Dazzling Tale of a Distant Time and Place

books:


	• The Temple Dancer: A Novel of India John Speed St. Martin's Press, 2006 - 384 pages average customer review:based on 14 reviews view larger image
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highly recommended

Very good book

The Temple Dancer was a very interesting book. The story was simply amazing and it was very easy to get lost in this story.

Couldn't Put it Down

I never thought I would say this but John Speed now rivals Philippa Gregory as one of my favorite authors of historical fiction. Set in India in the year 1657, "The Temple Dancer" is a riveting tale of two women: Lucinda Desana, a beautiful Goan heiress; and Maya, a devadasi (temple dancer) who is bought by Lucinda's family and sold as a concubine. They meet in Goa and travel through the Western Ghats by elephant, each heading towards a fate that has changed by the time their journey has ended. Escorted by a dangerous man with a reputation for violence, a conniving eunuch, a cold-hearted businessman and a mysterious prince, their story is filled with intrigue, adventure, sensuality and forbidden love. Indeed, I lost many hours of sleep because I simply had to find out what Speed's exotic collection of characters were going to do next. His immense knowledge of Indian history and culture transforms them into vibrant people who inhabit an unforgettable world. The back cover of this book says that Speed has studied Indian history, art and religion for over thirty-years and I believe it. I can hardly wait for the next two books in this planned trilogy.

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Dazzling Tale of a Distant Time and Place

This novel is beautifully-written, rich with sensuous narrative and vivid characters. It brings to life one corner of India's vast history, and the interractions of the rulers and the ruled, native and foreign. You will cheer on the protagonists and the lovers, and draw dark satisfaction from the justice visited upon the evil. Don't miss this book!

Splendid read

I read this book in three days straight, could not concentrate on anything else. Especially since I am born Dutch, grew up in Portugal and lived in Goa for a while, this is the book that I've been waiting for all my life. Can barely wait for the follow up. Adventure, History, passion, love and murder, what else does a reader want. Bravo!, Nicolette

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reviews: page 1, 2, 3

India, 1657.
When Maya, a graceful, young temple dancer with a mysterious past, is sold into slavery, she enters a world of intrigue, violence, and forbidden love. Bought by a Portuguese trader and sold as a concubine to the dissolute vizier of Bijapur, she embarks on a treacherous journey.
In a caravan led by the dangerous settlement man Da Gama, she travels by elephant on the hostile road to Bijapur, joined by Geraldo, a Portuguese adventurer, and Pathan, a handsome prince who carries a dark secret. Together with Lucinda, a beautiful, spoiled young Goan heiress, and the manipulative eunuch Slipper, they climb the windswept mountain road through the Western Ghats.
When their caravan is attacked by bandits, the travelers? lives are turned upside down. In the aftermath, Maya and Lucinda suddenly find themselves stranded in a strange, exotic world, a world filled with passion, romance, and deception, pure love and lurking evil, where nothing is as it seems and the two women are faced with great temptation as well as heart-wrenching decisions that will affect the rest of their lives.
Greed, politics, commitment, courage, love, and intolerance mesh to form a vibrant Indian tapestry. With spectacular settings, unforgettable characters, fierce sensuality, and intense scholarship, this adventure-packed novel marks the debut of an exciting new storyteller.
The Temple Dancer is the first volume of John Speed?s Indian trilogy, a three-book journey that will cover the final years of the Mogul Empire and the rise of the Marathis under the highwayman Shivaji. It will leave you breathlessly awaiting his next novel.

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