This first novel, originally self-published, opens with Tara's memory of the kidnapping of Mukta, a ten-year-old girl her father took into their home during her childhood. It's been 11 years since Mukta's disappearance, and Tara returns to India in order to reconcile her role in this tragedy with her father's abandoned quest to find Mukta. This isn't a thriller or a classic whodunit; it's a story about blended families, the lies and betrayals within those relationships, and the devadasi tradition of temple dancers in India that forces young girls into prostitution. In the hands of a lesser writer, this story would be too massive and complex as both Tara and Mukta shift their narratives between the past and present, but under Trasi's deft hand a satisfying intersection of the stories emerges, with an emotional tone that resonates after the final page is turned. The social issues of contemporary India, including poverty and women's rights, provide a strong backdrop. VERDICT A skillful tapestry of storytelling with contemporary appeal that will please fans of Thrity Umrigar and women's fiction.—Tina Panik, Avon Free P.L., CT

Finely woven threads of friendship, womanhood, and hope sustain Trasi's striking debut novel. In an upper-caste neighborhood in 1988 Mumbai, eight-year-old Tara and 10-year-old Mukta form an unlikely bond that seeds tumultuous change. Born the daughter of a temple prostitute in the countryside, Mukta serves Tara's family in return for salvation from the hard, dark life to which she had been consigned. Precocious, bold Tara ignores their differences and wins over grief-stricken Mukta. But after the tragic 1993 bombings in Mumbai forever change Tara and her activist father, Mukta is kidnapped. The girls' bifurcated story spans 14 years. Tara and her father move to the United States but fail to outrun their grief. Mukta is sold back into the sex trade, where her poetic heart, reality-tempered optimism, and memories of Tara's friendship sustain her. But Tara returns to face her past and her guilt, and to seek her friend in the sprawl of Mumbai. The novel eschews the monolithic spectacle of India as a giant colorful circus (or worse, a giant, squalid slum) for a chiaroscuro of hope and grief, and trades worn westernized tropes for depth of character. Grounded in Trasi's own childhood in Mumbai, this is a graceful, bittersweet novel of tragedy and tradition. Agent: Priya Doraswamy, Lotus Lane Literary. (Apr.)

Set in Mumbai, India, this memorable novel is alternately narrated by two girls from different castes who become friends. Tara is from a solid, middle-class, two-parent home and afforded many privileges, while Mukta is the daughter of a sex worker and an absent father. The girls' lives intertwine when Tara's father, who helps orphaned children, brings Mukta home to work as a servant rather than as a temple prostitute. As the book moves back and forth through time, readers learn that Mukta has been kidnapped from her adopted home and Tara feels responsible. Tara returns to India as an adult to try to find Mukta and ease her own guilt. Readers will relate to the bond between the protagonists and sympathize with Mukta's situation. Teens who wish to learn more about the grim reality of life in brothels should also seek out S.J. Laidlaw's Fifteen Lanes. VERDICT Fans of Carol Rifka Brunt's Tell the Wolves I'm Home and other stories of unlikely friendship will appreciate this eye-opening, beautifully written tale of the dark side of tradition.—Sherry J. Mills Hazelwood East High School, St. Louis