I wish I liked this more. The basic premise is interesting, and the twist that isn’t that shocking actually makes for good future suspense. 11 or 12 year old Aru is trying to impress some kids from school and lights the cursed lamp her mom told her never to touch, and it turns out she releases the Sleeper a demon (I think that’s what he is, given the info on his origins revealed part way through, it’s a little unclear) who wants to gather an army and away Shiva the Destroyer who will then bring about the destruction of the world. As it turns out, Aru is the reincarnation of a famous hero from Hindu mythology, who is part of a band of five hero brothers, who must go on a dangerous journey and learn how to become a hero. Since this is book one of a quartet, I would assume the other volumes will cover Aru finding all 4 of her companions and actually defeating the Sleeper whom she only manages to stop, not destroy.
But, I didn’t find Aru all that believable or relatable as a character, and there’s not enough of a reason provided for Aru’s mom never told her about the Pandava thing; I get why Aru didn’t know much about it her father but the rest of it was not really addressed. Aru was also a little too self-aware to be a believable 12 year old, but also too focused on boogers and nose picking to be 12. Mini was a little better, but underdeveloped as a character. Especially for Aru’s partner and foil, it would have helped if at least one of them wasn’t a stereotype that doesn’t really expand beyond that. Aru is the bold tale teller (ie liar) who is internally just a lonely little girl who wants to belong, and Mini is the vaguely scaredy-cat nerd who has many allergies and phobias who wants to be a doctor when she grows up. As starting points, it’s fine to have a basic character type, but even when they get put together, I wanted to see Aru change even a little.
The whole story needed just a little more background on the mythology behind it instead of hiding most of it in the glossary. Especially for a middle grade book published in the US, I don’t think it’s a safe assumption that even your average generally well read person is familiar with the Mahabharata. I also don’t get the Sailor Moon comparison in the back cover blurb. I know what Sailor Moon is, but I do not see the parallel here. That back blurb also said this book would be funny; there was only two slightly silly places that weren’t just eye roll you’re trying to hard moments. The first involves a Night Market in the form of a Costco, and the second involves a little supernatural aid from the underworld when Aru has to somehow explain to her schoolmates what she’s been up to while they were frozen in time.