The Mahabharata Secret
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| Author | Christopher C. Doyle |
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| Cover artist |
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| Country | India |
| Language | English |
| Genre | Fiction |
| Publisher | Om Books |
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Publication date
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21 October 2013 |
| Media type | |
| Pages | 386 |
| ISBN | |
The Mahabharata Secret is the debut novel by Indian author Christopher C. Doyle and was released on 21 October 2013 by Om Books. The story follows Vijay and his friends, as they try to decipher a series of clues which would lead them to a devastating Secret hidden by a brotherhood known as the Nine Men. Doyle had initially started writing a story for his daughter, which gradually expanded into the book. The author was primarily inspired by the Indian epic Mahabharata, believing its events to be based on scientific facts. The book was followed by Doyle's second novel, The Mahabharata Quest: The Alexander Secret, which is the first book in a planned trilogy of sequels.
Doyle believed about the possibility of the existence of an alternate history which was probably not recorded in antiquity. While researching he also came across legends prevalent about King Ashoka and linked the story with him. Following its release, The Mahabharata Secret was a commercial success, which enabled the author to get signed for further thriller novels based on the subject matter and was also nominated for the 2014 Crossword Book Award.
In 244 BC, Indian emperor Ashoka finds a hilly cave with an astonishing secret. Believing it could destroy the world, he creates a secret brotherhood of Nine Men, who would guard the cave's contents through millennium. He also removed the Vimana Parva chapter of the Indian epic, Mahabharata, from its written transcripts.
In present day, Vikram Singh, an Indian nuclear scientist, is murdered at his fort in Jaungarh. Before his death he sent four cryptic emails to his nephew Vijay, who with his business partner Colin, childhood friend Radha and her father, linguist Dr. Shukla, start analyzing it. They are aided by Bheem Singh, current owner of Rajvirgarh fort and Greg White, an archaeologist mentioned in Vikram's emails. The group deduce that the emails refer to the Nine Men and their secret, which can be revealed by using a metal disc, a key, a ball of rock and a riddle. Their mission is interrupted by a man called Farooq, a Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) militant. The group find that the metal disc and the key together point to the Edicts of Ashoka. They travel to Bairat and find a hidden library of the Nine, but are imprisoned inside by Farooq and his men. The group find an alternate route and the ball of rock.
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