Audible Narration Switch back and forth between reading the Kindle book and listening to the Audible narration. Add narration for a reduced price of $3.49 after you buy the Kindle book.
Kindle Paperwhite
The best device for reading, full stop. Learn more
From the Editor
From the opening passages of The Storyteller’s Secret I was transfixed by author Sejal Badani’s ability to infuse beauty into tragedy. A woman, undone by a third miscarriage and the fracture of her marriage, embarks on a journey of familial self-discovery.
Still grieving her loss, Jaya travels alone to India to find answers—about her history, healing, and the dream of motherhood. Along the way she meets Ravi, her grandmother’s confidant, who reveals just how resilient and amazing Amisha was. Jaya finds an ancient picture of Amisha in a shoebox, and it seems to show her straining to see something in the distance. “Your grandmother believed photographs hid the truth about a person, offering only an illusion instead,” Ravi tells her. “I am sure she would have thought differently if she had known a picture was all that would be left to remember her by.”
As the novel unfolded with Jaya’s present-day pursuit of the truth captured by the photograph, and as she discovered more about Amisha’s life in British-occupied India in the 1930s, I found myself swept away by Jaya’s emotional transformation. Watching Jaya dig up family secrets that set her life on a new course, I realized we’ve all been at the crossroads, wondering which way to turn. As Jaya fleshes out her grandmother’s life, the next steps on her path are lit with a thousand suns. We should all be so lucky as to uncover a legacy of strength, right when we need it.
This shopping feature will continue to load items when the Enter key is pressed. In order to navigate out of this carousel please use your heading shortcut key to navigate to the next or previous heading.
An Amazon Charts, USA Today, and Washington Post bestseller.
From the bestselling author of Trail of Broken Wings comes an epic story of the unrelenting force of love, the power of healing, and the invincible desire to dream.
Nothing prepares Jaya, a New York journalist, for the heartbreak of her third miscarriage and the slow unraveling of her marriage in its wake. Desperate to assuage her deep anguish, she decides to go to India to uncover answers to her family’s past.
Intoxicated by the sights, smells, and sounds she experiences, Jaya becomes an eager student of the culture. But it is Ravi—her grandmother’s former servant and trusted confidant—who reveals the resilience, struggles, secret love, and tragic fall of Jaya’s pioneering grandmother during the British occupation. Through her courageous grandmother’s arrestingly romantic and heart-wrenching story, Jaya discovers the legacy bequeathed to her and a strength that, until now, she never knew was possible.
About the Author
A former attorney, Sejal Badani is the author of the bestselling novel and Goodreads Fiction Award finalist Trail of Broken Wings. When not writing, Sejal enjoys reading and traveling.
Product details
Format: Kindle Edition
File Size: 4479 KB
Print Length: 370 pages
Publisher: Lake Union Publishing (1 September 2018)
This shopping feature will continue to load items when the Enter key is pressed. In order to navigate out of this carousel please use your heading shortcut key to navigate to the next or previous heading.
I read the fabulous Trail of Broken Wings in 2015, and still remember how fascinating and moving it was, so when another story by this writer appeared on Kindle First I had to read it. I wasn't disappointed. This is the haunting tale of Jaya, a young childless woman separated from her husband. Jaya goes to India to discover her family roots, and learns about herself in the process. It's a moving, heart rending story, that also presents a vivid picture of traditional life in a rural village, and the slow but changing role of women and castes. The story moves seemlessly between the past and the present thanks to Ravi, an old family servant, who tells Jaya the story, , hence the title. I loved it! Sejal Badani is a wonderful storyteller. Highly recommended.
This is a beautiful story written well in a simple style. I wasn't sure whether I was going to enjoy it as much as I did. The more I read the more I enjoyed the rich tapestry of the Indian culture and countryside.
The story itself is quite straightforward but that is not important as the context is what the story teller is aiming for. Sejal makes comparison to American cultural experience which doesn't work so well for me but I accept this is about an American coming to terms with their Indian roots.
After 3 miscarriages Jaya is unable to face her husband and her family in her grief. She sees a letter from her grandfather in India requesting to see her mother, and goes in her place. Ravi her grandmothers trusted servant and friend tells her Amisha her grandmother's story and in hearing her story Jaya begins to heal. It was a moving and powerful book depicting the struggles of Women and the untouchables in the caste system and Amisha's struggle to be heard and educated as a woman . The book also touches on the British occupation of India. It is a beautiful love story of friendship and family, I highly recommend it
I know a little of India and the ways of the people. The dichotomy that is India. The ugliest sight followed by the most beautiful. The cruelty followed by incredible kindness. This story navigates these inconsistencies with the sublime writing of a serious author. That is India. The impact of this complex society on the characters shows Amisha' s exposure to some of the West's relative freedoms contrasting with Jaya's discovery of her Indian heritage. All the characters are our uncomplicated selves whether we live in the Subcontinent or in the West. The author's skill tuned me in to the varying nuances and totally absorbed my interest. Thank you Sejal.
Emotionally involving on several levels, a well-crafted story. The characters are all realistic, well-rounded portrayals of believable people, with the 'spice' of the customs of the Indian Raj period as background. Any ready who is not captivated by the main themes of this tale must have no sensitivity to life and its foibles.
A sensitive and touching story. Beautifully written. I would be happy to recommend it to anyone who's fascinated by India, it's history, beauty and the details of its culture and unfair caste system, which is heartbreakingly portrayed. While reading, I lived the pain and joys of the characters portrayed. This is the legacy of a great author. Congratulations, Sejal Badani
A brilliant novel, a wonderfully absorbing read. Set in India and covering a period of some sixty years from the last days of the English Raj to the present day, the story has two narrators, Jaya, a young Indian-American woman who travels to India to learn her family's history and to seek peace and healing within herself. The other narrator is Ravi, an elderly family servant who tells Jaya the transforming story of her maternal grandmother. I have never been to India but the word pictures painted by the author immersed me in the sights, sounds and smell of that place. The characters too were drawn with intimacy and I felt I knew each one.
I chose this book as a "maybe I'll see what it's like" choice and WOW. Unexpectedly intriguing story brought to vivid life. I have been recommending it to everyone I know. If your interested in learning about different cultures, love a bit of mystery and believe in happy endings this is the book for you.