"Discover a journey, a quest, a finding of self, in this wise and heartfelt story as it soars from India to Europe in vividly captivating style. "
Beautifully evocative and intimate, and important in terms of time and place, this is a story that is both gentle and heartfelt, yet mysterious and adventurous. In Bombay, Sona’s life is awakened when an artist unexpectedly dies and Sona falls under suspicion, a journey to Europe awaits as she attempts to prove her innocence. Author Alka Joshi, not only writes with an engaging pen, she obviously throughly researches her subject. She explains in her Author’s Note about the inspiration for this novel which was absolutely fascinating. The sense of place in each location took me by the hand and led me with Sona in a journey of discovery. The timing of the novel set just before the Second World War and the ongoing struggle for independence ensures a level of unease sits humming just below the turn of every page. I enjoyed spending time with Sona as she grew into herself, and learned just how capable and daring she could be. The other characters became just as important to me, all the complications of humanity are shown with empathy. There is a quietness to this novel that actually highlights the intensity, the injustice, the depths and the highs, which is why it has been chosen as a LoveReading Star Book. Six Days in Bombay is a colourful, compassionate, and rewarding novel of loss, injustice, self-discovery and independence.
Find out more about this stunning read in this LoveReading Exclusive Author Event with Alka Joshi chatting to our very own Liz Robinson.
| Primary Genre | Historical Fiction |
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From the New York Times bestselling author of The Henna Artist, this sweeping novel of identity and self-discovery takes readers from Bombay to Prague, Florence, Paris and London, to uncover the mystery behind a famous painter's death.
When renowned painter Mira Novak arrives at Wadia hospital in Bombay after a miscarriage, she's expected to make a quick recovery, and her nurse, Sona, is excited to learn more about the vivacious artist who shares her half-Indian identity. Sona, yearning for a larger life, finds herself carried away by Mira's stories of her travels and exploits and is shocked by accounts of the many lovers the painter has left scattered throughout Europe. When Mira dies quite suddenly and mysteriously, Sona falls under suspicion, and her quiet life is upended.
The key to proving Sona's innocence may lie in a cryptic note and four paintings Mira left in her care, sending the young woman on a mission to visit the painter's former friends and lovers across a tumultuous Europe teetering toward war. On the precipice of discovering her own identity, Sona learns that the painter's charming facade hid a far more complicated, troubled soul.
In her first stand-alone novel since her bestselling debut, The Henna Artist, Alka Joshi uses the life of painter Amrita Sher-Gil, the "Frida Kahlo of India," as inspiration for the story's beginning to explore how far we'll travel to determine where we truly belong.
Six Days in Bombay features in the following genres: Books of the Month, Books with an Author Interview, Recommendations, Star Books, Crime and Mystery, Historical Fiction, Romance / Relationship Stories, Fiction, Historical Fiction, Narrative theme: Sense of place, Narrative theme: Death, grief, loss, c 1930 to c 1939, Narrative theme: Love and relationships
Six Days in Bombay is available in Paperback, Hardback
Six Days in Bombay was written by Alka Joshi and published by Mira Books
£17.09
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