Genre : Historical Fiction | Author : Alka Joshi (March 3, 2020) | Running Time : 10h 56m | Narrator :Sneha Mathan

I began my Audibles journey with The Henna Artist, the first book of the Jaipur Trilology by author Alka Joshi . which came as a recommendation from a dear friend on a cold December morning of 2020.

Hello there! Did you miss my unglamorous boring book reviews? Aha, the wait is over! Because I am back with a long list of recommendations and boy I just can’t wait to share with you !

The captivating story of Lakshmi Shastri, a henna artist navigating the distruptions set off by the arrival of her sister in her otherwise carefully curated life narrated by Sneha Mathan woke up the sleeping reader in me!

This led to The Palace of Illusions , The Nightingale, The Midnight Library, and as you can guess I haven’t stopped since then.

As they say Better late than Never! I am restarting my book review this year with my very first audiobook – The Henna Artist.

The Henna Artist – Synopsis

Set in the vibrant city of Jaipur, Rajasthan in the 1950s of India, The Henna Artist follows the life of Lakshmi Shastri, a firece skilled henna artist and a herablist navigating the bustling streets with grace and ambition offering her art and more to high society clients.

Lakshmi does more than adorning the hands of the wealthy and powerful women with henna. She listens in on their secrets, observing and planning her moves carefully.

The unexpected arrival of her sister, Radha threatens to unravel the delicate balance she’s carefully crafted. Lakshmi has two choices. Which path will she take?

My Take on it

It is a heartlfelt story of a young independent woman set in the 1950 post independence India. This historical fiction by Alka Joshi has everything in it – drama, love affair, secrets, longing and ambitions intertwined with the vibrant Indian culture.

I loved how Alka Joshi‘s words paint a vivid picture of city of Jaipur from the exotic henna designs to the colorful bustling bazaars.

Just as she painted the essence of the snow clad in The Secret Keeper of Jaipur, her words capture the scents, colors, and sounds of Jaipur, making it feel like a sensory experience.

I could see myself strolling down the lanes of a Jaipuri baazar and smell of hot chai and pakoras! Yum.

Amidst the backdrop of a rapidly changing society, Lakshmi’s journey of self-discovery interwoven with the intricacies of love, ambition, and societal expectations makes this a fun engaging read on a warm sunny day!

I hope you enjoy reading/listening to it as much as I did!

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While my house is full of avid readers, I am not one of them. It takes me weeks some times months to go through a physical book. But audiobooks have made it easy for me to get back to my reading.

From The Forest of Enchaments to the Last Mrs. Parish that sent me down a rabbit hole of crazy pyslogical thrillers I have long list ready for you guys!

Until my next unglamorous book review , here is quote for you!

“There were three kinds of karma: the accumulated karma from all our past lives; the karma we created in this life; and the karma we stored to ripen in our future lives” – The Henna Artist