Amok by Anna Tan [Book Review]

 

Synopsis

What is faith, except hope in desperation?

All Putera Mikal wants is to gain the Amok Strength, the supernatural power granted by Kudus to the Mahan royal family. No matter how religiously Mikal keeps his vows, Kudus still denies him the Strength—whilst his father, Sultan Simson, flaunts the Strength despite his blatant defiance of the Temple and the priests’ visions of coming doom.

Then the prophecies come true.

Taken captive, Mikal must find a way to liberate his people and restore his throne in Maha—and the key to this is the Amok Strength. But what does it take to gain Kudus’ favour?

Author : Anna Tan

Genre : Fantasy, Malay/Nusantara Fantasy, Royals

TW : Abuse, deaths

Disclaimer : I would like to thank Anna Tan and Teaspoon Publishing for giving me this incredible book for an exchange of an honest review! The review is solely mine. 

Review

 Amok revolves around the story of our main protagonist, Prince Mikal of Terang and his struggles in getting back his rightful throne against their biggest enemy, the ruined kingdom of Bayangan. It is a thrilling Malay-Nusantara historical fantasy story that is heavy in the themes faith, loyalty and friendship. Terang is comprised of 3 major cities of ardent worshippers of the god, Kudus. With Maha as the central city where the Sultan and the armies reside under the umbrella of the Kudus strength, Suci the Holy City of the priests who are blessed with the ability to communicate via mirrors, and Impian where the women are bestowed with the gift of mind-reading. The neighbor kingdom, Bayangan is the ultimate nemesis of Terang where wars perpetually occurring for decades which results in the defeat of Bayangan in the hand of Terang. Mikal is the only child of Sultan Samson, making him the first and the only successor on line for the throne and succession of Amok strength, which will be regained in his coming-age. However, despite reaching 15 years old and trained the combat art of silat (martial arts of Nusantara) relentlessly, Kudus never response to him let alone bestowing an ounce of power to him. 

This is a stirring story on how a young prince going to fight to restore his kingdom in the path full of thorns and hurdles, while having in internal conflict in the pursuit of his faith on Kudus, and living up to his position as the next ruler of Terang.

 I find the worldbuilding and the settings of the story to be very intriguing! I really appreciate the Malay-Nusantara elements in the story and the natural flow of the writings. I have always love the ancient Malay kingdom history when I was in high school and having the chance to read a book in that very same settings totally piqued my excitement to delve into the world. You will find familiar traditional Malay customs and phrases in the book such as calling 'Tok' to honorable elders, 'Baginda Paduka' to address the King, and much more. Though the writings is concentrated with these Malay phrases, worry not, Anna Tan has provided a comprehensive glossary in the last pages for international readers to refer to! We are brought along the story through the POV of Mikal. Plot wise, the story escalated fast but not too fast that it feel abrupt. The flow of the story is just nice to keep your nose hooked on the book to know what'll happen next!

 Now, let's move on to our main protagonist, Prince Mikal. Honestly, I have mixed feelings about him. I find myself getting frustrated on him whining and complaining almost all time! I'm most annoyed by him that it was hard to continue reading it, a really self-centered person who can't stand on his own and demanding people around him to cater to the whole situation. However, his situation is fathomable to some extent because; his father, Sultan Samson and those in authorities never bat an eye on him (except Tok Yaakub) before. He wasn't deemed and treated as how a successor should've been. Those folks ignored his position and potential , casting a barrier between Mikal and the politics, just because he hasn't regained the Amok Strength. This lead to him being oblivious and lack the knowledge to lead people. Another note is that he is only 15 years old at that time, few years to go before his coming-of-age. It's the moody phase of a teenager with unstable and fluctuating emotions, hence it's understandable why Mikal is prone to vent his feelings before his logic take place. Who would've imagine that the grand and majestic Kingdom of his own would be in ruin when the sun set on the same day? He was thrown into the chaos and bewilderment without any preparations beforehand. Even though at times I just feel like smacking his head for his immaturity, but I could see where he is coming from, and that kinda stirs a feeling of sympathy and sorrow for his situation. So in conclusion for his character, I would say Anna Tan managed to write the character splendidly, exhibit a realistic dynamic of a prince with huge responsibility, and a confused teenage boy devoid of attention and leading trainings. 

 The other pivotal character is Yosua. Oh how much I like him! He is my FAVOURITE character in this book (and prolly the reason why I'm eager to finish the book). The friendship and loyalty between him and Mikal is just very earnest . If Mikal is the raging fire, then Yosua is the calming wind, hence complementing each other. I don't think so I have ever seen a story of slaves-master swapped roles before in any story. Indeed, this one is a very unique relationship they have. 

Even so, I'm still this ti----ny bit suspicious on him (in which i did since the very beginning of the book). I wonder if he really does not have an ounce of eager of power? What is with this unwavering loyalty of Yosua and Garett towards an enemy kingdom that has destroyed the peace of their very home, ruining the lives of their family and relatives, making them a slave? Yes sure because of their sworn oath, but still, it is TOO GOOD TO BE TRUE. Maybe I am just too skeptical so I'm really looking forward that some backstory- or maybe a connection in the past with Sultan Samson, that makes them to choose loyalty over blood. I hope they won't switch side later on because they're the only 'family' left of Mikal :')

  All in all, I enjoy the story. The ending was really emotional-stirring :') It was the ending, for a new beginning. It was such a journey to see the growth of Prince Mikal, from a confused teen boy, to a benevolent ruler . Seeing him break through out of his shell, and taking different approach, HIS OWN approach, makes me looking forward to the future he'll be building. I can't wait for the next book in this series! I really hope we'll get to see the mature and wise side of him later on, and how will he restore back the kingdom whilst handling the unceasing hurdles in the future.

Rating

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️/5

Where To Buy

Teaspoon Publishing - https://teaspoonpublishing.com.my/shop/amok-paperback/

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