Carnival: A Novel

On 6 July 1857, as most of colonial Calcutta prepares itself for the first gas lights to illuminate Chowringhee, Rajaram Deb remains in the solitude of his room. He is awaiting Rosencrantz and Guildenstern, trusted associates of a man whose face remains obscured by shadows, and his partner, an adjutant stork. The two men have been tasked with escorting Rajaram to a transcendental celebration set to begin at dawn. To be a part of this ethereal congregation, he has agreed to sever all worldly...