The God of Dishonesty

The God of DishonestyIn the remote village of Kaalpur, an ancient creature lives beneath the Black Lotus Pond. For generations it has rewarded liars, cheats, and betrayers while punishing the honest. The village does not know it is feeding a parasite. It believes it is worshipping a god.Dhanraj Kesar arrives in Kaalpur as a criminal with a stolen saddlebag and a professional interest in whatever power the pond offers. He makes an arrangement with the creature, rises to control the village through blackmail and manipulation, and becomes the most efficient instrument the parasite has ever had. The creature grows. The village grows more corrupt. And three honest people disappear into tunnels below the water.When Dhanraj descends into the ruins beneath the pond and reads the records left by the people who originally imprisoned the creature, he understands what he has built and what it will cost Kaalpur when the creature no longer needs it. The arrangement was never a partnership. It was a meal being prepared.With the help of a schoolteacher who has been keeping records for three years and an old sage who has spent forty years waiting for someone to ask the right questions, Dhanraj must find a way to destroy something that has survived for centuries by making communities destroy themselves.The weapon exists. Using it requires telling the complete truth in public about everything he has done.A dark fantasy novel about corruption, accountability, and what honesty costs when it matters most.

Pages: 216, Paperback, Independently published