Queen of the Earth

Prithvimahadevi is the daughter of the powerful Somavamshi king of Kosala. Her life is circumscribed by the rules that govern the existence of women of her royal family. She can only hope that she will marry a king whose power matches that of her ambitious father. Instead she is married to her father's enemy the Bhaumakara ruler Shubhakaradeva whose way of life she finds alien and austere and who worships strange gods. There seems to be no hope for her to fulfil her dreams of becoming a great queen-until suddenly one day there is . . . But is she willing to play the game of sacrifice and betrayal that this will entail? The story of this ninth-century queen of Odisha by award-winning historical novelist Devika Rangachari will keep you riveted.