Review: Palace of Assassins

To most of us, Mahabharata is the story of some core characters like Arjuna, Duryodhana, Yudhishthra and Draupadi, leaving many strong characters as mere supporting cast. But because of many mythological books lately focusing on the lesser known characters, these unspoken heroes are finally getting their due.
While the story of Ashwatthama, the son of Dronacharya, has a few versions, the most common is about Ashwatthama entering the Pandava camp at night and mistakenly killing Pandava sons in sleep to avenge the death of Duryodhana and his father, which results in Krishna cursing him with a life of immortality and leprosy.But ever wondered what may have happened to him after he was cursed? Palace of Assassins by Aditya Iyenger takes you through Ashwattama's story after he was cursed.
The story starts with Ashwatthama lying in a desert with pus and blood oozing out of his body. He is far from the warrior he used to be. He fondly remembers Duryodhana, the first prince who loved him like a brother. He despised Pandavas from the very beginning, especially Yudhishtra for getting more of his father’s attention.
This book is the journey of a man who is filled with revenge and pain of his past. He then finds love and realizes that he wants to live, love and die like a mortal.
“He looked up at her, and she had smiled shyly at him. For a moment, Ashwatthama thought of abandoning the mission and the Sampaktas. He imagined going off with Kasturi to a distant temple and settling down there. May be one day he would be able to look at his reflection and it would not be as hideous as he imagined.”
With unwarranted turn of events, Ashwatthama is faced with the task of killing the last living son of Pandavas. He is found questioning himself if he would have still killed the young sons of Pandavas had he known they were children sleeping in those quarters?
So did he kill the son or managed to undo his sin by taking a different path? Read the book to find it all…