A short intro about the story:
Parthiban is a Chola king.His empire is heavily marginalized with the Pandiyas,Cheras and Pallavas pressing into his territory from all directions.Pallava ruler,Mamalla Narasimha Chakravarti is the most dominant king in the southern lands and makes all other rulers pay tax to him.Parthiban refuses to pay up and decides to go into a war against the Chakravarti ,knowing very well that his troops are nowhere comparable to the Pallava army.Before marching into the battle ground,Parthiban unveils his dream(Chola kingdom becoming the strongest in the region) to his son ,Vikraman.
Vikraman is but a boy at his stage ,but decides to make his father's dream a reality. Parthiban goes into war and is killed.However,before he dies ,a Shivanadiyar(Shaivite devotee) promises to help Vikraman realise his father's goal.The rest of the story is about how Vikraman realises Parthiban's dream.He is aided in his quest by several people like Ponna,a boatman,his wife,Valli ,Siruthondar and the mystery Shivanadiyar.
Vikrama has a love interest as well-Kuntavi,who is the daughter of the Chakravarti.And a bunch of villains to foil Vikraman's resolve.The main supense aspect is "supposed"to be the identity of Shivanadiyar.However,the narrative gives you enough clues early on to figure out who he is.So that is not exactly too surprising when at the end of 250 pages the Shivanadiyar reveals himself. I have no clue whether the subtelity got lost in the translation or whether Kalki's work is liberal with the clues too.

The way Kalki introduces a fictional character (Parthipan) into the history of Chola-Pallava conflict is creativity at its very best. Attributing the resurgence of the Cholas to a fictional king's dreams who lived 300 years ago is just a brilliant presentation. Thoroughly enjoyed this one and can't wait to start Sivagamiyin Sabadham.

I have to say I was disappointed with this novel. Its nowhere close to its previous part - Sivakamiyin Sabatham which was a brilliant masterpiece. The main protagonist of this novel - Vikraman has absolutely no clue of what he is doing, let it be his ambition to accomplish his father's dream or his lady love.
But the suspense of who the main character of the novel will make you tread slowly. The last 50 pages leaves you somewhat satisfied as there is more action and twists involved. One thing is for sure. By the end of these two novels one would start having immense respect to NarasimmhaVarma Pallava.

The first of the trilogy of Kalki's historical magnum opuses, 'Parthiban Kanavu' boasts the richness of the Tamil Nadu and its people during the reign of Chola and Pallava dynasties. Written in a simple and lucid style without compromising the parlance of the language, this book is the best starter for anyone new to Tamil historical fictions.
Though the story is simple, Kalki has interwoven the plot with everything the reader can dream for: beauty, harmony, gallantry, romance, satire, shock, horror, suspense,sensation, thrill, rivalry, fame, sacrifice and morale. The characterization is brilliant and the plot cleverly synergizes historical events and creativity to portray a brilliant story.