The Man who Never was

my Hanuman Chalisa by Devdutt Pattanaik My rating: 4 of 5 stars Hanuman Chalisa, as written by Saint Tulsidas, is a text which is near and dear to my soul for a long time. It is one of the earliest texts I read, back when I was 10-11 years old, and I got this as a present for participating in Gita Recitation. That very same book, wonderfully illustrated and printed, is still in my possession, some two decades or something past. Not as new, and with a lot of pages taped in, but it does the job. Even back in the day, the valorous tales of Hanuman, Sri Rama’s loyal companion were enough to enthrall the sensibilities of an overeager child. Perhaps tied to this were also the brilliantly rendered Ramayana series by Mr. Ramanand Sagar which aired regularly on channels such as doordarshan. The reason they stuck with the child in me, were the simple yet personable language and tone in which it was written. They were like stories being recited in temples and...

The Infinite and the Divine by Robert Rath My rating: 5 of 5 stars The first thing that jumps out at you when you start reading the story, is how, despite literally being older than the dinosaurs, these two, nigh immortal, masters in their own fields, bicker like children on a playground. They want a shiny toy, and are willing to throw hands and insults to get it. The other is how after spending millenia bickering, they start sounding like an old married couple. Don’t believe me, just read the following ‘You have seen this, I suppose,’ Trazyn said with a drop of acid. ‘In your…’ He wobbled his head, made nonsensical symbols with his fingers.‘Meditations.’ Does that, or does that not sound like someone who’s been having the same fight over and over and over. Complete with freaking Xenos air quotes; I can’t even. Things get so bad when the two are in the same room, even the other necrons, unfeeling, uncaring automatons, get annoyed out of their wit...

Batman: Last Knight on Earth by Scott Snyder My rating: 4 of 5 stars There is this popular fan theory about Batman, saying that he's in fact a resident in a mental asylum. With all of his supervillains being doctors and other patients and staff that torment him in various ways. I like that Scott Snyder's Last knight takes that premise and uses it as a red herring to set up the prologue of the story. The premise of this story is similar to that of Wonder Woman: Dead Earth , where instead of Diana, a suspiciously young Bruce wakes up into the irradiated post-apocalyptic ruins of earth. Then setting out to uncover the mystery of how things got the way it is. Picking up along the way, the Joker, minus his body, like a rambling jack lantern in a glass case. Although only three chapters long, we see Bruce traverse the ruins of a land, where several titanic events seem to have occurred which scarred the world in irreversible and often terrible ways...

Hellboy, Vol. 1: Seed of Destruction by Mike Mignola My rating: 5 of 5 stars The problem with reading a source novel, after watching a good live action adaptation of it, is that you keep comparing the two. Which is the case with Hellboy, Seed of Destruction. Guillermo del Toro and his team took a good concept and just ran with it. The 2004 Hellboy movie featuring Ron Perlman drew the viewers into the rich and mysterious lore and world of Hellboy. With a dark, oftentimes ironic twist to familiar tropes of fantasy and folklore. The graphic novel, first published a decade prior, sets up many of the lore, themes and characters which would then be fleshed out in the pages and in the movies. Compared to the movie, I felt the story to be more disconnected. Del toro, with consultation with Mike Mignola I assume, were able to turn the disjointed parts into a more cohesive story. Particularly the aspects in regard to Hell boy's origin, as well as his relat...

മാര്‍ത്താണ്ഡവര്‍മ്മ | Marthandavarma by C.V. Raman Pillai My rating: 3 of 5 stars മാർത്താണ്ഡവർമ്മ എന്ന ഈ പുസ്തകം, അതു മലയാള ചരിത്രസാഹിത്യത്തിലെ ഒരു അഗ്രഗാമിയായ കൃതിയാണ്. സുപ്രധാനമായ ഒരു കൃതി ആയിരുന്നാലും, ഇത് വായിക്കാൻ ഞാൻ നന്നെ പാടുപെട്ടു. ഒരു നൂറ്റാണ്ട് മുമ്പ് എഴുതിയും പ്രസിദ്ധീകരിച്ച ഈ കഥയിൽ, ഉപയോഗിച്ചിരിക്കുന്ന മലയാള ഭാഷ, ഇന്നത്തെതിൽ നിന്നും അത്യധികം വ്യത്യസ്തമാണ്. പലപ്പോഴും, പല ഭാഗങ്ങളിലും, വാക്കുകളുടെ അർത്ഥവും ശൈലിയും പഠിച്ചു മനസ്സിലാക്കേണ്ടി വന്നു, കഥാപാത്രങ്ങൾ പറയുന്നത് എന്തെന്ന് മനസിലാക്കാൻ. അതു പോലെ തന്നെ, ആ സമയത്ത് അനുഷ്ടിച്ചിരുന്ന സമ്പ്രദായങ്ങളുടെയും വ്യവഹാരങ്ങളുടെയും പരാമർശങ്ങൾ, ഇന്നത്തെ കാലത്ത് ഉള്ളവർക്ക് അന്യമായവയാണ്. ഇതും, പിന്നെ പല പൗരാണിക സംസാരിക കൃതികളുടെ പരാമർശവും കഥയെ കുറച്ചധികം ദുർഘടമാക്കി. പിന്നെ, നോവലിന്റെ ഇതിവൃത്തം, അതു തിരുവിതാംകൂർ മഹാരാജാവായിരുന്ന മാർത്താണ്ഡവർമ്മ അദ്ദേഹത്തിന്റെ, കിരീടധാരണത്തിന് ഇതിവൃത്തമായ സംഭവങ്ങളുടെ ഒരു കല്പനികമായ പുനരാഘ്യാനമാണ്. ആ സമയത്തെ ജീവിതരീതികളും, നാട്ടാചാരങ്ങളും, സംഭവങ്ങളും, രാഷ്ട്രീയവുമെല്ലാം കഥയ...

The Art of Stillness: Adventures in Going Nowhere by Pico Iyer My rating: 4 of 5 stars Notes & Key Learning You don’t need to travel the whole world to have inner peace, happiness or some brilliant insight. As Blaise Pascal put it, you just need to find a quiet corner and be alone with yourself. Modern technology and the deluge of information, makes it difficult for you to just detach your mind and let it just wander. E.g. It takes you 20+ minutes to refocus, after being distracted by your phone. Writers such as Thomas Merton & Annie Dillard have given their suggestions on writing and creative processes. Which can be summarized as spending time addressing a challenge or problem, until your mind formulates a solution to it, or one appears. Like Frankl said, let it ensue, rather than pursue it. Dillard in particular, sits with a story, like with a dying friend, until the words manifest in an organic way. It is advisable, to set up times of ...

The New Emperors: Power and the Princelings in China by Kerry Brown My rating: 4 of 5 stars Warning: The following review contains some harshly worded criticisms aimed towards the chinese communist Party, and to an extent the current state of chinese society. While I stand by these words, it is also understandable that there might be those who feel offended by the sheer vitriol in these words. Acknowledged a certain amount of personal bias, I nonetheless present to you my thoughts, unfiltered. Read at your own discretion. One of the best combinations in this world is PB&J on a piece of bread. One of the worst combinations, apparently, is an entitled, spoiled, rich kid of a ccp official, driving an expensive car bought with corrupt money. Which often ends up getting crashed in a drunken fit, killing some innocent unfortunate soul just minding their own business. I suppose the second part could be said about any entitled, spoiled, drunk rich brat, ...

The Emperor's Finest by Sandy Mitchell My rating: 4 of 5 stars The first, and most obvious criticism I can foresee from those who’ve finished the story, is despite how we finally get the story where Cain works alongside a space marine chapter (an event that has been alluded to multiple times in previous books; in fact, mentioned whenever Cain encounters a genestealer cult), it is largely underwhelming. Despite best efforts, from the good commissar, the Astartes simply don’t have enough of a personality to make them engaging. Part of that might be due to the particular proclivities of their chapter. The reclaimers, as the name indicates, are quite obsessed with reclaiming Archeotec from the voids of space. In that sense they’re quite similar to how your average admech acolyte works. But whatever that spark is, which sets them apart as humanity’s finest warriors is missing. I would’ve imagined a character arc, where they view the good commissar w...

Cain's Last Stand by Sandy Mitchell My rating: 5 of 5 stars In Cain’s Last Stand, everyone’s favorite Commissar takes on Space Hitler, mixed with the mule from Asimov’s Foundation series. Having spent the better part of a century taking the good fight to the Emperor’s numerous enemies, the hero of Imperium finds himself spending the last light of the 42nd Millenium back in Perlia. For those unaware, Perlia was the planet where previously our hero had led a ragtag group of resistance fighters to drive out the numerically superior Ork invasion force. Thus, earning him the moniker of ‘The great Liberator’. Detailed in one of stronger of the Caiphas Cain Novels #4 ‘ Death or Glory Death or Glory’. At the ripe old age of 200, Cain & his faithful aide Jurgen, have been assigned to the Schola Progenium founded on the planet, to train a new generation of Commissarial Cadres. (Yes, you heard that right; In the world of 40k if you’re someone of wor...

Sigismund: The Eternal Crusader by John French My rating: 4 of 5 stars After completing ‘Sigismund-Eternal Crusader’ by John French, I was left with more ambiguity than when I had first started reading. Before going into the story, the only things I knew about the character was for being the Emperor’s Champion, as well as the first High Marshall of the newly formed Black Templar chapter. Now, if you know anything about the Black Templar, if there is a word which defines the entire purpose of the chapter, it would be ‘zealous’; or you know ‘Crusading’ of the eternal kind. These guys are the 40k equivalent of the Knights Templar in real history, devoted to the Emperor to an almost pathological degree, and willing to scour entire civilizations should they happen to run counter to the emperor’s light. As such, they maintain something called the eternal crusade, forever committed to wage war in the name of the Emperor in whichever battlefield needs them....

The Smallest Detail by Sandy Mitchell My rating: 4 of 5 stars A short story, focusing on a day in the life of Ferik Jurgen, the loyal, resourceful and supremely battle capable aide to Commissar Cain. In the main stories, we often see Jurgen stand his ground against Xenos, Chaos, and everything vile in between that the universe has to throw at them. More often than not, he is more than up to the challenge. So, when we see him facing off against a group of gang bangers from a local planet they're stationed in, the difference in combat capabilities and experience becomes apparent. Jurgen has survived long in the field, partly due to him being a blank, but mostly because of his instincts and skills which keep him well out the way of whatever is trying to end him; and filling said thing with copious amounts of firepower. This side story showcases how, even though he is oft described as taciturn and impersonable, that doesn't diminish his capabilit...

A Mug of Recaff by Sandy Mitchell My rating: 4 of 5 stars Trooper Ferik Jurgen, is the shadow of the hero Commissar Caiphas Cain. Intensely loyal to the Emperor & the Commissar, resourceful, single minded in devotion, and quite handy with a melta. The malodorous Watson to Cain's Holmes, he might not be most personable of soldiers, nor does he understand the complexities of life. But point at something you want gone, and he will make sure that it's gone. And, in the thick of battle, when the metaphorical shit hits the fan, there is no one else you rather have watching your back; something which Cain would attest to with gusto. Jurgen as a character, with his arc intertwined with our protagonist, is a crucial pillar, which serves to make the story so entertaining. Looking forwards to reading more oneshots like this. View all my reviews

Duty Calls by Sandy Mitchell My rating: 4 of 5 stars Canonically set several years after the Book 4, but immediately picking after the events set up during that story, ‘Duty Calls’, sees Commissar Cain, his trusted aide gunner Jurgen, as well as the capable 597th Valhallan regiment deployed to the planet of Periremunda, which is, as usual, on the verge of a seditious insurgency. This is after all the Imperium of Mankind, where, at the best of times, you can say you’re alive and not being tortured as an indentured slave. The standards for living are pretty low. Like many of the previous planets we’ve seen in the series, the unique geography of Periremunda is manifested in the fact that it is made up entirely of plateaus. The rest of the planet, its ground level at least, is covered by oceans of magma and desolate landscape which pretty much ensures survival is impossible. This provides a unique logistical nightmare, as each of the plateaus, ranging in...

Death or Glory by Sandy Mitchell My rating: 5 of 5 stars Synopsis Set during the early years of Cain’s service as a commissar. Before taking charge of the 597th Valhallan Regiment, Commissar Cain was assigned to the Valhallan Artillery Regiment, surreptitiously placed at the rear of any army formation pointed towards the enemy and moral danger. Something which he secretly was grateful for. And thanks to the never tiring support of his loyal and hard working aide, the phlegmatic Jurgen, Cain is able to delegate most paperwork, sit back and relax. That is, until the troop transport ship he was on board fell victim to psychic warp shenanigans, perpetuated by the ork weirdboyz, en route to their engagement of the green menace at the next contested imperial planet. Cain, surviving the encounter by a hair’s breadth, managed to board an escape shuttle, accompanied only by the steadfast Jurgen, and ended up crash-landed on the planet, far behind enemy l...

Man of Iron by Guy Haley My rating: 4 of 5 stars There was a lore youtuber, who once mentioned something to the effect of how, Warhammer as a whole, was a story about the defeat of civilizations, who tried to master the galaxy, but at some point, fell from grace. This is true for most races; the necrons, Aeldari, Old Ones, and to a lesser extent, the currently devolved mindless war-mongering oks, or the rabid tyranid who're suspiciously fleeing from something. Humanity's fall being the prime force of the setting, with what following the Dark age of Technology (DOAT), saw them fall from the zenith of their existence, through a series of catastrophic, reality rendering event. We as readers know little as to the exact events which transpired during the DOAT, seeing as how they're little to no actual stories set during the period. Those fictional characters inhabiting the galaxy, know even less, their lives occupied by indoctrination, technol...

Descender, Vol. 3: Singularities by Jeff Lemire My rating: 4 of 5 stars Events have gotten decidedly darker. Which is a weird thing to say, seeing as how our prologue was a literal multi-planet sized genocide. But I suppose, we as readers are not good at understanding death, when it's a death toll. When we get to know the tragedies of individuals, that's when our empathy glands start working overtime. There is much to go around this time around. As we go about exploring the pasts of our characters, biological and synthetic. Somehow the latter hitting harder. The plot hasn't progressed much, seeing as how this volume seems devoted primarily to character. But makes you care for their fate all the more. And remember, 'Driller is a real killer'. View all my reviews

The Traitor's Hand by Sandy Mitchell My rating: 4 of 5 stars Summary Commissar Caiphas Cain, hero of the Imperium, returns; this time to face the vile heretics who worship the ruinous powers of chaos. Assigned to the Imperial planet Adumbria, with no gravitational spin, and thus each hemisphere is stagnant in its orientation. Where one side is always facing the sun and is scorched, but habitable. While the side, facing the darkness of space, is perpetual Winterland. The caveat being, a narrow stretch of land in between, in the equatorial region, called the shadow belt, where the climate is barely habitable, and where most of the populace resides. It’s quite a unique geography this planet has, reminiscent of some of the wackier islands from One piece. I bet there is some point in the shadow belt, some mountain, where you could stand on, and see the contrasting land masses; the desert on one hand, and a frozen tundra on the other. Suspected heretic...

Descender, Vol. 1: Tin Stars by Jeff Lemire My rating: 5 of 5 stars It's been a while since I read a good robot story. This one, Descender, is a largely minimalistic, tightly written, gritty tale, which feels like a more emotionally mature version of A.I., with a more empathetic version of David. The world building is detailed, and that narration gives you just the right amount of exposition, enough to keep you hooked, but not boring you with the details. The characters are not one note, and each have their own personality. There's a mixing and matching of various groups and factions, all out for their own goals, but circumstances put them in unlikely teams, where they have to work together for mutual benefit and survival. All the action and fights are not glorified, or bombastic, but serve the purpose of progressing the story, which I appreciate. As is customary in such stories, there is an overarching plot, world ending threats, and secrets...

Outer Dark by Robbie MacNiven My rating: 3 of 5 stars Left a bit disappointed after reading, the last outing (which I know), of the Carcharodon chapter. Although we got an appearance of big boy chapter master Tyberos , as well as the pleasure of seeing him single handedly eviscerate an entire Tyranid boarding group, little else was known about his character. Also, the book has an issue with pacing. With the entirety of the first half devoted to slow investigations which go nowhere, and negotiations which seem set up just for the purpose of the plot. Then, in the last arc, things come to head, more like things literally start spilling out from behind the doors, walls, curtains, crevices. They transpire and climax faster than.... //I was going to make a joke related to horny teenagers here, but then thought better. Although, just by adding this disclaimer, you must've already figured out the punchline. Well, it's the thought that counts. // It ...

Krieg by Steve Lyons My rating: 5 of 5 stars You know how I love reading stories featuring our favorite shovel boys, right? But the problem with reading a full-length novel named Krieg, despite the solid lore and action, is just how morose it seems to get. Who knew, reading about an irradiated planet full of religion fueled child soldiers who venerate a cult of suicide can be so depressing; go figure. For context, the infamous Death Korps of Krieg are a regimental army hailing from the death world of, you guessed it, Krieg. Hailing from a world where horrendous nuclear fallout had turned the surface into a frozen, dark, irradiated wasteland where nothing can survive, the Kriegsman carried a great burden. Of treason and betrayal against the emperor, by their ancestor some millennia ago. Even after the loyalist factions won, and rejoined the imperium, their subsequent generations were forever scarred and changed due to what they see as this ultimate tr...

Down Amongst the Dead Men by Steve Lyons My rating: 4 of 5 stars Despite being amongst some of the emperor's most loyal and formidable guard regiments, most other Imperial guard don't relish fighting on the same battlefield as them. The reason? They're damn depressing man. Which is expected, when your entire planet, history and upbringing centers around sacrificing yourself for the emperor. Where you as an individual have no value, less value, compared to other 'essential' resources like, you know, bullets. After all, bullets take time, resources and expertise to craft. Your average nameless numbered Kriegman are legions strong, ready to buy vats grown, trained, indoctrinated and shipped. So, what if you end up suffering ten times the casualties as your average guard regiment, who themselves are no stranger to grievous battlefield casualties. So, what if your value is so low, you're not even given a name, just a serial code pr...

Caves of Ice by Sandy Mitchell My rating: 4 of 5 stars You know that joke, where the punchline is 'I slipped and fell into it'? That's Caiphas Cain when it comes to his accomplishments. The man has the collective compendium of common sense that most Imperials, including Space Marines seem to lack. Plus, has luck of the gods, not the chaos ones, that would be heresy. Another observation which came to mind after being regaled by the second in his series of adventures is that, if you're not the phlegmatic Jurgen or Amberly Vail, the last place you want to be, in the same squad as Cain when he's sent out on a dangerous assignment. This time around, it's two different squads that were either decimated or completely obliterated, while acting as his meat shields. If his previous history is any indication, that is a regular occurrence. But on the other hand, this is 40k, and the Imperial guard, who're sacrificed by the millions, j...