Nine-Chambered Heart, The

Description: `Superb. She had me at page one' Chris Cleave, author of Everyone Brave is Forgiven`It's the artful pleating of this subtle, psychologically astute novel that sets it apart' DAILY MAILThe kaleidoscopic story of one woman as seen through the eyes of those she has loved or been loved by.Nine people illuminate one woman in the particular light of how they see her, each voice casting her from a new angle. Taking her from a lonely child in the classroom to a fierce woman weathering life's battles and triumphs, The Nine-Chambered Heart is a masterful portrait, as intimate as it is brave.

Review: `It's the artful pleating of this subtle, psychologically astute novel that sets it apart, each shard-like vignette deepening our concern for its central character as we see into her lovers' hearts and minds' Daily Mail`Superb. She had me at page one' Chris Cleave`Sublime ... Pariat writes with great elegance, her sentences rich with introspection. There's a feeling of poetry to the language ... captivating' Irish Times`A tender puzzle of a book. Its bewitching premise forces us to slowly put the pieces together, our understanding of the protagonist layering with each chapter - and yet maintains the tantalising distance that the ones who've loved her experience too. We know her, but only as much as they know her. It explores with sharp beauty the mystery at the centre of loving anyone, the various things we present and project through the relationships of our lives,' Sophie Mackintosh, author of The Water Cure`Whatever Janice Pariat is doing in these vignettes - unravelling layers, offering shards, making and unmaking a heart - she forces you to alter your vision. By turning the intimate eye of love inside out, she's saying, here is the real wonder: a whole is made of many broken parts. It is a startling way to look at ourselves, to reach for the stories of our own hearts' Tishani Doshi


Author Biography: Janice Pariat's debut collection of short stories, Boats on Land (2012), won her the Sahitya Akademi Young Writer Award 2013 and a Crossword Book Award for Fiction. Her first novel, Seahorse, was published in 2014 and was shortlisted for The Hindu Prize for Literature 2015. She has lived in London and Turin and is currently based in New Delhi.