Ash Mistry and the Savage Fortress

Sarwat Chadda does a fantastic job bringing Hindu folklore into the modern world, especially the most famous tale, and my personal favorite: the Ramayana. Ash Mistry travels with his family from London to India to stay with relatives while his father consults on a strange archaeological dig. Soon, Ash discovers that demons and gods are alive and well, and he is called upon to save the world from the rise of the Demon King Ravana. Super fun adventure story where myth meets modern, Indian style!

I finished this book a little while ago and simply forgot to mark it, but on the whole? This was an excellent MG book, and reading it gives much more context for events for the second book "The City of Death." I love the Ash Minstry series and can't wait to read more of it. The mythology, action sequences, humor - all of it really intrigued me throughout the story.Review to come.

Growing up in the 1970s, I was a big fan of fantasy and science fiction (Star Trek, Blake's Seven, Doctor Who) and loved reading The Hobbit and other fantasy books. It took me a while to realise that there was something a little odd about J.R.R. Tolkien's world. Simply put, where were the girls? Why was it only male dwarfs and wizards on the adventure? At secondary school we barely read any novels with girls in until Pride and Prejudice at O level.I remembered this feeling as a teacher, and trie [...]

This is an Indian version of Percy Jackson and the Greek Gods, and Rick Riordan's GR review of the book is excellent. 13-year old Ash Mistry discovers he has extraordinary power and finds himself trying to defeat the reanimation of the demon king Ravana, battling a wealthy British businessman and his demon helpers. I liked Ash best when he was being trained by the beggars, and when he was lusting after the serpent woman because it made him feel like a normal person.

Fast paced action and good writing. A bit gory near the end, but not awful. My one complaint is the hyper irritating transformation of the main character from chubby to skinny, and the way that's portrayed as him losing his weakness and growing into a fierce hero. Cause fat kids can't be heroes or anything. He even says something like "I guess I just had to diet and exercise" to lose weight. Ugh. I just chubby or fat kids don't need to hear that more than they already do. I don't know why he cou [...]

I learned a lot about indian folklore while reading this.Indian folklore is TERRIFYING.

Review courtesy of Dark Faerie TalesQuick & Dirty: A boy stumbles upon a mythical arrowhead and has to save the world.Opening Sentence: “That is so not a cobra,” said Ash.The Review: You’ve probably heard of Greek and Roman mythology (Any Percy Jackson fans out there?) Or maybe even a bit of Norse mythology (Thor, son of Odin, a.k.a. Chris Hemsworth *sighs*). But have you even thought of India’s mythology? Sarwat’s The Savage Fortress gives you just enough information to wet your p [...]

Ash Mistry and younger his sister Lucky are visiting their family in India during their school holidays. Ash had been excited about the trip, history geek that he is, but he is now ready to go back to London and resume his teenage life of gaming with his friends. But then his uncle is hired by Lord Savage, a rich mysterious man, to decipher ancient scrolls. These scrolls are connected to one of the most famous stories in India: the Ramayana, the epic story of the fight between the hero Rama agai [...]

This is not an easy book to review. I should start by saying that I really enjoyed it; the challenge is more how to classify it within our classroom libraries and who to recommend it to. At the moment we have it classified as a “Gateway” book for Primary to Middle School but I think this is a mistake. “Ash Mistry” is certainly a grand adventure in the vein of of Percy Jackson, but it also has themes and complexities that might make it more suited to upper Middle School. The violence and [...]

I'm back and forth about this one as a children's book. People die in horrific and vivid ways--other people are described as tortured in even more horrific ways. The main character is 13, and some parts of this book are on target for that tween audience that loves Riordan's stuff. But I think this book may really cross a line. Unlike Riordan's stories that balance action and danger with humor, this book really doesn't have a sense of humor very often. It tries occasionally to do so, but I found [...]

Ash Mistry Chronicles Book 1*Ash Misty and the Savage Fortress* by Sarwar ChaddhaIt’s been so long since I read an Indian Mythology series and this one has been just way beyond expectation. Its about 320 pages and I easily finished it within 3 days. It is addicting if you have some basic knowledge about Indian Mythology. Ash Mistry Chronicles follows the adventure of a young European 13 year old Ash Mistry who along with his sister, Lucky and his uncle Vik has arrived in India for an education [...]

I first became acquainted with Sarwat Chadda when I read Devil's Kiss, and I knew he was an author I wanted to follow. Chadda has switched gears slightly, writing for the MG/Juvenile group with this series, and with a male lead. He has also set his book in India, I believe that he was drawing in some degree from his own heritage. With The Savage Fortress, Mr. Chadda has written an involving read quite full of darkness and danger, and incredible heroism at its center.General SynopsisAsh Mistry is [...]

'Ash Mistry' by Sarwat Chadda is a magnificent adventure story. Chadda knows what he's writing about - it is well researched. It is unique in that the demons are traditional Indian monsters and heroes and the story takes part in Varanasi - the holy city of the Ganges, India. This is exactly the type of inspiration that a lot of pupils need. It breathes multiculturalism - east meets west in Ash/Ashoka. He conveys the complexity of roots versus modernism and somehow manages to show how his main ch [...]

Something about the writing really turned me off right away. Needed to make a snap decision about what to read for my elementary outreach promotion, so put it down. Didn't give it a proper chance. But probably won't pick it up again. There are so many great books. Gonna try refraining from giving stars and see how that feels.

DNF at 40%. Invoked my newish rule: If you don't really like the book, you don't need to spend your limited reading time on it. Here the setting and premise were cool, but the voice was the kind of MG that just doesn't work for me these days.

****SPOILER ALERT!!!!!!!!!**** Just to start off I would like to say that I extremely disliked this book!! Was not a good book in my opinion, it may just have been that it was childish book for an 8th grader but seriously, it sucked. This novel was about Ash Mistry a teenage boy with a ten year old sister named Lucy Mistry who go on an adventure in India that quickly turns in to a fight between good and evil. Most of it (99.9) was all about Indian mythology, which was well explained in the book [...]

HmmmNot sure what I think about this one. On the one hand, it's enjoyable, and the Indian mythology woven through is far more than just flavor. On the other, it's a story about a thirteen year-old boy, that would've been gorgeous about a young man on the edge of 21. Fans of Percy Jackson and Magnus Chase will love it, but I'm troubled by a number of elements. Especially a 4000 year-old demonness as a love interest for a child.Still, it does a good job on important things like colonialism and bei [...]

Ash Mistry and the Savage Fortress by Sarwat ChaddaWhat could possibly follow Harry Potter’s revolutionary effect on the children’s book world? The somewhat unexpected answer was: Greek myths. Percy Jackson and the Lightning Thief and sequels by Rick Riordan, the adventures of a young American named Percy Jackson, half-human, half-Greek God and all hero, were a runaway hit: flying off the bookshelves, encouraging reluctant readers and leading many children to Greek mythology along the way.No [...]

As anyone who works with, or writes for, young people knows, when it comes to YA fiction there's always something that's 'in'. At the moment it's dystopian fiction. Before that it was a bunch of sissy vampires doing a lot of navel gazing and talking in inspid cliches (no I'm not a Twilight fan). And so on, and so on. Just bubbling below the flavour of the month are certain genres of YA fiction that, arguably, have greater staying power and lasting appeal. One such is what I you could call fantas [...]

It’s not easy being 13. Ash (Ashoka Mistry), a chubby boy of Indian descent living in England, knows this very well. He is teased because of his weight, his lunch money is stolen; he feels constantly taunted. Actually, this is the easy part. Ash believes that his summer visit with an aunt and uncle in India, accompanied only by his 10 year old sister, Lucky, holds promise. He is mistaken.The Savage Fortress introduces middle-grade readers to some of the most fascinating Hindu gods and goddesse [...]

In this book Sarwat Chadda has merged real life with Indian mythology and I find that really thrilling. I borrowed this book from Alison yesterday and finished it this morning!The publishers have recommended this book for children who are 9+ and I can see children’s imaginations running wild with this story. As I have not yet taught in KS2 I would seek advice on how to best use this book but I can imagine getting wonderful results from it including literacy, RE, geography, art, PE to name but [...]

Before I picked up this book, I knew almost nothing of Indian/Hindu mythology. I was hardly aware of its existence, because I'm used to reading about Roman, Greek, and Egyptian mythology. Nevertheless, I was fascinated by the new concept.The author explains aspects of mythology very well to a novice. The new terms were explained and shown so I was not confused. Some of the names of the deities were odd, but the author kept them distinct for the most part.This book has a very interesting and fast [...]

After reading all of the Percy Jackson series and series linked to that (still eagerly waiting for next books) I didn't know if I would like this book.- The actual reason I picked this book was because it seemed like a Percy Jackson book but with Indian mythology and let me say I wasn't dissapointed :D Okay so even though the book lays too much attention on the main character Ash as compared to his sister who i thought should have had much much more attention(so much unlike Percy Jackson) it w [...]

I really enjoyed this – a classic adventure story in the tradition of Indiana Jones. Apart from the superb sense of location, believable characters (both good and truly evil) what I liked most, and what set this book above so many other adventure stories, is the way that Ash stayed rooted in reality. Even fighting demons, he still managed to react, and for the most part behave, like a normal, slightly overweight, teenage boy! Great stuff.

Awesome book for fans of Rick Riordan. It's a mythological middle grade read focusing on Indian mythology, something I hadn't ever read before and absolutely loved!

This book is for Percy Jackson fans who are into gods and are if you think You know them all well you have to know the gods of the mythical version of India and an action adventure like no other.

*Meinung:*Dies ist für mich ja eher eine ungewöhnliche Buch/Hörbuchwahl. Abenteuer liegen mir grundsätzlich nicht so, aber hier sprach mich einfach das Cover sehr an und wenn ich was von Dämonen lese, ist mein Interesse sowieso geweckt. Das Stefan Kaminsky das Buch spricht, war dann die endgültige Entscheidungshilfe. Voller Motivation legte ich die erste CD in meinen tragbaren CD/MP3 Player ein und erlitt eine herbe Enttäuschung. Die CD wurde nicht erkannt – keine der 4. Also musst ich [...]

Hell Yeah!!……LOLLike India….Bollywood/Kollywood.whatever wood.why haven’t you picked up on this yet??? You could have made your very own kick arse Indian Harry Potter ish movie right here homie !! (and for the love of god please DO NOT INCLUDE any dance duet in the middle of the movie) Oh gosh so many awesome things you could play with and make this EPIC !!! Younger generation (including myself) know that we (Hindus) have pretty cool god and goddess but most of us tend to overlook that b [...]

The story: When Ash Mistry went to visit family in India, he never dreamed that the demons and ghosts of ancient Indian mythology could possibly be real. He never dreamed that he could have a personal connection to the great Indian warrior Rama--or that the connection would extend to the most evil creature of all time: the demon king, Ravana. But just because you don't know something doesn't mean it can't hurt you…June Cleaver's ratings: Language PG; Nudity G; Sexual content PG; Violence PG-13 [...]

Jordan Bissainthe St. Christopher's Ash Mistry and The Savage Fortress by Sarwat Chadda is basically a fantasy story but somewhat realistic. The main character, Ash Mistry, is a 13-year-old boy who lives in England. He has a younger sister named Lucky and they both went to see their uncle, Vik, in India. In India, they find that their uncle’s boss is very unusual and keeps a lot of secrets. Ash finds out that the boss was not who he seems to be, it is up to him to stop Alexander Savage, Vik’ [...]