing uncomplicated. I find myself switching off when there is an overly complicated magic system in other novels.
I enjoyed how the author portrayed Kaikeyi’s relationships with the other characters and members or her family. It was a heartwarming aspect of the story.

However at times I found myself questioning some of the character’s decisions and found it hard to buy into the story when I found that some reactions or outcomes of decisions etc were unrealistic or rushed over. I found the end of the story to be a little rushed and did not fit in with the overall pace of the novel.

Thank you for the opportunity to review this new novel.

I DNF:ed it because it was too slow for me and the writing felt uninspiring. I'm sorry to say I felt bored. The marketing false compares this to "Circe" by Madeline Miller and that's so wrong. Circe is a masterpiece...

Kaikeyi is a brilliant retelling of a famous Indian epic the Ramayana.
In the original story is Kaikeyi described as a bad person, and this book offers us a possible explanation of her actions.
This book is a masterpiece in its way. There is not any romance, but there is so much love. Relationships are the main pillar of the narrative. Kaikeyi is a sister, mother, wife, and friend, and everything she does is for others' sake. Many things go wrong. The whole story is full of plot-twist and for me, a person unfamiliar with Ramayana, totally unexpected. I cared for the characters. I was bleeding with the Kaikeyi. I love how actual this story is today. Kaikeyi fought for women's rights and equality. I enjoyed it so much, and I hope there will be more retellings like this. Kaikeyi is a must-read for everyone who loves history, myths, and a good build story with a political background.
I am super grateful to NetGalley and Little, Brown Book Group UK, Orbit for this opportunity.

Kaikeyi is a character in the Indian epic poem the Ramayana and this book is her point of view. We first see Kaikeyi at 12 and follow her through all the important moments of her life.

The main takeaway I had from this book was love and the connections we have with others. Kaikeyi is asexual and aromantic so romantic and sexual connections are not part of this book but all other types of connections were present. The love Kaikeyi has for her siblings, her husband, her fellow wives, and her sons was amazing to read about, and made me want to strengthen the bonds I have with the people in my own life. Kaikeyi’s ability to love and understand others is what I strive for.

I instantly felt a connection with Kaikeyi as I found she was a very relatable character, as a woman coming to understand power dynamics between genders. I have read many ‘feminist’ retellings and this is the first one where I feel the character truly understands womanhood and the injustice in the power imbalance and subtly rebels against it to create change. Kaikeyi is also not the only character in the book you can class as a feminist which I also loved.

Overall, I would recommend this book to people who like to follow one character closely, where the action is present but secondary to the character.

Beautifully lyrical and evocative, a pleasure to read. Thank you to the publisher & NetGalley for the advance copy!

4.5 stars

Full of mythology, sparkling prose and an emotionally charged plot, Kaikeyi follows the tale of a young woman growing up and coming into herself in a world where she has little power and is seen to be just a wife, mother and villain. A retelling of Indian mythology from the perspective of a so called "villain" this story gives Kaikeyi her own chance to shine and tell the story from her perspective, which I think will resonate with so many people including women, parents and those looked down on by society.

I thought I was going to like this book but I was really surprised with how much I loved it. The court politics, motherhood themes and unapologetic women were all so great and made the book a very enjoyable reading experience. Kaikeyi as a character is such a force of nature and so fascinating to read about. The framing of villainy and womanhood was so interesting to me and the vilification of actions taken to protect loved ones because it didn't fit within the patriarchal framework of "legend" is such an interesting theme to explore.

Vaishnavi Patel's writing was stunning. It was lyrical without being overly descriptive and set up a beautiful and vivid atmosphere/setting that really absorbed you into another world. The magical elements were a very interesting aspect to the story, with Kaikeyi being able to see into another plane that allows her visualise and manipulate others thoughts, emotions and actions. I thought this added another layer to the themes of women (in history) using what was available to them at the time to their best advantage and to subtly manipulate the men around them - it's a bit more overt in this story but highlights the theme excellently.

I really loved the sisterhood of Kaikeyi and the other two wives, firstly I really like historical books where there is a harem of women (especially if there are out to get each other - not really the case in this one but I still love the dynamic). The friendships and how complex they were, as well as caring for each others children as if they are all one family (which they are) - I just really liked all the familial love and care against the odds. Also women supporting women in a world where they don't have a lot of power.

Additionally I really loved Kaikeyi being asexual and that representation. It wasn't a huge part of the story but very inherent to her character and there were some great quotes describing her experiences.

This book would be such an excellent one for book group discussion - there are so many interesting themes and complex characters and motivations that really make you think.

Overall I would highly recommend this lyrical tale of a woman trying her best to succeed and protect those she loves in a world set up to hate her. And most importantly always remember to support women's rights but also their wrongs (I love when they do bad things <3)

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ 4.75

A story about a young girl who wants to be more than her gender allows, running around, fighting and training with her brothers.
The story follows her marriage with a neighbouring kingdom to strengthen alliances where she initially feels out-of-depth before she starts using her wills to influence the court to better the circumstances of those the all-powerful council seem to forget.

"Don't take offense," Yudhajit said. "It's
a compliment. Who wants to be a woman?"
The words were callous, careless, a joke. He was my brother, my twin, and I
thought at the very least he believed me
his equal.
I had fooled myself into thinking I could be an exception, an intelligent woman in control of her own destiny. That he saw me that way too.
But now I was to be married off, and he would be a king.

This story is one of connections, relationships and the lengths one will go to protect her own. Her sons. Her kingdom. Its people.

This was beautifully written and a heart-aching insight on the love of a mother, sister, wife and leader.

If I had to compare it to a book, I would say it reminded me of Circe, however, I thought was Circe was okay - this was phenomenal.
Filled with myths, Gods and a powerful woman forsaken by the gods, I recommend this to fantasy and non-fantasy readers alike.

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for this eARC of 'Kaikeyi' by Vaishnavi Patel.

'Kaikeyi' by Vaishnavi Patel was one of my most anticipated reads of 2022 and I'm so happy to announce that it didn't disappoint.
Not only is the story inviting and beautiful to read, but the writing style from Patel adds an extra lense of charm and beauty. This story was an absolute delight and I loved the character of Kaikeyi. I would read this over and over again if I could.

This story is one of strength. It follows the life of a princess among princes, a yuvradnyi, in a patriarchal world. It not only highlights the issues of traditional Hindi culture, it also highlights the beautiful strengths too. This book is a deeply emotional read, I found myself reading slower than I normally would because there was just so much to soak up, so much to feel. I adored the folktales and myths, I think these side stories were my favorite part. I am kind of sick of Greek/Roman mythology and its awesome to be immersed in another culture through their stories.

A thing I truly loved was that Kaikeyi was never “not like other girls”, she didn’t become the hero of her own story by acting as a man. She recognised that the problem was not being a female, rather the long held traditions, beliefs and superstitions that needed to change for the better - and she went about this using her wit and absolute diplomatic mastery to achieve so much. Its almost like her magic takes a second place, it strengthens attributes that she already has.

Kaykeyi is a story of womanhood, of femininity outside of definitions, of diplomacy across courts and classes. Its a story of gods and monsters, of mothers and magic, of what family truly is and the faults we can make along the way of life. Its a story of defying gods as well as making them.

“Together, we descended into the library cellar filled floor to ceiling with precious texts and dusty scrolls. And this felt like the greatest compliment of all. It was because of her I loved reading, consuming even the dullest treatise in my quest to learn all I could. “

“ I would not show the gods weakness, no matter how they hurt me.”

Kaikeyi retells the story of Rama ( an avatar of the Hindu God Lord Vishnu) from the Ramayana from the first-person point of view of Kaikeyi, Rama’s stepmother. In the original story, Kaikeyi asks her husband to exile his heir and favourite son Rama to a forest for 14 years and place her son on the throne. Rama’s banishment eventually leads to a battle of good and evil- his triumphant return to Ayodhya is celebrated during the annual festival of Diwali.
I received a copy of the book for a free and unbiased opinion
Kaikeyi By Vaishnavi Patel was one of those books that stayed with me long after I finished reading this. This was one of those books where I was mega-impressed with the boldness of the author’s vision and putting her story down on paper.
There has been a surge of books written from the point of view of forgotten women in old myths and religion and as a result, the original story takes on a different hue.
I was interested to see how the author could make Kaikeyi a sympathetic and likeable character and she has succeeded by making this a tale of ancient women trying to carve a life from the stifling patriarchy and religious rituals while trying to not upset the people around her. The book charts her story from her being a neglected and only daughter managing her father's Kingdom to becoming the third naïve wife of King Dasaratha to a respected minister in his court to doting mother of her sons and stepsons to a pariah who tried to do the right thing no matter the cost.
The world-building is detailed and descriptive bringing to life the clothes' smells and tastes ( although I did feel sometimes this did slow the pace a little). The magical system is well described, and the author successfully introduces the various gods and goddesses of the Hindu religion as part of the plot. There is plenty of action with wars, battles and flying chariots
I did feel that the view that women were generally good and supportive, and men was not a little simplistic at times.
Content Warning
In my opinion, I would not recommend this book to practising Hindus who might find the depiction of Rama difficult to accept ( although this is resolved and explained by the end).
Perfect for Fans of
Adrianne.

This is both another of those books where I'm rounding things up (from 3.5* to 4*) and also the latest in a spate of retellings of mythological stories from the perspective of a previously overlooked or under-served character. Those normally haven't grabbed me particularly, so I was left a little ambivalent about whether to even request a copy of Kaikeyi.

The basic premise of the book is that it takes a sideways look at the story of the Ramayana, focussing not on its eponymous hero Rama but on the role played by one of the women who brought him up. We first meet our protagonist in her childhood, growing up with seven brothers and resenting what this means in terms of what she is and isn't allowed to do - her mother was exiled while she was a child and she learns the truth of this situation later, seriously affecting her relationship with her father. An arranged marriage seems to bring her more options for future happiness, even as she struggles with what it means to be married and also her new role as one of three queens within a state that regards women as seriously second class citizens.

I have to admit, I don't have much knowledge of the original text this book is based on, so can't speak to how much licence has been taken with the overall story-line and the relationships portrayed there. It's a solid enough piece of writing, though it feels as though more effort has been made with the female characters compared to the male - they're more realistic, while some of the male characters are very thinly drawn in comparison. There's also a mystical element added (as I assume it's not in the original text?) around Kaikeyi's literal links with other people and how she can use them to influence and literally manipulate others, which left a bit of a sour taste.

All in all, probably not a book I would have got round to if it weren't for Netgalley and not a book I can envisage reading again. A solid piece of writing with some flaws and it'll be interesting to see what this author does next.

I received a free copy of this book from the publisher, via Netgalley. This is my honest review of the book in question.

I absolutely loved Kaikeyi!
It was a beautiful story and I can't wait to see what the author writes next as I'll definitely be reading it!
I definitely highly recommend this book especially if you are a fan of retellings.
Thank you Netgalley and the publishers for giving me the opportunity to read this book in exchange for an honest review.

-Feminist Retelling
-Asexual/Aromatic MC
-Morally grey MC
-Strong Women Friendships

I enjoyed this book a lot, but to be honest I don’t know anything about the source material and can tell it’s a very westernised retelling with a heavy dose of modern day feminism. While all of that is very entertaining for me, I can’t imagine it will be for everyone.

I found the story fell a bit flat in places and the pace was sometimes difficult to hold my attention. When it did manage to hold my attention I loved it.

I went in not knowing Kaikeyi is asexual/aromantic. Once I realised I started to enjoy the book even more. I think early on she describes herself as ace and later on she mentions things related to being aromantic.

I can’t speak on how well this book is written in regards to it being a ‘retelling’ but I can recommend it to those who want a story about a strong female character who pushes the limits of her power.

Thanks to NetGalley and Little Brown Group UK for an ARC of this book in exchange for my honest opinion.

How I rate books
1- I disliked this book very much. Highly unlikely to read this author again
2- Eh. I didn't hate it. Might give the author another go
3- It was fun
4- Amazing and would read again
5- I'm in love. Give me more right now!

I love retellings and especially those with a mythical premise and this book didn;'t disappoint, I haven't actually read much Indian myths or folklore so I went in to this blind and it has definitely made me want to learn more. the writing was good the story was captivating and the characters were well developed, I loved it.

3.5 stars

I really wanted to rate this book 5 stars—I really did—but I couldn’t just ignore the other slightly uncomfortable aspects of the book. To be frank, I think Kaikeyi would’ve done better if it was its own novel, rather than a retelling of the Ramayana. The ideas, themes and concept were really good. If it wasn’t for the fact that this was a retelling, I would most definitely give this a five star rating. But unfortunately, it wasn’t.

What I best loved about this book is how the author handled relationships—be it with her brother, her husband, her co-wives or her children. There were times I’d be smiling reading all the times she had with her family; it was pure fluff. The bond between the queens were so well-written. The fact that it started off a little rough, with Kaikeyi afraid if the queens would accept her, it only was realistic. The way Patel wrote the sisterhood between the three of them is still my favourite. And the Women’s Council was a very interesting idea, as was the concept of women helping women.

Another thing I liked was the subtle references to many stories from the myths. As a mythology nerd, I caught many little things like the instances when Ravana invented Chess (chaturanga, in the book), Rama freeing Ahalya from her curse and him visiting Shabari during his exile. Kaikeyi slowly evolved over a large period of time and the way Patel narrates it it so astounding. There are several time gaps throughout the book but the author has your back the whole time. By the time ten years have passes, you won’t feel like it was that long but you wouldn’t also feel that it was too fast. That’s how great the pacing of the book is.

Lastly, the part of the book that didn't really cut it, was the 20% towards the end, along with a few little things. The feminism, according to me, was a little too much because as a person who was born and brought up around Hinduism, things just weren't so nice. Sure, I understand that the author wanted to write a feminist inspired retelling but in my opinion, it could've been done much differently.

I'm not saying you shouldn't read this book or that the author did a bad job writing this, but it just wasn't for me. It made me uncomfortably at some points, but I know that I'd still recommend it to people, because the other aspects of the novel were so well-written!

4.5 stars

Growing up in India, tales from the Ramayana and the Mahabharat have been a major part of my life. I have heard these stories through my grandparents, my parents and aunts and uncles. And I know there are innumerable versions of both the epics

When Kaikeyi was first announced, I was very excited to read it. To see the Ramayana from the perspective of Kaikeyi would be very interesting. It turned out to be just as interesting as I had thought. While the starting quarter of the book was certainly slower than expected, I believe the slow pace was necessary to bring us readers up to speed about Kaikeyi's family and her life in her own kingdom before she married king Dasharath.

Vaishnavi Patel's writing flows quite well. It is a little on the descriptive side, but I really enjoyed how she described things. Patel has also made some interesting choices in her retelling of the story, which people have not liked, but honestly, I think they were pretty damn interesting. No retelling/re-imagining is ever going to be the exact same as the original tale, especially with a story like the Ramayana which has so many different versions. My only qualm with this is I wish we had gotten more scenes with Kaikeyi and all her brothers; that would have added a nice little touch to the story.

Overall though, I think Kaikeyi turned out to be a really enjoyable read for me and especially as someone who has grown up with these myths.

Although originating from India, I grew up with Ramayana and Mahabrata epic since young age. At here we adopted the mythology into our Javanesse culture Indonesia. The whole epic stories bring alot of morality guidence and came beautifully in so many different shape of artworks from puppet shows until the stages performances. Although I am familiar with the story but some characters are unknowable and almost dont get enough mentioned, include Kaikeyi. I never known about her before I read this book and I am glad I did.

Kaikeyi was one of my high anticipated releases this year. Prospect to read from a villain POV who responsible as caused of Rama's (MC of Ramayana epic) exiled was intrigued me. And I think this book worth the hype.

First of all I like the author storytelling style. She successfully delivered the warrior queen Kaikeyi's stories from her childhood until her middle ages. It is long time since I read from strong female MC pov who true to her goal, honest with her emotions and brave enough to accept all the consequences.

The pace is slower at beginning expecially when introducing part, I think it is important to give readers more than glimpse what's make Kaikeyi growing become such a strong and hard personality. She earned her worth by her own hand and help empowering women in her kingdom. Plotline is thicker and the pace is faster after she got married. I love saw her interaction with all of her children. And we will saw how she struggled with all family issues she must solved. As a mother myself I understand the emotions she faced.

Some contents of this story maybe not true to the real version. But it is retelling and enjoyable to read. I would love to recommend this book to my fellow reader who will love the story of a strong Queen.

Thank you Netgalley and Orbit, Little Brown Book Group UK for provided me with this amazing copy. I am grateful and my thoughts are my own.

I'm the furthest thing you can imagine from being a fan of writing apathetic reviews (and I'm not sure yet if this is a case of 'it's not you, it's me', or maybe I've fallen out of love with retellings in general) but I really struggled to get into Kaikeyi - which, as a fantasy release with an asexual lead, has been on my radar for a while - for a number of reasons, and I feel like I've got to throw in the towel and DNF this ARC.

I'm alright with the first few chapters of a book falling flat, and I always to try to be lenient in giving stories that chart a longer timespan more of a chance because the childhood stages are sometimes not as intricately curated and cultivate less interest than the focus of later on in the main character's lifespan (to me, at least), but the rest of Part I fell just as flat and uninspiring as the introduction to Kaikeyi's life as the sole girl in the royal family she is born into and the ill-fated responsibility she is made to shoulder when she finds herself even more alone as her mother is banished from her court.

I can't lay the blame for my feelings (or lack thereof, more accurately) about Kaikeyi on the humdrum story or the author's facile style, but I didn't click with the lacklustre characterizations and barely-there imagery, and found it all to sum up to a frankly (ironically) colourless read, an impression that didn't seem inclined to change. And though we all know that categorizations when it comes to the intended audience are inherently flawed, it's not at all clear to me why this is filed under 'adult'; the simplistic, almost spartan language and the relatively tame content (at least for the 25% that I managed to get through) might be brushed aside, but Kaikeyi feels too close to basic YA in tone, too.

I can't speak to the leftover ¾ of the book, but while the idea I've gotten of a figment of mythology as imposing as Kaikeyi is intriguing (and by all accounts I'd love to learn more about her and the circumstantial lore), and I'm always ready to champion books that stand as important representation to others, this iteration didn't do much to spark my imagination and just...wasn't a good fit for me, as an individual reader.