Max Gate, an
American travel writer and his once beloved friend, Byron Mallick, a charming
and refined Bengali businessman, meet again in extraordinary circumstances on
the shores of Bengal.
It is the eve of the transit of Venus in 2004. Byron is facing charges of
murdering a crusading journalist, Damini, whose cousin, Ela, haunts Max's being
years after their love affair has ended. Ela ricochets between her deep
attachment to Byron, her loyalty to her husband and her desperate love for Max.
Meanwhile Max's former brother-in-law, Piers O'Reilly, is determined to bring
Byron to justice.
Will Max
confront Byron and demand the truth about Damini's death? Does he really want to
know?
As this gripping and intricately layered tale unfolds, all certitudes
about love, friendship and morality dissolve into tantalising ambiguity, defying
easy resolution. In the end, only the redemptive power of memory seems able to
seal the scars of loss and betrayal.
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