The City Of Devi by Manil Suri

The City Of Devi by Manil Suri is published in hardback by Bloomsbury, priced £16.99 (ebook £8.54). Available now.

Manil Suri, the Booker-longlisted author of The Death Of Vishnu and The Age Of Shiva, completes his 'alternative trimurti' with The City Of Devi, which will surely cement his reputation as one of the most imaginative writers of our time.

The City Of Devi drops us into Mumbai in the near-future, where India is on the brink of nuclear war with China-funded Pakistan.

Thirty-something newlywed Sarita is searching for her husband Karun in the rubble of a city which is viciously divided between Hindu and Muslim factions.

However, Sarita isn't the only one looking for Karun - self-styled 'shikari' Jaz is desperate to reconnect with his former lover, and will stop at nothing to find him.

Thus begins one of the most ambitious love stories to be committed to paper, exploring the still-taboo world of gay India, multi-cultural relationships and the meaning of true love.

But this is not just a love story - while the plot gradually reveals itself, Suri throws in swimming elephants, runaway pomegranates, mid-air laser fights and a Marmite-loving goddess to create a mesmerising novel that is impossible to put down.

10/10

(Review by Kathryn Gaw)