Books from India

Well-Behaved Indian Women follows three generations of Indian women as they navigate the expectations of family, culture, and personal ambition. Simran Mehta, a young Indian American woman living in New York, dreams of becoming a writer, but her aspirations conflict with her family’s hopes that she will pursue a more conventional future. Her mother, Nandini, has spent much of her life meeting the expectations placed upon her as a wife and mother, while her grandmother, Bindu, carries memories of a different India and the sacrifices required of women in her generation. As their stories intersect, long-standing tensions emerge around marriage, independence, and what it means to be a good daughter. Dave explores the complexities of cultural identity and intergenerational relationships, showing how women can honour their heritage while questioning traditions that no longer reflect who they want to become.

Set in Jaipur in the 1950s, The Henna Artist follows Lakshmi, a young woman who escapes an abusive marriage and builds an independent life in the Pink City. Through her exceptional skills as a henna artist and her knowledge of traditional remedies, she becomes a trusted confidante to wealthy women, gaining access to their private lives and secrets. Lakshmi dreams of establishing her own home and achieving financial security, carefully protecting the reputation that sustains her livelihood. However, her carefully constructed world is disrupted when her estranged husband appears with a young girl who turns out to be the sister Lakshmi never knew she had. Forced to reconsider her priorities, Lakshmi must navigate the tension between independence and family responsibility. Joshi explores women’s autonomy, social hierarchy, ambition, and the possibility of creating a new life despite the limitations imposed by society.

In Gun Island, Amitav Ghosh follows Deen Datta, a Brooklyn-based Indian rare-book dealer whose fascination with an obscure Bengali legend leads him on an unexpected journey from Kolkata to the Sundarbans and Venice. As he investigates the story of a merchant who escaped the wrath of the snake goddess Manasa Devi, Deen encounters mysterious coincidences, ancient myths, and people whose lives have been transformed by migration and environmental upheaval. Along the way, he witnesses the devastating effects of climate change, including rising seas, extreme weather, and threats to vulnerable communities. Blending folklore, history, and contemporary fiction, Ghosh explores the connections between human migration, ecological crisis, and cultural memory, questioning whether ancient stories might offer new ways of understanding the environmental challenges of the modern world.

Set in Jaipur in 1969, The Secret Keeper of Jaipur follows Malik, a young man who returns to the city where he grew up to begin an apprenticeship at the royal palace. Under the guidance of Lakshmi, the former henna artist who has become a respected figure in the community, Malik hopes to build a promising future. His work brings him into contact with the wealthy and influential people overseeing the construction of a modern cinema. When the cinema’s balcony collapses on opening night, the resulting tragedy exposes corruption, concealed interests, and the unequal distribution of power. Suspecting that the disaster was not simply an accident, Malik begins investigating the truth, putting himself at risk as he challenges those determined to protect their reputations. Joshi examines social inequality, ambition, and the influence of wealth and privilege in a rapidly changing India.

Kaikeyi reimagines the story of a controversial queen from the ancient Indian epic Ramayana, giving voice to a woman traditionally remembered as the villain responsible for Rama’s exile. Growing up as the only daughter of a king, Kaikeyi questions the restrictions placed upon women and longs to shape her own destiny. After discovering a mysterious power that allows her to influence the minds of others, she begins to challenge the patriarchal structures governing her world. Her marriage to King Dasharatha brings her into the centre of royal politics, where her ambitions and relationships become increasingly complicated. As she navigates motherhood, power, and loyalty, Kaikeyi must make decisions that will transform her family and the kingdom. Patel explores female agency, ambition, and the tension between personal freedom and social expectations, offering a nuanced portrait of a woman whose story has long been told by others.

The Perfumist of Paris follows Radha, the younger sister introduced in The Henna Artist, as she builds a career in the world of perfumery in 1970s Paris. Having developed her talent for creating fragrances, Radha works to establish herself professionally while navigating marriage, motherhood, and the expectations placed upon her as an Indian woman living abroad. Her ambition to become an accomplished perfumer requires her to make difficult choices about the balance between her professional aspirations and her responsibilities to her family. As she encounters new opportunities and challenges, Radha must confront questions about independence, belonging, and the kind of future she wants to create. Joshi explores the relationship between creativity and self-expression, using the evocative world of perfume to examine memory, cultural heritage, and the complex process of developing an identity that embraces both personal ambition and family ties.

A stolen tiger, a young craftsman, and the spoils of an empire collide in this imaginative historical adventure. In eighteenth-century Mysore, seventeen-year-old Abbas catches the attention of Tipu Sultan, who commissions him to help create an extraordinary mechanical tiger. But when British forces invade the palace, the magnificent automaton is carried away as war booty. Years later, Abbas travels to Europe, determined to recover his creation and reclaim a piece of the world stolen from him. Spanning India, France, and England, Loot combines romance, adventure, and ingenious storytelling to explore artistic ambition, the costs of empire, and the enduring question of who has the right to own another culture’s treasures.

The Magnificent Ruins follows Lila De, an Indian American book editor whose career is gaining momentum when she learns that she has inherited her family’s sprawling ancestral home in Kolkata. Having been estranged from her relatives for sixteen years, Lila returns to India to confront a past she deliberately left behind. Her arrival unsettles the extended family members who still occupy the house, many of whom resent her unexpected inheritance. As old relationships resurface and family secrets begin to emerge, Lila finds herself caught between the life she has built in the United States and the complicated history connecting her to Kolkata. Roy explores inheritance in both its material and emotional forms, examining how family loyalties, unresolved grievances, and cultural expectations influence the search for belonging. The novel considers whether confronting the past can help individuals understand the people they have become.

The Daughters of Madurai explores the lives of two generations of women connected by family secrets, gender discrimination, and the painful consequences of patriarchal traditions. In Madurai, India, in 1992, Janani lives in poverty and faces enormous pressure to give birth to a son. In her community, daughters are considered a burden, and Janani is forced to endure the unimaginable loss of children she was never allowed to protect. Decades later, in Sydney in 2019, her daughter Nila struggles with a secret of her own. When a family emergency brings Nila back to India, she begins a journey that reveals hidden truths about her family’s past. Moving between India and Australia, Variyar examines the devastating consequences of gender inequality and the ways family secrets can shape successive generations. The novel explores motherhood, belonging, and the courage required to confront painful histories in the search for truth and reconciliation.

Set in a near-future Kolkata devastated by extreme heat and environmental crisis, A Guardian and a Thief follows two families whose lives become entangled through desperation and difficult moral choices. Ma, a mother determined to secure a future for her young daughter and elderly father, is preparing to leave India for the United States. Her plans are threatened when a young thief steals the documents her family needs to emigrate. The thief, meanwhile, is struggling to feed his own child in a city where poverty and climate catastrophe have made survival increasingly difficult. As their stories unfold over a single week, Majumdar explores the boundaries between right and wrong when people are pushed to desperate extremes. The novel examines inequality, parenthood, migration, and the moral compromises people make when protecting their families becomes a matter of survival.

Set in Bombay in 1937, Six Days in Bombay follows Sona, a young Indian woman whose encounter with an enigmatic French artist draws her into a world of art, ambition, and personal transformation. Against the vibrant backdrop of colonial-era India, Sona navigates the social expectations surrounding women while discovering new possibilities for her own future. Her experiences over six pivotal days challenge her understanding of herself, her relationships, and the boundaries that society has established for her. As the story unfolds, art becomes a means of exploring both individual expression and the tensions between tradition and change. Joshi combines historical atmosphere with an intimate portrait of a woman confronting the possibilities of a different life, examining how brief encounters and unexpected experiences can alter the course of a person’s identity and ambitions.

In the hidden world of India’s professional begging networks, human suffering has become a business. Pothivelu Pandaram is a respected, religious man who has built his prosperity on an appalling trade: he buys and breeds people with physical disabilities, then places them outside temples to beg for money. Among those he exploits are Mangandi Samy, a profoundly disabled man whose haunting songs express a longing for divine love, and others whose lives have been reduced to commodities. Pandaram treats them as possessions rather than human beings, convinced that his success and social standing justify his actions. But when an unexpected transaction disrupts his carefully controlled world, the moral foundations of his existence begin to crumble. Combining dark humour, grotesque realism, and spiritual inquiry, Jeyamohan confronts readers with uncomfortable questions about compassion, exploitation, and human dignity. Rather than offering easy answers, The Abyss challenges us to examine the cruelty people can inflict on one another—and the possibility of liberation even in the most degrading circumstances.