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| Plot Summary of The Twentieth Wife |
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Pocket, Feb 2002, 24.00, 320 pp.
ISBN: 0743427149
Though too young and way beneath his station, Mehrunnisa, the daughter of a Persian courtier to the Mughal Empire, plans to one day wed the heir apparent to the throne Salim. The very intelligent eight-year-old Mehrunnisa knows she needs a plan if she is to achieve her impossible dream of marrying her beloved whom barely knows she exists.
A few years later Mehrunnisa is forced to marry a cruel soldier. Besides abuse from her odious spouse, she suffers several miscarriages. However, she ultimately succeeds in gaining more than just the attention of Salim, who is now the Emperor Jahangir, she shares passion with him. Finally, Mehrunnisa accomplishes her dream goal, but though now a powerhouse empress she and her family paid quite a price for her attaining her childhood desires that she never let go of as an adult.
Historical fiction readers that relish a deep look at seventeenth century India will gain much pleasure from this descriptive tale. The story line is loaded with historical references with a very illuminating portrayal of Mughal court life. However, the wealth of information, which seems authentic to this pre-school novice on the history of India, overwhelms the characters and thus undercuts the prime tale of Mehrunnisa's efforts to become the empress. Indu Sundaresan provides a vivid tale that the hard core sub-genre audience will want to read, but the weak characters make it difficult for casual fans to care what happens to Mehrunnisa or anyone else.
Harriet Klausner
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Harriet Klausner, Resident Scholar
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| Review Analysis of The Twentieth Wife |
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Our unique search engine provides a wealth of detail about books by breaking them down into many different literary elements, all of which are searchable (click here).
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Ratings are on a 1-10 scale (Low to High)
Plot
Time/era of story
- 17th century
Abusive:
- the services of a doctor are needed
Forbidden/mismatched love?
Yes
How mismatched?
- poor loving rich
Difficult/unusual lover?
Yes
Marriage/Married
Yes
Marriage subplot:
- inconveniently married while playing footsy
Inner struggle subplot
Yes
Struggle with...
- (general) search for identity/new understanding
Who's in charge?
- he is
Abusive lover?
Yes
Main Male Character
Profession/status:
- Prince/Nobleman/King
Age/status:
- 40's-50's
How sexual is this person?
- several sexual encounters
How romantic is this person?
- very romantic
How sensitive is this character?
- middling sensitive to others' feelings
Sense of humor
- Mostly serious with occasional humor
Intelligence
- Smarter than most other characters
Physique
- average physique
Main Female Character
Age/status:
- 20's-30's
Profession/status:
- homemaker
How sexual is this person?
- very picky
How romantic is this person?
- sly seducer
How sensitive is this character?
- middling sensitive to others' feelings
Sense of humor
- Mostly serious with occasional humor
Intelligence
- Smarter than most other characters
Physique
- average physique
Setting
Asia/Pacific
Yes
Asian country:
- Arabia
Style
Person
- mostly 3rd
Accounts of torture and death?
- no torture/death
What % of story is romance related?
- 60%
Focus of story
- Her
How much dialog
- roughly even amounts of descript and dialog
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Note: the views expressed here are only those of the reviewer(s). | |
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