Review: Hilawi by Ritu Lalit

Fantasy Fiction is never easy to write. It's one genre where your imagination needs to run wild and produce a story which binds the reader with it till the end. It has to hold steady till the end. Author Ritu Lalit in her book "Hilawi" has put to test her own writing skills by producing one such fantasy fiction. So is this book worth fantasizing? Let's find out. 

When the chants rise up, Gigi or Gargi Tamang finds that she has to gravitate to the strange object that they seem to emanate from a disc made of a metal that no one can identify. Could the myths that we've heard from time immemorial, actually be true? 
Yaduvir and Gargi Tamang, twins are nothing like each other; he, a mild-mannered and scholarly youth, and she, a feisty young woman, full of energy. A telephone call from India suddenly changes their lives. They find that they are the designated guardians and protectors of a strange shield that is both co-vetted and feared by their own clansmen. They are completely unprepared for the adventure they are rocked into, where no one around them seem to be who they are, where they are constantly on the sun and where they have been summoned for a task they cant even accept as true.

First look at the title and you'll be intrigued by the mystery surrounding the meaning of the title. The cover image depicts a hissing snake and a sword and a metal object which is enough to entice the readers in picking up and reading this book. The blurb gives very little information about what's going to happen in the story but it's a very good blurb considering the theme of the story. 

The story revolves around Gigi & Yaduvir Tamang, the twins who are leading a comfortable life in London but a call from their daadu in India makes them visit the hills of Shambhuthal hastily and their visit soon becomes the talk of town. They have a mysterious past as their daadu unveils the story of Hilawi and it's association with their family. Truth dawns upon them as a lot of other family members are after the precious object. Gigi & Vir are tied to this object by destiny and they have to protect it's existence and their bloodline from the evil clutches of Dr. Ng & Gopal Ojha the powerful CM of Himachal. It's an adventurous journey of two young bloods coming together and accepting their fates with time in order to pull out a task which demands a lot of sacrifices and blood. It's a story of a gruesome past and some good old revenge. 

Fantasizing about objects of historical interest always keeps the curiosity level of the readers high. This is one story where it'll remain high all the time courtesy Hilawi and the mystery surrounding it. The story is fast paced, thrilling, full of surprises and unexpectedly a capturing story line to keep readers hooked till the very end. The roller coaster ride of Vir & Gigi Tamang will enthrall the readers in every possible way and mixed up with a bit of imagination it's quite a head turner. The characters in the story have been utilized in a perfect manner and no one seems to be out of place in the story. 

The only downside of the book is it's abrupt ending which needed a bit more from the author. It felt incomplete. Apart from this there are no other flaws in the book. 

It's an interesting journey from London to Himachal via Punjab and other places along with Tamang twins and others. There are a lot of ups and downs and lots of excitement as the readers keep turning pages. It's a story which will enchant with it's narration and daze you with it's shine all throughout. A sequel will do a world of good to this book. 

RATINGS: 

4 OUT OF 5.