On Tour with Prism Book Tours
Join the #Talk daily on Simi's Facebook
as she walks us through the beautiful backdrop to her amazing book...
"In Rao's debut novel an arranged marriage sets the stage for an intimate look at the exasperating madness of love....An often intoxicating...will-they-won't-they tale."- KIRKUS REVIEWS
An Incurable Insanityby Simi K Rao
Paperback, eBook, 376 pages
Published October 8, 2013 by Tate Publishing
Her heart fluttered when she heard the sound of the key turn in the lock. She quickly adjusted her maroon silk sari with the yellow border, the one that had caught his eye, and waited eagerly for his footsteps.
One, two, three, four, five, six, seven... Yes, exactly seven steps before he stopped, hesitated for a few moments, then removed his shoes one by one and arranged them neatly side by side on the shoe rack.
She smiled. He had been mindful of taking his shoes off every day now. "I am not used to it, but I will if you want me to. It's probably a good thing to do anyway."
As he settled down, he would pick up the TV remote and, without looking at her, would say in his smooth baritone, "So how did you spend your day, anything interesting?"
Shaan Ahuja found himself bowing to tradition and agreeing to an arranged marriage to the beautiful Ruhi Sharma. He went through the motions but had no intention of carrying through on his vows. His last foray into matters of the heart with an American girl had left him scarred and unwilling to try again. Thoroughly disillusioned and disgruntled he wasted no time in making his intentions clear to Ruhi on their wedding night. But, he was completely unprepared for what his new wife had in mind.
Simi K. Rao was born in India and has been living in the United States for several years. The inspiration for An Incurable Insanity came from what she has seen transpire among and within the immigrant community. Some of the experiences included are her own; some have been garnered from friends and casual conversations with acquaintances...
I am a physician–and to many I may appear serious and solitary. But once people get to know me better, they often think that I am frank, down to earth, with quite a quirky sense of humor. And that is what I bring to my writing—read and you shall see.
I was born in the dead center of India, but had the privilege of spending time both in the north and south. Therefore I have been able to sample and absorb to some extent the vastly diverse cultures and languages of both these regions (the very quality that imparts tremendous richness to our country’s heritage,) —a phenomenon perhaps not seen anywhere else in the world.
After immigrating to the United States in my early twenties and spending several years in this country, whenever I travel back to my homeland now, I find that I appreciate my roots a lot more. Still there is so much to see and learn, that a lifetime won’t suffice.
Giveaway:
$100 Gift Card to Amazon
5 eCopies of An Incurable Insanity
October 18 - November 11, 2013. International giveaway. Must be able to download winnings. Must be 18 to enter. See Rafflecopter for additional restrictions.
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Welcome to The Exotic Tour...
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10/20: Launch
10/21: #Dawat-Recipe Intriguing Reads
10/23: #Dawat-Recipe Deal Sharing Aunt
10/24: #Desi-Marriage Ritual Giveaway Breaking News for Indonesia
10/25: #Shakti-Indian Culture Christy’s Cozy Corners
10/26: #Dawat-Recipe Book Babe
10/27: #Dawat-Recipe Brooke Blogs
10/28: #Dawat-Recipe Living a Goddess Life
10/29: #Shakti-Indian Culture Sun Mountain Reviews
10/30: #Desi-Marriage Ritual Mel’s Shelves
10/31: #Shakti-Indian Culture Shannon McDermott
11/1 – 11/5: Grand Finale
Now booking tours for 2014
Indian Cuisine – A Vegetarian Barbeque
No discussion on India would be complete without mentioning
its food which is as rich and colorful as its residents. And I am not kidding
when I say that travelling from one region to another will not only introduce
you to different languages and dialects but also to markedly varied cuisines.
And of course, spices are essential in our cuisine. The
spice trade which began during the ancient civilizations was considered to be
the trigger for the ‘Age of Discovery’ during which Europe began exploring for
new routes to the East Indies.
I still have very fond memories of my Grandma’s kitchen
where food used to be prepared the way it should be—from scratch. It was labor
intensive but also a lot of fun. I know because I used to help. Water was drawn
from the well in the yard, spices were ground in ancient stone grinders, so was
flour for bread, batter for idlis (steamed rice cakes), dosas(crepes
made from rice and lentil batter) and chutneys (fine and
coarse sauces made from fruits, or vegetables and spices.) And when the food
was being cooked, the aroma would fill the entire neighborhood. My favorite was
the one of rasam (a light and spicy south Indian lentil soup.)
It still is.
Now I would like to share with you some of my personal
favorites.
I begin with a special Indian Vegetarian Barbecue which
I had the privilege of indulging in last time I was in India. I wish to thank
my wonderful cousin and her husband for this experience. We were in Khandala (a
hill station near Mumbai,) in a private resort bungalow with our very own
personal chef and this is what we were served on our first night there. YUM!!
Thick pieces of Paneer (fresh Indian cheese) marinated
in spices, tomatoes, onions, green bell peppers, cilantro and mint
chutney.
Mounted on skewers and slow cooked over charcoal.
Finished product served with vegetable biryani (basmati
rice cooked with veggies and spices)!
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♥Please feel free to leave your comments and opinions♥
♥I enjoy hearing feedback from my fellow bloggers & readers!♥
This recipe looks and sounds yummy.
ReplyDeleteThat looks really good! We love Indian food, but I've never cooked any so I'm looking forward to trying the recipes from this tour out. :)
ReplyDeleteTressa @ Tressa's Wishful Endings