The Tiger by the River

Swati Varma is one of modern Delhi’s more blessed inhabitants. Then one brilliant morning, when the world seemed cleansed by the coming of the rains, the unthinkable happens: his pregnant wife is killed in a road accident. Devastated, Swati decides to make the pilgrimage back to the place of his birth, Panayur, in the state of Kerala, and scatter his beloved’s ashes in the sacred waters of the Papanasini river. Returning to this long-forgotten world, he is reunited with Antara, a childhood companion and now caretaker of the crumbling, ghost-filled palace that was his home. For Panayur—seemingly still free from the religious turmoil that threatens so much of the country—was once a kingdom, and Swati is the direct descendant of its last king. As the two friends talk, sharing memories and exchanging secrets, thousands of miles away Vel—a cousin Swati never knew he had—sets out on a quest for the truth about his family that will take him from America to Berlin and, ultimately, to Panayur. And so begins an extraordinary and healing journey. One that will lead both Swati and Vel back through the cruel and bloody, vibrant and myth-filled history of the kings of Panayur to the legend that lies at its heart—the legend of the tiger by the river… Rich, seductive, and at times highly erotic, this spellbinding novel full of mystery, magic and wonder marks the debut of a singular new literary voice.