Goddess of Fire

by Bharti Kirchner

Overview

A remarkable novel of a young widow following her dreams

Moorti - widowed at just 17 and about to be burned on her husband's funeral pyre - is saved from the fire by a mysterious Englishman. Taken to safety and given employment by her saviour Job Charnock, Moorti, renamed Maria, must embrace her new life amongst the English traders.

But the intelligent and talented Maria is not content to be a servant for the rest of her life, and seizes the opportunity to learn English. This, she hopes, will bring her closer to the kind and gentle Job. But with so many obstacles in her path, will she be able to overcome adversity and danger in the pursuit of her dreams?

Filled with the heat and beauty of India, Maria's story of compassion, hope and love lingers long after the final page.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780727885500
Publisher:	Severn House
Publication date:	02/01/2016
Edition description:	First World Publication
Pages:	288
Product dimensions:	5.40(w) x 8.60(h) x 1.10(d)

About the Author

Bharti Kirchner is the author of five previous novels and four cookbooks. An award-winning cook, she has written numerous magazine articles and essays on food, travel, fitness and lifestyle. Born and brought up in Kolkata (formerly Calcutta), India, she now lives in Seattle, Washington.

Editorial Reviews

"Politically, sexually, and racially, Kirchner is returning some small sense of agency to the people who have lost everything — even their names — to history."

The Seattle Review of Books

2015-11-19
Seventeenth-century Bengal India is a place of wild beauty, great wealth, dire poverty, and violent battles between the many rulers of small kingdoms. Moorti is about to be immolated on her late husband's funeral pyre when an Englishman traveling the Ganges rescues her and forever changes her life. Job Charnock is an agent of the English East India Company, which is slowly making inroads into the Dutch trade in India. The company promises advancement and wealth to men like Job, a poor farmer's son who would have little chance of success back in England. Job takes Moorti back to his factory, a walled compound of buildings including a grand house where all the business agents live, renames her Maria, and gives her a hovel to live in and a job helping in the kitchen. Moorti, a bright and ambitious girl with some education, quickly proves her worth as a cook, although she soon realizes that mastering English will be her path to success. Job, who is so enamored of India that he dresses in native clothing, finds Moorti both beautiful and helpful. She in turn falls in love with him even as she struggles to improve herself and overcome the English dislike of darker-skinned people. Duplicity reigns among the workers and the business agents. Luckily, Moorti saves Job from a plot to kill him. Their love blossoms, but can it overcome the very dangers and prejudices that face them in their efforts to improve trade and the conditions of the poor? Kirchner's background as a cookbook writer and novelist (Darjeeling, 2002, etc.) shines through in her luscious descriptions of food and the mores of the time. Based on a true story, this tale is best read for its historical detail.

Kirkus Reviews

"With a somewhat blank canvas, Kirchner had the room to navigate the story to bring to life so many details and key events in India as it moved from being an independent country with its various territories, countless rulers and sub-cultures, towards the era of colonization. There’s a lot to soak up in this adventurous historical drama!"

M Ratledge

"Research and authenticity resonate in every chapter. This is a book that will transport you across centuries and across continents."

The Seattle Times