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Beneath a Marble Sky | 
 enlarge | Author: John Shors
Publisher: NAL Trade
Category: Book
List Price: $14.00
Buy New: $2.19
You Save: $11.81 (84%)
New (54) Used (62) Collectible (1) from $0.05
Rating:  99 reviews
Sales Rank: 23005
Media: Paperback
Number Of Items: 1
Pages: 368
Shipping Weight (lbs): 0.7
Dimensions (in): 8.1 x 5.4 x 0.9
ISBN: 0451218469
Dewey Decimal Number: 813.6
EAN: 9780451218469
ASIN: 0451218469
Publication Date: June 6, 2006
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
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| Editorial Reviews:
Product Description
Journey to dazzling seventeenth-century Hindustan, where the reigning emperor, consumed with grief over the tragic death of his beloved wife, commissions the building of the Taj Mahal as a testament to the marvel of their love. Princess Jahanara, their courageous daughter, recounts their mesmerizing tale, while sharing her own parallel tale of forbidden love with the celebrated architect of the Taj Mahal. This impressive novel sweeps readers away to a historical Hindustan brimming with action and intrigue in an era when, alongside the brutalities of war and oppression, architecture and the art of love and passion reached a pinnacle of perfection.
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| Customer Reviews: Read 94 more reviews...
 What a story January 3, 2009
This book is great. I had a hard time putting it down. Great story and characters. This books has all the emotions one can relate to. It makes you cry and it makes you laugh, it will also make you angry. It is a very nice love story. This story will take you on a wonderful journey of life.
 Emphasis on the "fiction" in the historical fiction December 29, 2008
2 out of 3 found this review helpful
Perhaps my view of this book -- which I consider more of a romance novel which happens to be set in Mughal India, than a work of historical fiction -- is colored by the fact that I had previously read two novels based on the life of the Emperor who would have been the grandfather of Jahanara, the heroine of this adventure. (These are The Twentieth Wife: A Novel and The Feast of Roses: A Novel.) They are far superior, in my opinion, both in style and historical accuracy.
Shors doesn't quite pull off a convincing story in any way other than the love story between Jahanara and the (fictional) architect of the Taj Mahal, Isa. The portions of the story dealing with the construction of the Taj itself feel perfunctory -- nowhere, for instance, do we see Isa grappling with a particular artistic challenge. It all just seems to ... happen, in the background. Moreover the real Jahanara was a far more compelling and complex individual than this historic portrayal would have the reader believe, and her relationship with Aurangzeb also was far more complex. It would have been possible to tell the romantic backstory against the real events just as easily and end up with a book in which the characters are far less black and white and the events less implausible. (Jahanara, for instance was never married -- that was something Mughal princesses of the time didn't do -- and her fate is known; she ended her life as the acknowledged first lady of her brother's court, despite her earlier imprisonment at his hands.)
I'd recommend this to anyone looking for a decent story, who likes their heroes and heroines clearly distinguished from their arch-villains, and the narrative arc as straight and simple as it can get. (The writing, happily, is good and clear.) There are no twists and turns here, no unexpected revelations; nothing, in short, to sink one's teeth into. For a more challenging and ultimately more entertaining alternative, try the first of Indu Sundaresan's two Moghul historical novels, noted above. Like Shors's book, this was her debut as a novelist, and it's a far stronger book and more robust story with characters who don't let you go.
 A Mughal History Lover December 10, 2008
1 out of 2 found this review helpful
I read this book over this weekend and was really disappointed. Its a historical novel but the author is extremely biased. The relationship between Aurangzeb and his sister Jahanara was painted in lies and I can not understand how John Shors was so out of line from the real historial facts. I have read plenty of mughal literature, fiction and non fiction, but this novel is definitly below the mark. Would not read John Shors again.
Beneath a Marble Sky December 8, 2008
1 out of 1 found this review helpful
The best book I read in 2008. The story is a historical fiction about Princess Jahanara and the story of her life-love and tragedy during the building of the Taj Mahal. Her father was the reigning emperor. This is a beautiful and passion filled story about the Emperors love for his beloved wife and the forbiden love of a Princess and architect of the Taj. John Shors tells a wonderful story of passion, greed, wealth, and evil. The role of Princess Jahanara is portrayed beautifully, a woman with great love and strength. I chose this for 2/2009 for the Book club I am in. I can hardly wait to reread it. This book is filled with wonderful discussion ideas for a book club. I am also really looking forward to reading John Shors new book.
 A pleasure to read November 30, 2008
This book made me want to pack my bags and leave for Agra immediately. I have seen so many pictures of the Taj Mahal on TV, in films and in magazines, but had never seen pictures of the interior nor read anything about it. If it looked anything like what this author described, it must truly be one of the Wonders of the World! I so enjoyed this fictional account of the building of this majestic edifice. I recommend it highly to anyone with a love of travel, history and/or architecture.
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