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Indu Sundaresan
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Shadow Princess: A Novel Hardcover – March 23, 2010

by Indu Sundaresan (Author)
4.3 4.3 out of 5 stars 354 ratings
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The daughters of Emperor Jahangir, Jahanara and Roshanara, plot and scheme against one another in an attempt to gain power over their father’s harem. As royal princesses they are confined in the imperial harem and not allowed to marry. However, this does not stop them from having illicit affairs or plotting the next heir to the throne.
These royal sisters are in competition for everything: power over the harem, their father’s affection (still focused on his dead wife), and the future of their country. Unfortunately, only one of them can succeed. And, despite their best efforts to affect the future, their schemes are eclipsed, both during their lives and in posterity, as they live in the shadow of the greatest monument in Indian history, the Taj Mahal.
With a flair and enthusiasm for history and culture, Sundaresan creates a story full of rich details that brings the reader deep into the world of the lives of Indian women and their struggles for power and consequence.
Previous page
  1. Book 3 of 3
    Taj Trilogy
  2. Print length
    352 pages
  3. Language
    English
  4. Publisher
    Atria Books
  5. Publication date
    March 23, 2010
  6. Dimensions
    6.25 x 1.25 x 9.25 inches
  7. ISBN-10
    1416548793
  8. ISBN-13
    978-1416548799
  9. See all details
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Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Sundaresan (The Twentieth Wife) returns to 17th-century India in this romantic fictionalization of the life of Jahanara, the oldest child of the empress Mumtaz Mahal, Shah Jahan's cherished wife. Mumtaz dies in childbirth, leaving four sons, two teenage daughters and a newborn girl. The grief-stricken emperor seeks consolation in the construction of the Taj, the magnificent Luminous Tomb, while the profundity of his mourning exposes his fallibility to his sons, who begin eyeing his throne. Jahanara and her sister Roshanara choose to back different brothers, and they compete to rule in both the royal harem and their father's heart. Before long, Jahanara is the one who succeeds as the emperor's closest confidante, and he refuses to allow her to leave him to marry. Sundaresan has a scholar's fascination with the period; she's at her best describing the opulent court or the construction of the Taj Mahal. Little is known about the actual Jahanara, and Sundaresan has blessed the princess's fictional proxy with such perfection that readers will be tempted to find her flawed siblings not only more believable but also more interesting. (Mar.)
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Review

Heavily researched and expertly written...[Shadow Princess is] an exhilarating mixture of character and event, emotion and intrigue, extravagance and architecture.
--indiacurrents.com/news/view_article.html?article_id=110cc5e658e9e1361385f78c4dc9c870

Product details

  • Publisher ‏ : ‎ Atria Books (March 23, 2010)
  • Language ‏ : ‎ English
  • Hardcover ‏ : ‎ 352 pages
  • ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 1416548793
  • ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-1416548799
  • Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 1.12 pounds
  • Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 6.25 x 1.25 x 9.25 inches
  • Customer Reviews:
    4.3 4.3 out of 5 stars 354 ratings

About the author

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Indu Sundaresan

Indu Sundaresan

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Indu Sundaresan was born and brought up in India, on Air Force bases around the country. Her father, a fighter pilot with the Indian Air Force, was also an avid storyteller--as was his father, Indu's grandfather. She grew up on their stories on various themes--Hindu mythology and fictional tales of an elephant and a horse living in the wilderness.

She came to the U.S. for graduate school at the University of Delaware and has two degrees; an M.S. in operations research and an M.A. in economics. But, the storytelling gene beckoned and she began writing soon after graduate school.

The Twentieth Wife (2002), based on the life of Mehrunnisa, Empress Nur Jahan, is the tale of one of India's most powerful women. This was her first published novel, but the third one she wrote--the first two still languish on the hard drive of some forgotten old computer and are never to be revived; they were practice runs and taught her how to write a novel.

She is the author of five books so far. The Twentieth Wife (2002); The Feast of Roses (2003); The Splendor of Silence (2006); In the Convent of Little Flowers (2008) and Shadow Princess (2010).

All of Indu's work has been published, in hardcover and paperback, in the U.S. by Pocket Books/Atria Books/Washington Square Press--imprints of Simon & Schuster. Her work has been translated into 17 languages to date.

Customer reviews

4.3 out of 5 stars
4.3 out of 5
354 global ratings

Top reviews from the United States

indiestar
5.0 out of 5 stars Another winner from Sundaresan
Reviewed in the United States on May 20, 2010
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Indu Sundaresan knows how to weave a beautiful story. This is her third novel set in Mughal India (15th-18th centuries) and continues the intriguing tale of the royal family in all their glory and depravity. Shadow Princess brings to life the backstory of the building of the Taj Mahal, one of the seven wonders of the world and a symbol of an emperor's deep sorrow and love for his late, beloved wife, Mumtaz Mahal. But the true protagonist in this story is Mumtaz's daughter, Jahanara. Just like with The Twentieth Wife and Feast of Roses, Sundaresan's descriptions of court life, the quest for power, love and wealth are vivid and keep you engaged until the very last page. If you enjoy histprical fiction, Sundaresan's novels are a wonderful treat. I hope she continues this series!
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S. McGee
4.0 out of 5 stars Moghul rivalries: the next chapter
Reviewed in the United States on April 8, 2010
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This extremely well-written historical novel is the third to follow the women of the Mogul court, only after  The Twentieth Wife: A Novel  and  The Feast of Roses: A Novel , Indu Sundaresan has skipped a generation to tell the story of Mehrunissa's step-granddaughter and great-niece, Jahanara, beginning on the death of the latter's mother, Arjumand, the beloved wife of Shah Jahan. Bereft, the Moghul ruler retreats, leaving a vacuum in which his four sons jostle for position and a deadly rivalry develops between Jahanara and her sister, Roshanara. Family alliances are formed and collapse, conspiracies emerge and the future of the empire teeters in the balance, even as in Agra, the magnificent structure of the Taj Mahal, all gleaming marble and precious stones, rises from the bare earth in memory of Arjumand, or Mumtaz Mahal, Pearl of the Palace.

Jahanara is Shah Jahan's favorite child; disappointed by the intellectual dabbling of his eldest son and obvious heir, and finding little to admire among his other sons beyond the martial prowess of Aurangzeb, he wishes he could make her his heir. But Jahanara must content herself with ruling the women of the Moghul Court and being the power behind the throne as her father comes to rely more and more on her judgment. That unquestioned pre-eminence, along with her obvious interest in a young nobleman, arouses Roshanara's fury. As the latter does whatever she can to destabilize Jahanara, and Aurangzeb seeks to unseat his elder brother as heir to the empire, the risks that Jahanara must run to grab some joy in life for herself become steadily greater.

This is a fascinating story that covers much the same territory as  Beneath a Marble Sky: A Love Story , but that is much better written, more thoughtful and more evocative of the time and place. Sundaresan paints a vivid portrait of the Moghul court and its life to the extent that sometimes those descriptions and settings risk dominating the novel's characters on occasion. Indeed, I don't think this is as good as Sundaresan's first two Moghul-era novels, partly because she is trying to cram several decades' worth of events into only a few hundred pages (this is one case where less was not more...) and in part because some of the other characters, notably Roshanara, end up receding into the background. I found myself fascinated by their rivalry in the early chapters -- but then details of their relationship diminished, leaving me with no greater insight into Roshanara. The book's bittersweet conclusion also felt very rushed; for these reasons I can't give it more than 4 stars.

Still, for anyone who read and enjoyed the first two books, this is a "must read"; other historical fiction readers, especially those in search of a break from the omnipresent Tudormania, will find much to enjoy here.
2 people found this helpful
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Amazon Customer
5.0 out of 5 stars Good read
Reviewed in the United States on January 20, 2022
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I love this book, learning a lot. Can't stop reading. This is the trilogy from The Twentieth Wife and The Feast of Roses. Sometimes trilogies get boring. This is not! I Love this author! She has become one of my favorites ❤
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R. Mirisch
3.0 out of 5 stars The Shadow Princess By Indu Sundaresan
Reviewed in the United States on October 7, 2012
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The Shadow Princess is the third book in the trilogy by Indu Sundaresan. The books are historical fiction set during the Moghul Empire between
the years 1505 to 1650. The author has done a lot of research - it's been fascinating for me to read the descriptions
of court life, clothes, the jewels,(no other crown had the amount and quality as The Moghul's) food, methods of transport, communication - the astounding numbers of slaves, eunochs and
servants surrounding the Royal family every minute of their lives - there is NO privacy.
Many aspects of their lives are still in place today, separation of men and woman, separate responsibilities, arranged marriage, the veil,and the
practice of Islam.
This book takes place during the time The Taj Mahal is being built by her Father,
as the final resting place for her Mother - Mumtaz Muhal. The descriptions of architecture, the devotion to detail, the amount of human effort
to build the tomb are incredibly fascinating reading.
The blending of historical reality with the fairy tale romances that carry on from generation to generation with each of the
books made for wonderful afternoons of reading.

I would rate the first 2 books 5 stars -

I also read THE TAJ-THE ARCHITECTURE and THE PASSION - a non fiction book on the same subject- which I highly recommend. I would rate
this book 5 stars ++
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bigboppar
5.0 out of 5 stars Wonderfully Entertaining And Rich In Content And Thought
Reviewed in the United States on November 14, 2014
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A wonderfully crafted insight into the contextual culture of India. A bird's-eye view of Indian history at the time of the setting of this book. A detailed story of the reasons, philosophy, and factual content of the building of the Taj Mahal. Written with care, with fascinating character development, with rich understanding, this book is not just a story about the love of a man for a woman, or of a daughter for a father, it is in totality, a book about LOVE.
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Donah
5.0 out of 5 stars Rich with History and Love
Reviewed in the United States on April 2, 2012
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At first I had a hard time reading some of the words and keeping up with the characters, but after I caught on, I loved the book! It was a great story plus I learned about the history of the Taj Mahal. If you enjoy reading books about women with strong character, this is your book. I'm now anxious to read the other books by this author.
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Rebecca Hancock
4.0 out of 5 stars Great finish
Reviewed in the United States on June 3, 2017
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Great finish to the first novel. Interesting to see how people lived in that time and what was important to them.
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mystified
5.0 out of 5 stars Superb!
Reviewed in the United States on January 17, 2012
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I absolutely loved this book. I even purchased the other books in the trilogy. Indu Sundaresan is now one of my favorite authors. I've always been enamored with South Asian literature and these books were beyond my expectation. Classic and timeless, a must read for all :)
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Top reviews from other countries

Thilo Guillen Cardenas
4.0 out of 5 stars great
Reviewed in Germany on April 29, 2021
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romantic story, good read
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Amazon Customer
5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent book!
Reviewed in India on August 25, 2019
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A very good read , a blend of fact n fiction
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Amazon Customer
5.0 out of 5 stars Five Stars
Reviewed in Canada on August 21, 2016
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Very descriptive. A unique perspective of the Mogul rule in India.
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John Boyd
5.0 out of 5 stars An excellent book.
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on March 22, 2013
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A very well written and most interesting book. I am sure the historical background has been carefully researched and is accurate. I would readily recommend it to anyone, including those who have no knowledge of, or interest in, Indian history. Like- wise the 2 earlier historical novels the author has written on the Mughal Empire.
2 people found this helpful
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Aparna
4.0 out of 5 stars Enjoyable read
Reviewed in India on December 25, 2017
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This book completes the Taj Trilogy. While we usually read about Nur Jehan and Mumtaz Mahal, we rarely get to read about about Jahanara who also led a compelling life. The book traces her life at the Mughal court at a time where Shah Jahan loses his power and Aurangzeb takes over. Her equation with him and her sister is explored well. Liked reading the book.
3 people found this helpful
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