Most of us readers have that one author we trust blindly. We spend half our existence devoutly reading and rereading this author’s book(s), and the other half crazily screaming at innocent people who are minding their own business about how good those books are, as we wait impatiently for their next book to come out. For me, Roshani Chokshi is that one author. She somehow exceeds my already sky-high expectations with every new book release, and Aru Shah and the Tree of Wishes, the third book in the Pandava quartet, was no different!
The Sleeper has risen, and a great war between the devas and the demons is almost upon the Otherworld. In the midst of it all, Aru Shah, her Pandava sisters Mini and Brynne, and their friend ‘Pandava-adjacent’ Aiden have been sent on a rescue mission to protect a clairvoyant and her sister who are being held captive by the Sleeper. They succeed in their mission, and the twin sisters turn out to be the last two Pandava sisters. As the Otherworld prepares for the Holi celebrations, the Pandavas find out that the wish-granting tree Kalpavriksha is missing. Aru believes if they can reach it before the Sleeper, they can prevent the war by making a wish. Now the Pandavas have only five days to retrieve the Kalpavriksha, with the Sleeper’s army already after them.
The stakes are raised higher than ever as Aru and her friends take a perilous journey to look for clues that will lead them to the Kalpavriksha. Aru has come a long way from being the girl who accidentally released the Sleeper, she has grown and changed with time; but now we see Aru struggling with her place in the group and her responsibilities once again as for the first time, she really begins to think about right and wrong and whether she should be fighting for the devas or not.
“More than anything, she wanted the world to be uncomplicated, for right and wrong to be as easily divided as the black and white sections of an Oreo. But the world was not a cookie. And sometimes right and wrong was nothing more than a frame held up to the eye, the view always changing depending on who held it.”
As our heroes make their way to the tree, we get glimpses deep into the Sleeper’s past and begin to understand his motives. The malicious monster who wants nothing more than to wage a war against the devas and destroy them completely used to be a man who was prepared to go to any extent to protect his wife and his daughter. We get to see the events that led to his ruin, the choices he made and his reasons, and then the aftermath, the consequences his daughter is left facing. If you like villain origin stories, you’ll love this book.
Chokshi’s writing is bright and beautiful and crackling with wit, it’s nothing short of magical. She blends Hindu mythology and folklore into a contemporary setting in a way that seems effortless; the Hindu culture is richly rendered, and I love how she is able to pull the reader deep into the mythological tales without ever being obvious or preachy about it. The pacing is superb, and Chokshi knows just where to end a chapter to keep the reader turning pages, fully engrossed in the story. She masterfully uses humour to balance out the sombre themes discussed in the book; The tone of the narrative is mostly kept light and exhilarating, with hilarious chapter titles and pop culture references sprinkled throughout.
Chokshi excels at characterisation too. Aru Shah and the Tree of Wishes has quite a huge cast of characters, with seven tweens taking the lead, and they’re all equally well-rounded; each of them has a distinct and radiant character arc. There’s something very familiar about all the characters, especially the kids; they feel like people you’ve known all your life. The kids all carry various emotional baggage, from absentee parents and not conforming to familial expectations, to relatives that want to kill them (as Aru says ‘…having one of your relatives want to put your head on a stake was par for the course in mythology’). As they gradually learn to trust each other and hold each other up, readers of all ages will find themselves rooting for these kids. There’s also a subtle and sweet romance slowly building up as the story progresses, and it’s a ship that will win your heart over!
To sum it all up, Aru Shah and the Tree of wishes makes you feel a wide range of emotions- it almost reduces you to tears quite a few times (I know I ugly cried), it makes you laugh until your stomach aches, but as it ends on an emotional and ruminative note, it also makes you pause and wonder. So basically, this one’s going to hit hard, folks and it’s going to be painful if you’re as dedicated to Aru’s story as I am. But go ahead and add this book, as well as the previous two Pandava books to your TBR anyway, because trust me, you don’t want to miss out on the experience of being fully immersed in Aru’s glorious world!
I’ll leave you with some reasons to read this book and the Aru Shah series in general, just in case you still remain unconvinced:
- Aru and her sisters share a super strong bond, and all five of the Pandavas are utter badasses!
- Cool (and not so cool) medical facts, courtesy of Mini.
- Aiden Acharya. That boy, the reincarnation of Draupadi, wife of all five Pandava brothers, is a sweetheart, even when he’s being sarcastic! He will make a place for himself in your list of favourite book characters in no time!
- A mindblowingly adorable ship that develops over several books! If you’re a fan of the friends-to-lovers dynamic, you’re in for a treat!
- Birds! Murder birds, lover birds, cocky birds (aren’t they all) and your regular, harmless birds too, I guess. Lots and lots of birds!
- These kids are disaster cinnamon rolls, and as soon as you meet them, you’ll be ready to adopt them all!
Aru Shah and the Tree of Wishes is available from Amazon, Book Depository, and other good book retailers, like your local bookstore!
Will you be picking up Aru Shah and the Tree of Wishes? Tell us in the comments below!
Synopsis | Goodreads
War between the devas and the demons is imminent, and the Otherworld is on high alert. When intelligence from the human world reveals that the Sleeper is holding a powerful clairvoyant and her sister captive, 14-year-old Aru and her friends launch a search-and-rescue mission. The captives, a pair of twins, turn out to be the newest Pandava sisters, though, according to a prophecy, one sister is not true.
During the celebration of Holi, the heavenly attendants stage a massage PR rebranding campaign to convince everyone that the Pandavas are to be trusted. As much as Aru relishes the attention, she fears that she is destined to bring destruction to her sisters, as the Sleeper has predicted. Aru believes that the only way to prove her reputation is to find the Kalpavriksha, the wish-granting tree that came out of the Ocean of Milk when it was churned. If she can reach it before the Sleeper, perhaps she can turn everything around with one wish.
Careful what you wish for, Aru . . .
