MotherTalk Blog Tour-The Splendor of Silence

Last year while preparing to move to a new country, a friend of mine boxed up some books she thought I would enjoy and mailed them to me. Among the selections were two books by an author I had never heard of, and the jackets told me that the books were historical fiction. I was immediately skeptical, since I had never read any books in that genre. But, with an open mind, I picked up the first book and began to read. And was instantly swept away into a world I had never knew existed, the world of royal India. I read, fascinated, about palaces and harems, and unimaginable wealth. The book was The Twentieth Wife: A Novel, by Indu Sundrasen. The story then continued with The Feast of Roses: A Novel, and by the time I finished that one, I was a fan of historical fiction.

So, when MotherTalk asked for reviewers for Ms. Sundrasen’s newest book, The Splendor of Silence:A Novel, I clicked Reply as fast as I possibly could. When the book arrived, I couldn’t wait to dive right in. It starts in the present with a young woman receiving a trunk containing a letter written by her father, telling her the true story of her parentage. Then, the story jumps backwards to May, 1942, when Sam Hawthorne arrives by train in Rudrakot in West India. He has been injured after being sent by the newly-formed OSS into Burma to rescue a missionary. He arrives in Rudrakot ostensibly to heal at the home of the Indian Political Agent, a job that I think means government representative.

At the home of Raman, the political agent, Sam meets Raman’s daughter Mila and is instantly enchanted by her. He also meets Mila’s brother Ashok who we later learn is planning to join up with a Nationalist movement plotting to bomb the car of the British Political agent. I found that not knowing the history behind the British occupation of India made it hard for me to understand some of the story. It was also somewhat confusing to have the story jump back and forth between Sam’s rescuing of the missionary, Sam staying at Raman’s house, and then forward to Olivia reading this letter she received in the trunk.

The setting is the West Indian desert, and the desert itself should be thought of as a character in the story. It is four days before a monsoon is expected to hit, and the heat has built up to the literal boiling point. The sands of the desert, the waves of heat, and then the monsoon itself, are forces to be reckoned with. Sam has not told anyone in Rudrakot that he is actually there to search for his brother Mike, who had been stationed with the Rudrakot Rifles regiment, but has gone missing. Sam figures out that his brother is being held in a prison detention center, which might as well be the bowels of hell. I shudder to think that this is based in reality.

Other minor characters come and go, all the stories weaving together in and out. Mila has been promised to Jai, the Raj of Rudrakot who lives in extravagant palaces and for whom money is no object. But her heart belongs to Sam, and that mere fact will have repercussions for all of the characters in the story.

I loved this book. I loved the lushness of it, the “love at first sight” romance between Sam and Mila, the mouth-watering descriptions of each meal that was prepared and served, the beautiful clothes. I sympathized with the prostitutes who kept the soldiers happy, yet couldn’t read or write, and so had to be tutored by Mila in secret. I found myself hoping by the end that Sam and Mila would find a way to ride off into the sunset together, even as I knew it couldn’t be possible. I loved Mila and Sam huddled together under a blanket during a sandstorm, exchanging stolen kisses. I was fascinated by the party thrown by Jai, the prince of Rudrakot and Mila’s intended husband-the dessert was milk foam set in saucers in greenhouses so it would be perfumed with the scent of roses.

Even if you don’t think you are a fan of historical fiction, I encourage you to pick up this book. If you like romance, intrigue, espionage, and excitement, this book has all of that and more.