From Goodreads: A cross-cultural romance set during the fury of British imperialism and the social-cultural divide in early twentieth-century turbulent British India.

It’s the year 1911. King George the Fifth is due in Delhi for his coronation celebration. A devastating fire in the royal camp gives rise to speculations of sabotage and an assassination attempt by the Indian revolutionaries. Will the British police be able to unveil real cause of the blaze?

Raju, a college student, struggling to establish his identity in the charged atmosphere of India’s freedom struggle is caught up in the vortex of violent passions as two of his innocent friends are made scapegoats for the blaze, by the British police, and are murdered. Thus begins Raju’s relentless journey against colonial rule and the economic exploitation of India.

A passionate romance with Eileen, the daughter of a British officer, keeps Raju inspired in their roller-coaster ride against the backdrop of British imperialism, turbulent political conflicts, the fury of the freedom revolution, the catastrophic first World War and the racial, cultural and social divisions in the post-Edwardian era.

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Any readers of historical romance will really love this novel. Kaul has created a wonderful story dealing with amazing fictional characters during the British occupation of India in during the early 1900s. It’s a story of forbidden love, society ideals, betrayal, and danger as Raju and Eileen fall deeply in love and begin a love affair that could easily end in Raju’s death and Eileen’s banishment. What I thoroughly enjoyed about this novel is that there is so much character building and background information given that it’s like the reader is a part of the story. Though the novel is a bit long, it weaves together a very powerful historical romance, following the characters throughout the years as they grow and mature, fighting for what they believe.

Kaul is a fabulous writer, engrossing the reader in his story as the beautiful descriptions, the gripping action, and the sweeping romance all come together to create a wonderful novel that I couldn’t put down. I am not usually a reader of historical novels, yet Kaul’s historical fiction is fabulous and I would recommend it to anyone. Four stars.

I received a copy of this novel from the author in exchange for an honest review.