Ten Incarnations of Rebellion

Vaishnavi Patel

Rating: ⭐⭐⭐ ½
Genre: Historical Fiction + Speculative

This is such an intriguing historical fiction that takes place in an alternative or imaginative world where India is still under British colonial rule. While it may not fall under the fantasy category, its imaginative setting in the 1960s certainly qualifies.

The story follows a young female protagonist called Kalki Divekar over a decade of her life, with each chapter representing one year. During that decade, the readers see how much this character has matured with all the struggles and obstacles that she and her people face against the evil forces of colonialism.

The appealing thing about Kalki’s character is taking responsibility when tragedy comes home. Along with her friends, she plans to destroy the empire to get the freedom they have always desired.

The book is neatly structured, and the author did an impressive job with the world-building. The author conducted extensive research and transformed real events into alternate versions. The story focuses more on female characters, who drive the rebellion. This is something more unique for this story than the usual male-dominated rebellion stories.

Despite the strong pros here, there are some drawbacks. At times, the pacing felt uneven. I feel some events needed more development to enhance the story. Although the female protagonist is strong, I couldn’t connect as much as I wished with her, which might be a personal preference. However, regardless of any con, the book has an important message and discusses relevant political and humanitarian themes even in our times, which makes it still a worthwhile read.

Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for providing me with the ARC of this book.