The Lost Flamingoes of Bombay
In this intense exploration of modern Bombay, photographer Karan Seth gets an assignment to capture the essence of the city, beginning with finding the reclusive pianist, Samar Arora, who opted out of a promising career at 25 after three years of stunning successes . Along the way Karan, new to the city, rockets into the nebulous world of privilege, power, and money  as he forms an unlikely friendship with Samar, connects with Bollywood stunner Zaira, and has a torrid affair with married artist Rhea Dalal. When a tragedy rips the friends apart, they each must re-examine their values and desires in the harsh light of political realities with the potential to destroy them all. Shanghvi's second novel (after The Last Song of Dusk) successfully exposes the complex, emerging world of new India, flush with wealth and mesmerized by celebrity. Despite prose that tips toward overwritten, the well-developed characters and a plot that evokes Bollywood cinema itself make for an affecting tale. Shanghvi finds the beauty and the ugliness in the megacity, and readers will be turning pages until the end.Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.