Review of THE SECRET KEEPER OF JAIPUR by Alka Joshi

 3.5 Stars

Having enjoyed The Henna Artist on my morning walks, I opted to pick up this sequel, also in audiobook format.  Though The Secret Keeper of Jaipur could be read as a standalone, I’d strongly recommend reading The Henna Artist first since most of the characters are introduced in it; though Joshi recaps what happened, a reading of the first book will add to one’s understanding of relationships.

The Secret Keeper of Jaipur takes place in 1969, 12 years after The Henna Artist.  Lakshmi is married to Dr. Kumar and lives in Shimla, in northern India.  She works at her husband’s clinic and maintains a healing herb garden.  Malik, now 20 years old, has become romantically involved with Nimmi, a Himalayan widow with two young children, but Lakshmi sends him to Jaipur to learn about the construction trade from her friend Manu Agarwal. 

In Jaipur, part of the Royal Jewel Cinema collapses on opening night.  Manu is being held responsible for the accident but Malik suspects that someone else is to blame for using building materials of inferior quality and doctoring invoices.  Lakshmi returns to Jaipur to help Malik clear Manu’s name and reputation. 

This is very much a plot-driven novel.  Unfortunately, the plot relies on a lot of coincidences.  Because of Nimmi and her family, Lakshmi learns about gold smuggling which ends up having a connection to events in Jaipur?!  Much of the plot is predictable; certainly, the identity of the person who bears responsibility for the cinema incident is no surprise.  The resolution comes very quickly in the end; like that of The Henna Artist, this ending is very tidy. 

The narrative is told from three perspectives, those of Lakshmi, Malik, and Nimmi.  I found Nimmi’s sections least engaging, though they do include a lot of information about Himalayan tribal culture.  The relationship between Nimmi and Malik is underdeveloped so, at times, the impression is that Nimmi is less important as a character and more of a device to reveal gold smuggling tactics and a catalyst for Lakshmi’s growth. 

In The Henna Artist, Lakshmi learns how her pride and ambition sometimes clouded her judgment.  In The Secret Keeper of Jaipur, she is like a mother who must learn to let her child be independent.  I always enjoy reading about dynamic characters, but I was rather surprised that Malik was not the one who showed most growth.  Though the youngest of the main characters, he seems to be the wise one throughout. 

I’ve just learned that there is going to be a third book to complete what is being called The Jaipur Trilogy.  I will certainly get it, again in audiobook format, because the first two books, though not literary masterpieces, are entertaining and immerse the reader in a culture that has always fascinated me.