Review: Island of the Dying Goddess by Ronit J

Blurb:

On the island of eternal grief
Even the gods have died a thousand deaths

My name is Anawar, and I am an immortal explorer. A few days ago, I was stranded on Sawarrgh, an island where everything looks twisted and the air smells of mourning. The atmosphere has forced suppressed memories to resurface. I have to consciously keep them at bay, or I won’t be able to survive this island’s horrors.

There’s Ghaph, the mad warmongering god who mutilates his enemies and patches on their dismembered limbs. Then there’s Ndraja, the goddess who can enslave entire kingdoms with just her thoughts. But the worst is the nameless Goddess who created Sawarrgh a millennia ago, caging it in a barrier that reverses time, forcing the island to relive the same year over and over.

Sawarrgh is a nightmare come alive. Here, existence itself is a curse. The living are barely alive. The stranded, condemned.

I need to escape this island, and in doing so free Sawarrgh from its perpetual punishment.

And the only way to do that is to kill the Goddess.

Elden Ring meets A Fistful of Dollars in this stand-alone horror grimdark fantasy

Review:

Two voyagers in the sea are washed away by a storm and end up on an island called paradise. 

This could be the beginning of something beautiful and picturesque, but we did say it was grimdark, yes? It becomes obvious early on that the paradise we have landed in is not quite the land of beauty and riches from the myths. The flora and fauna are strangely twisted and the residents hostile. But the true extent of the nightmarish nature of the place unfolds slowly and gradually as we go deeper into the story.

‘this was Sawarrgh. Even the process of natural decay did not proceed naturally.’

I picked this book up after seeing it described as a grimdark fantasy that draws aesthetic inspirations from Indian culture. So imagine my surprise when I find myself facing a half-human half-crab reptonide erupting out of a blazing temple. Beautiful.

As is likely clear from the blurb, this is a book for dark fantasy enthusiasts. More specifically this is written for people who actually relish the grimdark elements in such books. I emphasize this because there are quite a few books in this genre where the authors offset the bleak ambiance and  gory storyline with poetic prose or a thick layer of gallows humor. This is not one of them. The focus on grief and pain is pervasive and all encompassing from beginning to end. If you have enjoyed books like the Gunmetal Gods this may very well be your next favorite read.

‘I refuse to submit to this sadistic imposition. I will fight, and if I fail, I will die trying.’

Gods, old and new, walk among us. They are too engrossed in their petty vendettas against each other to care about the mortal residents–who mostly end up as canon fodder in their wars. The world around them is deteriorating, and so are the gods themselves, partly thanks to their own actions and partly due to the recurring cycles of rebirth orchestrated by the mysterious creator of this establishment, who has been absent for a millennium. 

All in all, I found the premise of the story fantastic and the presentation rich in detail. There is also a lot of action, but the author's depictions primarily shine when it comes to portrayals of suffering and pain. In Ronit's paradise, grief is omnipresent and presses down upon you, suffocating you, twisting and warping your mind in the most unexpected ways.

‘Life is a beautifully complicated joke, if you ask me, and we immortals have the worst of it.’

While some of the themes of the book–especially the body-horror aspects–fell out of my comfort zone, I enjoyed it overall. There are many elements of world-building that are quite novel and exquisite. I especially found the vault of minds fascinating–in particular how each time we went in there, the author somehow found a way to make it twice as gruesome. 

‘If ghosts existed, even they wouldn’t want to haunt that house of horrors.’

Elden Ring has been mentioned as one of the key inspirations for the book. I am not familiar with it but game-like elements are quite prominent throughout the story. The mindless soldiers, elements of strategic warfare and the resurrection cycles all combine together into making you feel like a participant in an elaborate game. Now, whether or not you are in the driver’s seat, or just a pawn in the game of gods is something you will have to discover for yourself.

“‘You choose your destiny. You choose your fate. The choice is always yours, Anawar.’

I had made my choice. And now I was in deep shit.”

I was rather suspicious of the ‘Baby Mak’ from the beginning, and when we reach the point where the Makara is fully described–perfection! Between the unconventional choice of protagonists, the eerie gods and their mind-numbingly gruesome antics, this book keeps you on the edge of your seat throughout. 

The characters are more or less interesting. Amos's brazen recklessness complements Anawar's more scholarly and balanced personality very well. However, the worsening amnesia and their general ineptitude made the gods slightly less interesting as antagonists for me. 

‘Often, the most powerful people have the most fragile self-esteem.’

I was also hoping to get more insights into Amos's past life and background, and his history with the Three-eyed glob who doesn’t make an appearance in this story. But hopefully they will feature in a future book that follows the same protagonists.

I am always on the lookout for books that feature Indian culture but are not too married to our religious texts, and in that regard too this was a refreshing read.

‘Why do you have to ruin everything with sound logic and common sense and good choices?’