“A comparison to LoTR doesn’t really do you justice.” – Mohan Kompella from USA

Ashok,

I had heard about the Ramayana series from a friend and when I was in India earlier this year, I bought all 5 books on sale there and brought them back to the US. I -just- finished the 5th book and I am sure you’ve heard this a few thousand times already, but they were unlike ANYTHING I’ve ever read before. Initially I had the same reaction as someone else here did – which is to think that these felt like reading Lord of the Rings, but now that I’m done with the 5th book, I don’t think that comparison really does you justice.

Hats off to your writing style, the evocative imagery and the sheer energy that flows through every page of every one of these 5 books. It was an unbelievable experience reading them. And also a BIG ‘thank you’ to you for doing this and as the blurb on one of your books [?] claims – this is definitely a retelling of a very ancient tale for a very modern audience. An amazingly and astoundingly well done retelling. Like your other hundreds of thousands of fans, I cannot wait for the 6th book and also cannot wait to see what you have done/will do with the Mahabharatha.

Last but not the least, the one thing that struck me as I was reading the Ramayana books was that there were extensive sexual undertones all through, specially when you describe Lanka and the various asuras (specially the Rakshasas, the Rakshasis and Supanakha) and their lives. Was the original Valmiki Ramayana equally detailed about these aspects ?

Anyway, once again, Kudos on doing what you have done and may your prolific writing enrich our lives for many, many years to come.