I borrowed this book from the library. Good I did not invest in owning it. Some characters and events sound juvenile - this from a layperson's point of view... I am not a historian...

There is SO much about eunuchs, (as much if not more than content about the temple dancer herself) the book might as well be called something else.

Just a pet-peeve, how Indian, esp Hindi words were contorted to English - e.g., "Ishvar-Allah" (Ishvar indicates the Hindu God of Destruction, Shiva) for "God Willing". The actual phrase is closer to Insha'allah. And one would think an "Indian history buff" would know a tad more than this!

Not bad...Interesting cast of characters, the men being extrememly grotesque and cruel and the women beautiful and weak at times. You have Maya, a brainwashed temple dancer that honestly believes that opening her body to men is serving her god. Lucinda is a pampered Portuguese girl that is all about dresses and corsets and the woman she is in the end is amazing and I enjoyed reading her change. Geraldo, Victorio, and Slipper (and about 20 other fellows) are the most disgusting, vile men I have ever read about. There is an immense amount of cruelty, greed, and hate and a hint of homosexuality here and there. The women alone, and the way they grew and blossomed and grew stronger on this amazing journey amongst the perversion made the book worthwhile. To sum it up, the book is about men and how their greed controls them and the deeds and bad deals they make to advance themselves. The women are simply caught in the middle of it.

The Temple Dancer will be a 3 part series originally written as a single tome. As a gora (white, foreigner) he has caught the nuances of Muslims, Hindus, Goan Portugese Christians, and eunichs very well. He intertwines customs, religion and history very well.

Up until the last couple of chapters I was going to give this book four stars. The writing definitely keeps moving, with never a dull moment, and I couldn't stop because I thought I knew what was going to happen at the end (of course, it's going to be happily ever after), but I wanted to know how the author was going to get there. Then I discovered, in the last chapters, a pleasant surprise--he doesn't make it happily ever after. It's not that there isn't justice or there's no resolution, but even the "good" guys sacrifice.

Yes, the plot at points seems contrived and the characters can get frustrating because they never do the "smart" thing, but the way the book moves along, the descriptions of this time in India, and the twists and turns make it entirely worth it. I took a chance on this book and found it exceeded my expectations.

This novel is beautifully-written, rich with sensuous narrative and vivid characters. It brings to life one corner of India's vast history, and the interractions of the rulers and the ruled, native and foreign. You will cheer on the protagonists and the lovers, and draw dark satisfaction from the justice visited upon the evil. Don't miss this book!