It is almost exactly a year since I began this bookstagram account and the very first book I reviewed was Amitav Ghosh's Sea of Poppies. It only feels fitting that I return to the series that started it all for me (in more ways that one). River of Smoke is the second book of the Ibis trilogy. It starts off where Sea of Poppies concluded, with a few characters less, and follows the stories of some of the remaining main characters from the first book, as they make their way off the Ibis to Mauritius, Canton and Hong Kong. It was interesting to see the development of the characters whose journeys continued in this book as well as the new ones who were introduced. Paulette Lambert, the runaway daughter of a French botanist, was a character who already stood out, and her onward journey alongside her European compatriots in search of the Golden Camellia places her character arc in the crossroads of European scientific exploration and imperial expansion in the nineteenth century. Bahram Mody, a Parsi merchant and his illegitimate son and former pirate Ah Fatt proved the most complexly and intriguingly written in the current instalment. The characters' biographical details mesh with the social and historical realities of the setting of the novel to present a picture of the commercial and political intrigues of the South China Sea a year before the Opium Wars would begin. With Ghosh, I often find characters playing second fiddle to plot and setting, and this is especially true of his historical novels, perhaps because of the constraints of the genre. While Sea of Poppies veered away from this tendency, which I had found immensely enjoyable, River of Smoke seems to go back to his usual modus operandi. The difficult middle novel of a trilogy notwithstanding, Ghosh convincingly maintained a level of excitement and tension as the course of his story moves towards the first signs of trouble in Hong Kong which would lead to the Opium Wars. #bookstagram #oneyearanniversary #bookreview #riverofsmoke #seaofpoppies #ibistrilogy #amitavghosh #indianenglish #indianliterature #indiannovels #bookstagramindia #bookstagrammer #historicalfiction #opiumwar #britishcolonial #history https://www.instagram.com/p/CetK7b1L3A1/?igshid=NGJjMDIxMWI=

Book 3 of 2019: Sea of Poppies by Amitav Ghosh . . “Neel, ever the obedient son, had allowed the language to wither in his head, yet, unbeknownst to him, it had been kept alive - and it was only now, in listening to Deeti's songs, that he recognized that the secret source of its nourishment was music: he had always had a great love of dadras, chaitis, barahmasas, horis, kajris - songs such as Deeti was singing. Listening to her now, he knew why Bhojpuri was the language of this music: because of all the tongues spoken between the Ganges and the Indus, there was none that was its equal in the expression of the nuances of love, longing, and separation - of the plight of those who leave and those who stay at home.” . .

I always like to attach a little story about how I procured a particular book. And the story behind the collection of this trilogy is one I hold close to heart. The year was 2014, when my sister went away to Kolkata to work. The first time she came home on leave, she brought back gifts for everyone. I had asked her to get me a book from College Street. And she brought me Sea of Poppies. At the time I had just finished reading some book on China, so to continue reading about India and China's relationship over opium, seemed like a natural transition. The following year, I went to Mussoorie with the family. Hoping to meet Ruskin Bond, I visited to the Cambridge Book Depot and my parents bought me the River of Smoke. Late in 2015, my sister was well settled in her job and the city. When she came home for the Puja holidays, she brought me Flood of Fire as a birthday gift. Thus completing the collection. From a battered, second hand copy of the first book, to the elegant, hardbound finale of the series, I feel that the series progressed not just in plot, but also in my esteem. And that is why I feel particular joy when I look upon the Ibis Trilogy. #books #bookstagram #bookstagramindia #bibliophile #booksofinstagram #ibistrilogy #amitavghosh #livres #igreads #igbooks #reader #penguinbooks

#books #amitavghosh #ibistrilogy #opiumwar #china #india #reading #history #fiction Just finished the third and final book of this amazing trilogy. I have little doubt that Amitav Ghosh will some day soon will receive a Nobel for Literature. It is historical fiction, covering opium trade and The Opium War, that led to China conceding Hong Kong and many other concessions to Great Britain. Ghosh is a masterful story teller, he’s also remarkable in the accuracy of his respect of languages, cultures, traditions and above all history. Very highly recommended reading.