The King of Kings
K M Munshi
Penguin, 2019, pp 304, Rs 599
K M Munshi’s magnificent conclusion to his beloved trilogy, The King of Kings is a panoramic epic filled with adventure and intrigue, a timeless classic with a nuanced insight into human nature, and the complex links between statecraft and violence.
Love is Beyond Everything
Akhil Maheshwari
Halfcrow, 2019, pp 170, Rs 225
Kabir’s in love with Aditi and she’s in love with Maan, the father of her daughter. Her daughter Kaavya tries to help her get over Maan, but it is Aditi’s best friend who comes up with a grand scheme that is bound to help her get over him. But Aditi realises that sometimes, what is best for us is not what we pray for.
Three Women
Lisa Taddeo
Bloomsbury, 2019, pp 302, Rs 550
It thrills us and torments us, and it’s all we live for. And as a buried force in our lives, desire remains largely unexplored, until now. Over the past eight years, journalist Lisa Taddeo has driven across the country six times to embed herself with ordinary women from different regions and backgrounds.
Unravelling the Double Helix
Gareth Williams
Hachette, 2019, pp 494, Rs 699
This book covers the most colourful period in the history of DNA, from the discovery of ‘nuclein’ to the landmark publication of James Watson’s ‘The Double Helix’. These hundred years included the advent of the Nobel Prize, antibiotics, X-ray crystallography as well as two world wars.
High and Dry
Sasmit Powale
Leadstart, 2019, pp 400, Rs 399
Max is a 21-year-old literature teacher who wants to take you back to his college days, a time where he and his friends, good-for-nothing teenagers with superpowers, were studying in Mumbai. Their lives are unwittingly caught between two political revolutions, as they chase their pleasures and ambitions.
The Hidden One
Ruchir Gupta
Leadstart, 2019, pp 243, Rs 299
Part fiction and part history, The Hidden One brings a tear to the eye while thrilling the heart as we witness 17th-century India through the eyes of an unsuspected character — a Muslim princess. It narrates the powerful story of Zebunissa, and the Makhfi — a
secret society that has been lost over time.
Belief and Beyond
Mukunda Rao
Harper Collins, 2019, pp 360, Rs 499
Belief and Beyond delves into the realm of the mystic – Adi Sankara, Allama Prabhu, Kabir, Nagarjuna, Akka Mahadevi, Sri Aurobindo, Jiddu Krishnamurti, U G Krishnamurti, bringing to life the philosophical messages they left.
Lepakshi
Dallapiccola, Majilis and Michell
Niyogi Books, 2019, pp 272, Rs 2,500
Hidden away in the remote village of Lepakshi in the Rayalaseema region of Andhra Pradesh is one of the most spectacular Vijayanagara temples. This volume, authored by three eminent scholars, is the first to provide the temple with a comprehensive description.