Title: The Golden Warrior
Author: Naveen Rajaka
Publisher: Leadstart publishing
Genre: Fantasy, Adventure
First Publication: 2021
Language: English
Book Summary: The Golden Warrior by Naveen Rajaka
An evil supernatural entity has returned after 300 years to fulfill his insidious intention. He wants to achieve something that no one has – immortality. He captures 300 innocent children to offer them for sacrifice to complete the ritual.
Asmi, one of the kidnapped children, has a little brother who takes it upon himself to save the only family he has. Erish, merely 8 years old and specially-abled with a twisted arm, embarks on a long and perilous journey to reach the Golden Warrior, the only one who has the power to vanquish the evil.
With only a fortnight’s time to find this Warrior “born out of flames” and innumerable challenges to pass through in the journey, Erish realises he only has his iron will to bank on. From fighting a man-eating humanoid to having to resist electric shocks, will he overcome all the hurdles and pain in his way to save his sister
And there is price to be paid to use the powers of the Golden Warrior, a price that could cost him his own life. Will he be able to make the sacrifice?
Book Review: The Golden Warrior by Naveen Rajaka
In The Golden Warrior by Naveen Rajaka you will experience all kinds of emotions. Fury, about the world where the characters live. Hate, for the bad and cruel people. Empathy, for Asmi who is abducted by evil. Pride for Erish, who took courage and finally began the journey to save his sister Asmi. From the very first pages, the world we’re thrust into is unraveled and defines what type of a universe we’ll emerge ourselves in.
Evil has reincarnated after 1000 years, and this time his intentions are far worse than before. He has forcefully captured 300 children and plans to kill them all brutally for a ritual. Humankind was saved every time the demons attempted to eradicate humanity. In the midst of those 300 kids is a girl named Asmi. In order to protect his sister, Erish, a specially-abled boy, would do anything in his power. Erish seeks the assistance of the school headmaster in order to save his sister. The headmaster told that only one person has the ability to free his sister and the rest of the kidnapped children, and it is The Golden Warrior. In search of The Golden Warrior to save his sister, he embarked on the deadliest quest of his life.
There is so much to unpack in this novel. The character development, the plot development, the spectacular writing. Everything was done in such a fast paced and interesting manner that gave me such a connection to the story as a whole. The plot-line here is amazing. There’s never a dull moment in this high-fantasy world created by Naveen Rajaka. Grief, power and self-discovery, critical concepts of the plot, are portrayed realistically and admirably.
The characters were the real stars of this show. The main character, Erish, is dealing with grief of being unable to save his kidnapped sister. Erish is a relatable and complex main character we can’t help but like and root for – following him along was a delight. He’s not afraid of standing up for himself, but he also carries the knowledge that in this quest of finding the Golden Warrior and saving his sister he may die. Erish has greater things ahead of him than he can ever imagine, and how he comes to claim this future while continuing to process his trauma is the real crux of this story.
Naveen Rajaka’s debut book has generated an enchanting, contemporary world that I lost myself in. The Golden Warrior was a breath of fresh air, with the originality and uniqueness of the plot and the world that came with it. Author Naveen did a formidable job of representing diversity throughout the book. His writing encapsulates the essence of the story in such a simplistic and effortlessly beautiful way. With an equal measure of action and emotion, it keeps you flipping pages. He subverts a lot of fantasy tropes and expectations in this novel while still abiding by the ‘rules’ of the genre.
