A woman's take on the timeless Hindu tale the Mahabharata, The Palace of Illusions transports us back to a time that is half-history, half-myth, and wholly magical.In this modern retelling, Chitra Banerjee Divakaruni places Panchaali, the wife of the five Pandava brothers, at the heart of the story.Mystical and epic, the narrative spans from Panchaali's fiery birth and lonely childhood, where her beloved brother is her only true companion; through her complicated friendship with the enigmatic Krishna; to marriage, motherhood and secret attraction to the mysterious man who is her husbands' most dangerous enemy.The Palace of Illusions is a deeply human novel about a woman born into a man's world – a world of warriors, gods and the ever manipulating hands of fate.‘A mythic tale brimming with warriors, magic and treachery’ – Los Angeles Times ‘A radiant entree into an ancient mythology . . . Charming and remarkable’ – Houston Chronicle‘A woman’s look at crime and punishment, loyalty, promises, love and vengeance . . . With The Palace of Illusions, Divakaruni has proven that her storytelling talents put her right up there with the best’ – Miami Herald

SHORTLISTED FOR THE WOMEN'S PRIZE FOR FICTION'A dazzling tale... woven with poetry and storyteller magic' AMY TANTilo, an immigrant from India, runs a spice shop in Oakland, California. While she supplies the ingredients for curries and kormas, she also dispenses wisdom and the appropriate spice: for Tilo is a Mistress of Spices, a priestess of the secret magical powers of spices.To those who visit her shop, Tilo prescribes coriander for the restoration of sight, chilli for the cleansing of evil, fenugreek for the pain of rejection. But when a lonely American ventures into the store, a troubled Tilo cannot find the correct spice, for he arouses in her a forbidden desire - which if she follows will destroy her magical powers.Compelling and lyrical, full of heady scents and with more than a touch of humour, this novel explores the clash between East and West even as it unveils the universal mysteries of the human heart.'I felt excited and empowered by the way she used words' NAOMI ALDERMAN, author of THE POWER'Unusual, clever, and often exquisite' LA Times

A woman's take on the timeless Hindu tale the Mahabharata, The Palace of Illusions transports us back to a time that is half-history, half-myth, and wholly magical.In this modern retelling, Chitra Banerjee Divakaruni places Panchaali, the wife of the five Pandava brothers, at the heart of the story.Mystical and epic, the narrative spans from Panchaali's fiery birth and lonely childhood, where her beloved brother is her only true companion; through her complicated friendship with the enigmatic Krishna; to marriage, motherhood and secret attraction to the mysterious man who is her husbands' most dangerous enemy.The Palace of Illusions is a deeply human novel about a woman born into a man's world – a world of warriors, gods and the ever manipulating hands of fate.‘A mythic tale brimming with warriors, magic and treachery’ – Los Angeles Times ‘A radiant entree into an ancient mythology . . . Charming and remarkable’ – Houston Chronicle‘A woman’s look at crime and punishment, loyalty, promises, love and vengeance . . . With The Palace of Illusions, Divakaruni has proven that her storytelling talents put her right up there with the best’ – Miami Herald

In QUEEN OF DREAMS, Chitra Banerjee Divakaruni once more spins a fresh, spellbinding story of transformation. Rakhi, a young artist and divorced mother living in Berkeley, California, is struggling to keep her footing, with her family and her world in alarming transition. Her mother is a dream-teller, born with the ability to share and interpret the dreams of others, to foresee and guide them through their fates. This gift fascinates Rakhi, but also isolates her from her mother's past in India and the dream world she inhabits, and she longs for something to bring them closer. Caught beneath the burden of her painful secret, Rakhi's solace comes in the discovery, after her mother's death, of her dream journals, which begin to open the long-closed doors to her past. As Rakhi's mother writes 'A dream is a telegram from the hidden world'.In lush elegant prose, Divakaruni has crafted a vivid and enduring dream that reveals hidden truths about the world we live in, from which readers will be reluctant to wake.

The possibility of change, of starting anew, in this stunning beautiful and poignant collection of short stories, is at once terrifying and filled with promise.For those Indian-born women living new lives in America, independence is a mixed blessing.It means walking the tightrope between old treasured beliefs and surprising newfound desires, and understanding the emotions which that conflict brings.Together these stories create a tapestry of existence as colourful, as delicate and as enduring as the finest silk sari.

Born in a big old Calcutta house on the same night, the wild, tragic night their fathers were both mysteriously lost, Sudha and Anju are cousins. Closer even than sisters, they share clothes, possessions, worries, dreams - and three mothers, who preside over the matriarchal Chatterjee household. But when Sudha discovers a terrible secret about their past, their mutual loyalty is sorely tested. A family crisis forces the mothers to start the serious business of arranging the girls' marriages, and the inseparable pair are torn apart. Sudha moves to her new family'as home in rural Bengal, while Anju joins her immigrant husband in California. But nothing has prepared them for the pain, aswell as the joy, that each will have to face in her new life.Rooted in Indian folklore and steeped in the mysticism of ancient tales, this bright, jewel-like novel shines its light on the bonds of family, on love and loss, against the realities of traditional arranged marriages, and the adjustments needed for modern life.

SHORTLISTED FOR THE WOMEN'S PRIZE FOR FICTION'A dazzling tale... woven with poetry and storyteller magic' AMY TANTilo, an immigrant from India, runs a spice shop in Oakland, California. While she supplies the ingredients for curries and kormas, she also dispenses wisdom and the appropriate spice: for Tilo is a Mistress of Spices, a priestess of the secret magical powers of spices.To those who visit her shop, Tilo prescribes coriander for the restoration of sight, chilli for the cleansing of evil, fenugreek for the pain of rejection. But when a lonely American ventures into the store, a troubled Tilo cannot find the correct spice, for he arouses in her a forbidden desire - which if she follows will destroy her magical powers.Compelling and lyrical, full of heady scents and with more than a touch of humour, this novel explores the clash between East and West even as it unveils the universal mysteries of the human heart.'I felt excited and empowered by the way she used words' NAOMI ALDERMAN, author of THE POWER'Unusual, clever, and often exquisite' LA Times

A woman's take on the timeless Hindu tale the Mahabharata, The Palace of Illusions transports us back to a time that is half-history, half-myth, and wholly magical.In this modern retelling, Chitra Banerjee Divakaruni places Panchaali, the wife of the five Pandava brothers, at the heart of the story.Mystical and epic, the narrative spans from Panchaali's fiery birth and lonely childhood, where her beloved brother is her only true companion; through her complicated friendship with the enigmatic Krishna; to marriage, motherhood and secret attraction to the mysterious man who is her husbands' most dangerous enemy.The Palace of Illusions is a deeply human novel about a woman born into a man's world – a world of warriors, gods and the ever manipulating hands of fate.‘A mythic tale brimming with warriors, magic and treachery’ – Los Angeles Times ‘A radiant entree into an ancient mythology . . . Charming and remarkable’ – Houston Chronicle‘A woman’s look at crime and punishment, loyalty, promises, love and vengeance . . . With The Palace of Illusions, Divakaruni has proven that her storytelling talents put her right up there with the best’ – Miami Herald

SHORTLISTED FOR THE WOMEN'S PRIZE FOR FICTION'A dazzling tale... woven with poetry and storyteller magic' AMY TANTilo, an immigrant from India, runs a spice shop in Oakland, California. While she supplies the ingredients for curries and kormas, she also dispenses wisdom and the appropriate spice: for Tilo is a Mistress of Spices, a priestess of the secret magical powers of spices.To those who visit her shop, Tilo prescribes coriander for the restoration of sight, chilli for the cleansing of evil, fenugreek for the pain of rejection. But when a lonely American ventures into the store, a troubled Tilo cannot find the correct spice, for he arouses in her a forbidden desire - which if she follows will destroy her magical powers.Compelling and lyrical, full of heady scents and with more than a touch of humour, this novel explores the clash between East and West even as it unveils the universal mysteries of the human heart.'I felt excited and empowered by the way she used words' NAOMI ALDERMAN, author of THE POWER'Unusual, clever, and often exquisite' LA Times

A woman's take on the timeless Hindu tale the Mahabharata, The Palace of Illusions transports us back to a time that is half-history, half-myth, and wholly magical.In this modern retelling, Chitra Banerjee Divakaruni places Panchaali, the wife of the five Pandava brothers, at the heart of the story.Mystical and epic, the narrative spans from Panchaali's fiery birth and lonely childhood, where her beloved brother is her only true companion; through her complicated friendship with the enigmatic Krishna; to marriage, motherhood and secret attraction to the mysterious man who is her husbands' most dangerous enemy.The Palace of Illusions is a deeply human novel about a woman born into a man's world – a world of warriors, gods and the ever manipulating hands of fate.‘A mythic tale brimming with warriors, magic and treachery’ – Los Angeles Times ‘A radiant entree into an ancient mythology . . . Charming and remarkable’ – Houston Chronicle‘A woman’s look at crime and punishment, loyalty, promises, love and vengeance . . . With The Palace of Illusions, Divakaruni has proven that her storytelling talents put her right up there with the best’ – Miami Herald

In QUEEN OF DREAMS, Chitra Banerjee Divakaruni once more spins a fresh, spellbinding story of transformation. Rakhi, a young artist and divorced mother living in Berkeley, California, is struggling to keep her footing, with her family and her world in alarming transition. Her mother is a dream-teller, born with the ability to share and interpret the dreams of others, to foresee and guide them through their fates. This gift fascinates Rakhi, but also isolates her from her mother's past in India and the dream world she inhabits, and she longs for something to bring them closer. Caught beneath the burden of her painful secret, Rakhi's solace comes in the discovery, after her mother's death, of her dream journals, which begin to open the long-closed doors to her past. As Rakhi's mother writes 'A dream is a telegram from the hidden world'.In lush elegant prose, Divakaruni has crafted a vivid and enduring dream that reveals hidden truths about the world we live in, from which readers will be reluctant to wake.

The possibility of change, of starting anew, in this stunning beautiful and poignant collection of short stories, is at once terrifying and filled with promise.For those Indian-born women living new lives in America, independence is a mixed blessing.It means walking the tightrope between old treasured beliefs and surprising newfound desires, and understanding the emotions which that conflict brings.Together these stories create a tapestry of existence as colourful, as delicate and as enduring as the finest silk sari.

Born in a big old Calcutta house on the same night, the wild, tragic night their fathers were both mysteriously lost, Sudha and Anju are cousins. Closer even than sisters, they share clothes, possessions, worries, dreams - and three mothers, who preside over the matriarchal Chatterjee household. But when Sudha discovers a terrible secret about their past, their mutual loyalty is sorely tested. A family crisis forces the mothers to start the serious business of arranging the girls' marriages, and the inseparable pair are torn apart. Sudha moves to her new family'as home in rural Bengal, while Anju joins her immigrant husband in California. But nothing has prepared them for the pain, aswell as the joy, that each will have to face in her new life.Rooted in Indian folklore and steeped in the mysticism of ancient tales, this bright, jewel-like novel shines its light on the bonds of family, on love and loss, against the realities of traditional arranged marriages, and the adjustments needed for modern life.

SHORTLISTED FOR THE WOMEN'S PRIZE FOR FICTION'A dazzling tale... woven with poetry and storyteller magic' AMY TANTilo, an immigrant from India, runs a spice shop in Oakland, California. While she supplies the ingredients for curries and kormas, she also dispenses wisdom and the appropriate spice: for Tilo is a Mistress of Spices, a priestess of the secret magical powers of spices.To those who visit her shop, Tilo prescribes coriander for the restoration of sight, chilli for the cleansing of evil, fenugreek for the pain of rejection. But when a lonely American ventures into the store, a troubled Tilo cannot find the correct spice, for he arouses in her a forbidden desire - which if she follows will destroy her magical powers.Compelling and lyrical, full of heady scents and with more than a touch of humour, this novel explores the clash between East and West even as it unveils the universal mysteries of the human heart.'I felt excited and empowered by the way she used words' NAOMI ALDERMAN, author of THE POWER'Unusual, clever, and often exquisite' LA Times