Origins of Love – Kishwar Desai
In Delhi, a small baby lies alone and abandoned. The product of IVF and surrogacy, she had been so coveted – until she was born with a fatal illness. No one knows how the infection could have been transferred to the child, but one thing is certain: no one wants her now.
Thousands of miles away in London, Kate and Ben are desperate for a baby. But, despite all their efforts, fate seems to be skewed against them. Then, as Kate suffers another miscarriage, she knows something has to change. She has heard of women who are prepared to carry a baby for others, and she knows this might be a way to finally find happiness. But will her desire for a baby stop at nothing…?
And between the two, feisty social worker Simran Singh is determined to uncover the truth behind the shadowy façade of the multi-million dollar surrogacy industry. Women and children are being exploited, their lives thrown away like so much dust. Is she is the only person prepared to stand up for what is right…?
1830s Sydney Town – blackmail, friendship, bar brawls, romance, tattoos, gin and much more – is brought vividly to life as feisty prostitute Friday, naive seamstress Harrie and cunning thief Sarah try to make their way as transported convict women.
Assam, 1925. James MacDonald is a son of the empire who has no yearning for England. Running a tea plantation, he loves India and is reluctant to choose a British bride from the eager crowds sent over. But when he takes a beautiful young Indian woman as his courtesan, he can little imagine what he has begun.
When Lucy arrives in Mauritius she is unprepared for the disquieting attractions of Don Lambodar, a young translator from Ceylon. Under the surface there is growing unease, it is 1825: Britain has wrested power from France and is shipping convict labour across the oceans. The age of slavery is coming to its messy end
The novel centres around Shivan Rassiah, the beloved grandson, who is of mixed Tamil and Sinhalese lineage, and who also—to his grandmother’s dismay—grows from beautiful boy to a striking gay man.
Memories and Such 