Particularize Containing Books The Mistress of Spices

Title	:	The Mistress of Spices
Author	:	Chitra Banerjee Divakaruni
Book Format	:	Paperback
Book Edition	:	Deluxe Edition
Pages	:	Pages: 338 pages
Published	:	February 17th 1998 by Anchor (first published 1997)
Categories	:	Fiction. Magical Realism. Cultural. India. Fantasy. Romance. Asian Literature. Indian Literature

The Mistress of Spices Paperback | Pages: 338 pages

Representaion Concering Books The Mistress of Spices

Magical, tantalizing, and sensual, The Mistress of Spices is the story of Tilo, a young woman born in another time, in a faraway place, who is trained in the ancient art of spices and ordained as a mistress charged with special powers.  Once fully initiated in a rite of fire, the now immortal Tilo--in the gnarled and arthritic body of an old woman--travels through time to Oakland, California, where she opens a shop from which she administers spices as curatives to her customers.  An unexpected romance with a handsome stranger eventually forces her to choose between the supernatural life of an immortal and the vicissitudes of modern life.  Spellbinding and hypnotizing, The Mistress of Spices is a tale of joy and sorrow and one special woman's magical powers.

Details Books Conducive To The Mistress of Spices

Original Title:	The Mistress of Spices
ISBN:	0385482388 (ISBN13: 9780385482387)
Edition Language:	English
Setting:	Oakland, California(United States)
Literary Awards:	Orange Prize Nominee for Fiction Longlist (1997), IAFA William L. Crawford Fantasy Award (1998)

Rating Containing Books The Mistress of Spices

Ratings: 3.48 From 12241 Users | 973 Reviews

Comment On Containing Books The Mistress of Spices

I totally wanted to like this, and I did starting out...but 1/3 of the way through I just felt the pace slow to the speed of molasses, or maybe ghee if we're going to be culturally accurate.Tilo travels through time from a magical island to a spice shop in Oakland, where she gives out magic potions to other Indians but is supposed to let everyone else suffer through life on their own. (Yeah, that's the premise.) Then she meets a handsome American who appears to see how beautiful she is under her

love the premise, magic acting through spices. the heroine is supposed to use her training and powers for her own people but compassion leads her to help all who come to her--a lesson in diversity? a dreamy lilt to the tone of the writing, charming word arrangement (is English the author's second language?), an ending that reminds me of that one Batman villain from the animated series who wants to destroy the world so it can heal itself over (Razul?). the love story part is on the verge of silly

I nominated this for my f2f book group because I was curious. The author lives in Houston and is a friend of a friend. I was expecting a relatively simple, domestic novel, but was pleasantly surprised to find a dazzlingly original example of magical realism.The main character doesnt even have a stable name. It changes as her life changes: first shes Nayan Tara, the disappointing girl child whos uglythe color of mudbut who has psychic gifts that make the familys fortune in a small village on a

Magical realism, spices and a rebellious heroine... It had all the right ingredients but the first half gave me a feeling of something amiss. The second half was racy but the ending was too contrived...

Bits of magic, fantasy, folk remedies, herbal information, cultural studies of the lives of immigrants from India living in Oakland in the 1980s (prejudice, violence), and wish-fulfillment highlight this book by an author whose book of short stories, Arranged Marriage, I truly enjoyed. Shes a gifted author whose work is for all, but this book is definitely chick lit not that theres anything wrong with that!There are dozens of reviews so I wont elaborate on plot points but will explain why I

Character:Protagonist Tilo is a haughty, rebellious old woman who can speak to spices and draw upon their power. It may help to imagine her as a brown Professor Trelawney in a patched up sari.Setting:The story itself is based upon how Indian superstitions, the culture and use of spices has influenced the western world, and is aimed at NRIs based in America. It shows us a piece of life of various kinds of people struggling to survive in a foreign land. Plot:Tilo is commissioned to serve the

There is this very important thing about performing magic. Unless you have a deep grasp of your magic and pronounce the runes properly, the magic will not work. What is worse, it might backfire and the invoked spirit might even end up killing you. This very thing seems to have happened to Chitra Banerjee Divakaruni in writing this book. Her writing magic, if I could call it so, has backfired and, Goodness, it has done so very badly.The first book of this author that I had read was The Palace of