The Sandalwood Tree: A Novel (Paperback)

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The Sandalwood Tree: A Novel By Elle Newmark Cover Image
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Evie married a piano playing man quick to laugh, a family
man who enjoyed the company of his wife and son.  Martin returns from WWII a different person,
that quick laughter and joy in his family is gone.  Now he is solemn and disengaged, grim to be
around.  He is offered a Fulbright
Fellowship to observe the partition of India. 
Evie jumps at the chance, convincing Martin to accept.  She thinks that in new surroundings maybe
they can make a fresh start, maybe Martin will revert to the man she
married.  It soon becomes apparent that
India is not going to repair Martin. 
Evie finds letters hidden behind a brick in the house they are renting,
the letters are from two English women who travel to India in 1857; Evie
becomes obsessed with discovering their fate. 
India had two major cataclysmic events involving the west; Partition in
1947 and the Uprising of 1857.  Both were
bloody and very, very dangerous.

— Deon Stonehouse

Description


Now in paperback, The Sandalwood Tree is an unforgettable tale of love and betrayal during the height of political unrest in India.

Nationally bestselling author Elle Newmark’s rich, sweeping novel brings to life two love stories, ninety years apart, set against the backdrop of war-torn India.

1947. India is rife with violence surrounding Britain’s imminent departure. Yet Evie Mitchell is eager to start a new life there with her husband, Martin, a troubled anthropologist, and their young son. It is in their colonial bungalow, hidden behind a brick wall, that Evie makes a startling discovery. Evie finds a packet of old letters that tell a strange and compelling story of love and war involving two young Englishwomen who lived in the same house in 1857. Consumed by their story, she embarks on a mission to uncover what the letters don’t explain. Along the way, she unearths a dark and disturbing secret. Bursting with lavish detail and vivid imagery of Bombay and beyond, The Sandalwood Tree is a powerful story about betrayal, forgiveness, fate, and love.

About the Author


Elle Newmark is the acclaimed author of The Book of Unholy Mischief.  She lived and worked in the hills north of San Diego.

Praise For…


"Elle Newark beautifully captures the sights, smells and sounds of India on the cusp of change, all the while spinning a richly layered tale." --Cathy Buchanan, New York Times bestselling author of The Day the Falls Stood Still



“Newmark’s The Sandalwood Tree is a finely nuanced tale of the enchantment of India for three women—a century apart—caught in the midst of two struggles for independence from the British Raj. The research is meticulous, the details exquisite, the story one of love, betrayal…and love again. The Sandalwood Tree is a heart-warming, enlightening, and mesmerizing read.”

--Indu Sundaresan, author of The Twentieth Wife and Shadow Princess



“If you are looking to be swept away and engulfed in a beautifully layered story that will hold your attention so intensely that you won’t want to put it down, then you should read The Sandalwood Tree!” – Planet Books Blog



“Newmark escalates tension subtly, weaving two intricate stories together and building a narrative that I could not put down. The characters linger long after the final page.” --Brunonia Barry, New York Times bestseeling author of The Lace Reader

Product Details
ISBN: 9781416590606
ISBN-10: 1416590609
Publisher: Emily Bestler Books
Publication Date: March 13th, 2012
Pages: 368
Language: English