What do you think?
Rate this book
Little Lantern, Deep Darkness #1-3
Little Lantern, Deep Darkness
Book I: The Light of Dead Fires
Himalayan foothills, 1934
Smastrus Anand — a fourteen-year-old, fatherless boy — understands what it is to live with sorrow in his heart. His mother, Nina, is a debt-slave, and Smast has been forced to grow up on a steady diet of hunger and oppression.
Pintu, the ultra-privileged son of Nina’s employers, has always taken pleasure in abusing and bullying Smast. Life as Smast knows it changes forever one evening when he finally hits back at Pintu.
Smast’s unthinkable act rips open a Pandora’s box. Two things emerge from it: i.) a long-buried secret that devastates and strengthens Smast simultaneously, and ii.) the unwelcome attention of the enigmatic, ruthless woman responsible for destroying Smast’s parents’ lives before his birth.
This woman, Pintu’s mother, would stop at nothing to crush the remnants of hope still surviving somewhere deep in Nina’s shriveled heart — a hope that stems from and inheres in her only child.
Atmospheric, lyrical, and fast-paced, the first installment of Smast’s epic tale chronicles his metamorphosis from a punching-bag to a fledgling, imperfect fighter struggling for his inalienable right to live and love on his own terms.
________________________________
Book II: The Gullibility of Demons
Smast’s cherished dream is finally coming true — he is going to the City of Gods! But Sona has withdrawn her protection from him, transforming him into a lamb thrown amongst hungry hyenas.
A sadistic prank by Pintu goes horribly wrong, scarring Smast’s very soul, forcing him to run for his life. Battered and overwhelmed with grief, he somehow manages to reach the backstreet of a royal palace. From the moment he first sees the lovely, guilt-racked princess, PRAGVI SINGH, Smast’s concept of ‘self’ vanishes absolutely — for him, everything will always be about Pragvi.
A demonic man is hellbent upon abducting Pragvi. Another, equally monstrous, man is guarding her with his life. Smast is about to get caught in a hellish crossfire that will make his previous misfortunes and perils appear childish in comparison.
Fast-moving, intense, and suspenseful, The Gullibility of Demons is as much a magical-realism sprinkled story of timeless love as it is an evocative, atmospheric psychological thriller.
__________________________________
Book III: The Ignorance of Knowers
Smast breaks prison and runs for his life after being accused of Bheekhu’s murder. He reaches Letlive — a remote valley in the Himalayas.
Over three thousand years ago, Letlive was the secret hermitage of the divine sage Agastya — one of the original authors of the Vedas. Agastya established Letlive as a long-term repository for an ultra-secret, ultra-powerful manuscript, which confers incredible powers upon its chosen ‘Knowers’. Smast is stunned to discover that he, too, is a Knower, perhaps the most significant, the most powerful one of all times!
Letlive is a heavenly place and Smast has arrived here after enduring hell all his life, but he must go back into the old, cruel, dangerous world for Pragvi, who matters infinitely more to him than his own self.
When he gets back to Devgarh, the metropolitan where he experienced both his greatest trauma and his greatest joy five years ago, history loops in on itself: he is once again ensnared in the evil, mysterious web that’s been spun for Pragvi.
Nothing whatsoever — not unspeakable agony, not the certainty of losing his life — will deter Smast from taking on the enigmatic spider — Detya — which has been stalking Pragvi since before her birth.
Himalayan foothills, 1934
Smastrus Anand — a fourteen-year-old, fatherless boy — understands what it is to live with sorrow in his heart. His mother, Nina, is a debt-slave, and Smast has been forced to grow up on a steady diet of hunger and oppression.
Pintu, the ultra-privileged son of Nina’s employers, has always taken pleasure in abusing and bullying Smast. Life as Smast knows it changes forever one evening when he finally hits back at Pintu.
Smast’s unthinkable act rips open a Pandora’s box. Two things emerge from it: i.) a long-buried secret that devastates and strengthens Smast simultaneously, and ii.) the unwelcome attention of the enigmatic, ruthless woman responsible for destroying Smast’s parents’ lives before his birth.
This woman, Pintu’s mother, would stop at nothing to crush the remnants of hope still surviving somewhere deep in Nina’s shriveled heart — a hope that stems from and inheres in her only child.
Atmospheric, lyrical, and fast-paced, the first installment of Smast’s epic tale chronicles his metamorphosis from a punching-bag to a fledgling, imperfect fighter struggling for his inalienable right to live and love on his own terms.
________________________________
Book II: The Gullibility of Demons
Smast’s cherished dream is finally coming true — he is going to the City of Gods! But Sona has withdrawn her protection from him, transforming him into a lamb thrown amongst hungry hyenas.
A sadistic prank by Pintu goes horribly wrong, scarring Smast’s very soul, forcing him to run for his life. Battered and overwhelmed with grief, he somehow manages to reach the backstreet of a royal palace. From the moment he first sees the lovely, guilt-racked princess, PRAGVI SINGH, Smast’s concept of ‘self’ vanishes absolutely — for him, everything will always be about Pragvi.
A demonic man is hellbent upon abducting Pragvi. Another, equally monstrous, man is guarding her with his life. Smast is about to get caught in a hellish crossfire that will make his previous misfortunes and perils appear childish in comparison.
Fast-moving, intense, and suspenseful, The Gullibility of Demons is as much a magical-realism sprinkled story of timeless love as it is an evocative, atmospheric psychological thriller.
__________________________________
Book III: The Ignorance of Knowers
Smast breaks prison and runs for his life after being accused of Bheekhu’s murder. He reaches Letlive — a remote valley in the Himalayas.
Over three thousand years ago, Letlive was the secret hermitage of the divine sage Agastya — one of the original authors of the Vedas. Agastya established Letlive as a long-term repository for an ultra-secret, ultra-powerful manuscript, which confers incredible powers upon its chosen ‘Knowers’. Smast is stunned to discover that he, too, is a Knower, perhaps the most significant, the most powerful one of all times!
Letlive is a heavenly place and Smast has arrived here after enduring hell all his life, but he must go back into the old, cruel, dangerous world for Pragvi, who matters infinitely more to him than his own self.
When he gets back to Devgarh, the metropolitan where he experienced both his greatest trauma and his greatest joy five years ago, history loops in on itself: he is once again ensnared in the evil, mysterious web that’s been spun for Pragvi.
Nothing whatsoever — not unspeakable agony, not the certainty of losing his life — will deter Smast from taking on the enigmatic spider — Detya — which has been stalking Pragvi since before her birth.
553 pages, Kindle Edition
Published January 1, 2020
26 people are currently reading
34 people want to read
About the author
Sakiv Koch
10 books8 followersSakiv has lived in valleys, deserts and tropical islands at various times in his life. The peerless beauty of nature seeps into all the settings of his stories, just as the unspeakable cruelty and the fathomless kindness of humanity breathe life into his Dickensian characters.
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews
April 16, 2021
Exquisite
Sumstrus had an incredibly miserable life. He and his mother were in servitude to her brother-in-law and sister-i,n-law due to a very bad accident of her husband's untimely death. Their child Punta was indescribably mean to Sumastrus , due to his lack of nourishment and his small stature.
The in-laws took over the home built by the deceased husband and father. Sumastrus' mother worked tirelessly in the fields to be able to feed herself and her son. She was slowly going mad.
The author makes you feel you are living their lives by his colorful and descriptive use of language he paid vs a picture so vividly you believe you are there. I highly recommend this sometimes scary and fulfilling book to anyone who likes adventure and unbelievable heartwarming stories.
Sumstrus had an incredibly miserable life. He and his mother were in servitude to her brother-in-law and sister-i,n-law due to a very bad accident of her husband's untimely death. Their child Punta was indescribably mean to Sumastrus , due to his lack of nourishment and his small stature.
The in-laws took over the home built by the deceased husband and father. Sumastrus' mother worked tirelessly in the fields to be able to feed herself and her son. She was slowly going mad.
The author makes you feel you are living their lives by his colorful and descriptive use of language he paid vs a picture so vividly you believe you are there. I highly recommend this sometimes scary and fulfilling book to anyone who likes adventure and unbelievable heartwarming stories.
April 22, 2024
Such lovely poetic writing
Koch creates beautiful images so full of spirituality and poetry. He is also more than proficient at exploring the depths of human nature good and evil. Add to that the ability to keep the reader on the edge of their chair to see what could happen next, how this tale with its twists and turns will unfold and you have a thoroughly enjoyable reading experience. I’m hooked on this writer.
Koch creates beautiful images so full of spirituality and poetry. He is also more than proficient at exploring the depths of human nature good and evil. Add to that the ability to keep the reader on the edge of their chair to see what could happen next, how this tale with its twists and turns will unfold and you have a thoroughly enjoyable reading experience. I’m hooked on this writer.
Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews