Thank you to NetGalley and Harper Voyager for the arc! Well… this was a disappointment. I didn’t know what I was expecting from this book going into it, but I at least wanted a compelling character and a decent plot. I found neither of these here.

My biggest problem with The Legend of Meneka is Meneka herself. I would call her a Mary Sue, but at least Mary Sues are less melodramatic and pathetic. I was sick of hearing her whine and whine ad nauseam for at least half of the book. Girl, I get that you’re miserable, and I get that you’re confused, but simply… you don’t need to shove that down my throat 100 times. Tbf, shoving that bs down my throat is still more erotic than the lacking romance, but more on that later. Anyways, there is nothing unique, identifiable, idiosyncratic, and/or compelling about Meneka besides her Aspara status. Also, the concept of beauty as a weapon, in a fantasy book? Shocking, revolutionary. Seriously though, I’d be fine with this trope if it contained more nuance, but unfortunately this portrayal of the trope is as shallow as a man who brags about being 6’5 on his tinder profile.

Obviously, This isn’t a character-driven story, but the plot was beyond lacking as well. Things were told instead of shown (Meneka’s power progression), the pacing was off, and I was bored to death. Mostly, the meat of this book was made up of Meneka’s complaining, and later the weak romance. Speaking of the romance? Pass. I’m bone dry and decidedly not kicking my feet. There was not enough tension between the two mcs, let alone any relationship development. Of course, any tension that was there seemed forced. Let’s also not forget about the chemistry in general, which was nonexistent. I have more chemistry with the pharmacists at my local CVS drive through. And all of a sudden, the mcs were bonking and sucking and fucking. Then, suddenly the word love is floated around??? What? I guess who needs the power of friendship when you have the power of fuck. Anyways, I’m bored. I’m yawning. I’m honkshooing.

The only thing I liked about this book was the mythology-based world building. Unfortunately even that was incomprehensible at times, and often dropped on you in large info dumps. It at times felt like reading a textbook, and despite the fact that it’s September, I really don’t feel like going back to school. This is more personal though, and I’m sure those with some knowledge on Hindu mythology would’ve enjoyed this more.

In conclusion, she swings and she misses. It’s a shame, because the idea of exploring religious practice through sex sounded so delicious to me. I need more of that in fantasy so bad actually. Anyways, this book was a miss on all major fronts, which upsets me so much. God the synopsis sounded so good, but alas. -2 Shiva stars.

Frequently, spicy romantasy books have a way of having plot and character development sit backseat to spicy scenes, but when the main character is a seductress by profession her character, and to some extent, her story naturally lend themselves to the spicy content flowing without inhibiting the story of this book. That said, this story is more than a romantasy, it is a story based on Hindu myths and legends. The characters are well-developed and Meneka, the main character is especially engaging. The plot surrounding her assignment is compelling and kept me interested through the end of the book. The writing style was easy to read and I am excited for the next book of this series.
I received access to this eARC thru NetGalley (for which I want to thank NetGalley and the publisher, Avon and Harper Voyager) for an honest review. The opinion expressed here is my own.

This book drew me in very quickly and had a very vivid and captivating world that was unique and new to me. Once I started, I was immediately sucked in and this book was hard to put down. I really enjoyed the development of Meneka and Kaushika’s relationship and the fact that she challenged him in many ways and he let her show him a new perspective.

I do think the end started to drag a bit, but otherwise this was a very worthwhile read. I’m definitely on board for the next one!