Book Review #3 : "Heirs Of Catriona" by Anusha Subramanian

• Title : Heirs Of Catriona
• Author : Anusha Subramanian
• Genre : Young Adult, Fantasy
• Length : 190 pages

~ Summary ~

In a land like no other on Earth, deadly creatures from forgotten myths are coming alive...

Sara and Crystal are ordinary teenagers. Or so they think, until one day, their world is turned upside down when they learn that they are princesses of the magical land of Catriona. Their mothers, the rightful rulers of Catriona, are being held prisoner by Merissa, the wicked queen. Sara and Crystal must help rescue their mothers, and to do this, they have to journey to a land that does not appear on any known map.

Thrown headlong into the world of vengeful, manipulative gods and deadly sorcerers, the two girls learn the art of magical warfare. But will that be enough to counter the evil unleashed by Merissa and her protector, Loki?

~ The Review ~

I am completely disinterested in reading books; I know this doesn't really help my case, but Heirs of Catriona was one book that I was excited to read! This is one of the very few books that I've read (accepting the fact with utter shame) but it proved to be an amazing experience digging into it.

Starting about how I got this book ; let me tell you, my sister got this book to review thanks to Mr Ravi Subramanian. When she realized that it was written by a teen and was young adult fiction, she slammed the book on my face and literally forced me to read it! I was extremely reluctant at the beginning but as I turned the pages and advanced from one chapter to the other, it got me stuck to it like an adhesive (FEVICOL!)

‘Heirs of Catriona’ is a trilogy, and this is the very first book of the much awaited series by Anusha Subramanian. The author has explored into the world of magic, sorcery, evil witches, and good queens; just what anyone would love to read! The story is about 2 girls; Sara and Crystal who think of themselves as orphans… until one day, when their whole world turns upside down. They live a normal life, have friends, go to college, and work at a small store to support their livelihood. But, normal isn't what they were made for! One not-so-fine day, a rather odd looking man comes up to them and narrates about how they are no ordinary girls, but the rightful heirs to Catriona- a magical land where myths come true… He also adds that they were never orphans, but their mothers have been captured by the (obviously) evil witch Merissa who rules over Catriona currently instead of their rightful mothers.

So, the two of them are given some clues to decipher and find out a way to reach the land, which does not appear on any known map. They then set out on a dangerous & commanding task of trying to free their mothers from Merissa’s clutches and avenge the death of their fathers. They come across many people, some good, some bad, on their journey towards achieving a goal that they were made for, called for.

The story has a very large impression of Norse mythology, and the amount of characters and their names make you reach out to your head and pull your hair out! It does get a bit confusing on who is what, when, how, where etc. but then, at the end its all worth the confusion. If you are an ardent reader, you can finish this in no time at all! ‘Heirs of Catriona’ took me 3-4 days (shamefully) but it was the best I could do. You need to have high amount of concentration while reading this book or you’ll be just as lost as Sara and Crystal were in the beginning in Catriona.

There are a few mistakes here and there, grammatical errors, abrupt endings, but come on it’s the first book of one of India’s youngest writers! She is very much  excused for making those tiny errors at a few places. The writing, language, is utterly simple and profoundly easy to understand. It is made mainly for people of her, and my age, and it very well suits the understanding and grasping level of the target audience.

Towards the ending, you realize how the book has actually ended and how you want more and more. The climax, intense situations are described in a fabulous way… The fights, the fear, the realization of what could've happened, and their not-really-expected-by-them victory over the first set of bad guys set loose on them. As they learn magic, and get some ‘awesome’ weapons to fight with, over-ridden with jealousy and getting awe-struck you just want to dive into the book and help them destroy every evil creature there is!

It serves to be a great stress-buster for anyone who has an inclination towards mythology, magic, victory of good over evil, sorcery, and young adult fiction.

~ Final Verdict ~

‘Heirs of Catriona’ is a must-read for every teen out there. It gives you a fun-filled, sometimes nail-biting yet enjoyable experience as you finish the book in one go. Anusha, the author, has done a brilliant job, in writing this book. I applaud her on the efforts taken to research, dig-up old stories, get inspired, write 16 chapters, edit, re-write, improve, and finally present to us this exquisite piece of work.

Rating- 3.5/5

************************

There isn't much more to say, but I really applaud the efforts put into the fine researching for this book and I absolutely LOVE Anusha because she made my brother read =D

P.S This brother o mine blogs at 'Cool Story Bro'.

I'm thankful for having received this book, and thanks B, for reviewing it!

xx