There's nothing like a great epic novel to get hearts racing and tears flowing, and The Far Pavilions by M.M. Kaye more than fits the bill. You'll be glued to it for hours - forget about sleeping, this book is nearly impossible to put down.Set in India in the 1800s, The Far Pavilions is the story of Ashton Pelham-Martyn, an Englishman raised as a Hindu, and Anjuli, the Indian princess with whom he shares a passionate but forbidden love. Friends as young children, Ash leaves the palace when political unrest makes it dangerous for him to stay. He is returned to his relatives in England, and in time becomes a soldier in the British Army. He meets Anjuli again when he is asked to escort two Indian princesses across the country to an arranged marriage, and falls desperately in love. But this is far more than a simple love story. It is a story of adventure, political intrigue, divided loyalties, and undying friendship.
M.M. Kaye is a brilliant story-teller, and this novel is incredibly well researched. You will learn volumes about this period of history - a somewhat blood-stained time- from this book without even noticing. Not a detail is out of place, and you never doubt the authenticity of the characters or the situation; a very important quality in a historical saga. The story keeps you riveted as it follows Ash over the plains and mountains of India and Afghanistan, and will have you weeping (in frustration as well as sorrow) as Ash struggles with his superiors, his orders, and his desire to protect the woman he loves.
