Following the events of Princess Rouran and the Dragon Chariot of 10,000 Sages, university student Edith and her young niece Moli learn they must recover nine mystical objects scattered throughout history in nine days to save the world, with the help of troubled teen James and wheelchair user Kiza. The entirety of PRINCESS ROURAN AND THE BOOK OF THE LIVING focuses on the ragtag group’s 24-hour search for the first item, the Book of the Living, which is located somewhere in Ancient Egypt. As they maneuver through the arid terrain and complex social structure of the time period, they must also navigate the destructive efforts of their villainous rivals: Adolf Hitler, Shiro Ishii, and an AI called Pandorai.
These four near-strangers each possess unique knowledge and skills they use to solve various riddles and puzzles on their journey, working together while overcoming hurdles both external and internal. Mistrust and fear drive conflict among the members of the group, though the horrors they face help build empathy and understanding for each other. When they are attacked by time-traveling dinosaurs and slave-owning Egyptian kidnappers, for instance, they aim to rescue each other as much as they aim to save the world.
If time travel, dinosaurs, manipulative AI, and a resurrected Hitler wasn’t enough, fantasy creatures like talking cats and crocodiles, references to multicultural myths, and complex math and science riddles are thrown at the reader left and right. The plot is at times nearly discarded in favor of rollicking dialogue in which Hitler and Ishii mock each other’s opinions and ambitions with a series of pop culture and philosophy references. Plot-driving actions are difficult to make out in the maze of obtuse interactions with fantasy creatures that come and go throughout the tale. Confusing and sometimes contradictory ideas disrupt immersion. The actual search for the Book of the Living appears not to be Ruckus’s purpose in crafting the novel, as this objective gets lost as quickly and frequently as the main characters do. Instead, the wacky philosophical musings dominate, though they are, delightfully, at times laugh-out-loud funny. Situational humor comes in the form of Hitler failing several CAPTCHA tests in a row, the AI Pandorai’s presentations of news and trivia in the form of a TV game show, and the antics of the heroes’ Cheshire Cat-like guides, among others.
Balancing satire with adventure and some obscure cultural and historical references, PRINCESS ROURAN AND THE BOOK OF THE LIVING by Shawe Ruckus remains an entertaining and intelligent fantasy novel that offers plenty of wisdom and humor.
~Aimee Jodoin for IndieReader