I loved the dynamics between the characters in this book, and how they pushed against family expectations.

Wonderful series, so start with book one if you can. Loved the way with words that Joshi has for the area to the point where you feel in the space, very vivid with sights, smells, and sounds. Enjoyed seeing the 1960s throughout this book as it is a time I have less knowledge of within India. This one starts 12 years after book one with a character from that book, which makes reading them in order helpful. Grab the audiobook as well as they use three readers which really makes this story! There will be a third book soon.

I thoroughly enjoyed Alka Joshi's initial installment in this series, "The Henna Artist." It was a stroke of luck when I stumbled upon its captivating cover, and once I started listening to the audiobook, I was hooked. So, when I learned that Joshi was releasing another book in this series, my excitement knew no bounds. I eagerly anticipated its release, patiently biding my time until I could request the audio version. I must say; this second installment exceeded my expectations.

"The Secret Keeper of Jaipur" grants readers the pleasure of reuniting with Lakshmi, who tends to her healing garden in Shimla, continuing her experimentation with herbs and remedies. She is now married to Dr. Kumar, and her loyal friend, Malik, has grown into a remarkable and caring man who remains devoted to Lakshmi. The narrative weaves together two interconnected stories, which took me a bit of time to discern. One revolves around the opulent Jaipur Royal Palace, home to a cutting-edge cinema, poised for its grand opening. However, the celebrations are short-lived when the palace collapses. Prior to this catastrophe, Lakshmi had sent Malik to Jaipur to learn the art of construction, with hopes that he would excel in this field. However, Malik finds himself thrust into an investigation into the building's collapse and the individuals responsible. I won't divulge any details about the second story to avoid spoilers. The novel unfolds through the perspectives of three central characters: Lakshmi, Malik, and Nimmi, a young woman from the mountains of Shimla, who has captured the affection of both Lakshmi and Malik (although Malik is a bit more smitten). The narrative shuttles between Jaipur and Shimla, deftly interweaving the stories of all the characters.

Upon learning of a second book in the series, I was both thrilled and apprehensive. I questioned whether it would live up to its predecessor and where the characters would venture next. Yet, to my delight, I found myself even more enamored with this installment than the first. Many familiar characters make a return appearance (with one notable absence from the first book), and the audio narration was superb, effortlessly transporting me to 1969 India. I must admit, I was a tad critical about how seamlessly the two narratives dovetailed, but that's a minor quibble. The characters and their stories have lingered in my thoughts, and the audio narration continues to resonate in my mind, a testament to the quality of this book. I wholeheartedly recommend it to those seeking a captivating story set against the rich tapestry of Indian culture. For me, I'm eagerly anticipating the next entry in this series (fingers crossed that there will be one!).

I enjoyed this book, but it did feel a bit too coincidental. I loved Malik in the first book, so it was fun to see him grown up.

I loved The Henna Artist and was excited to be brought back to the story of Lakshmi. Although I did not enjoy this book as much as the first, it was a good read and I would recommend it to anyone. I will continue to pick up what Joshi comes up with next.

I absolutely ADORE Alka Joshi's work.

To be completely honest, I rate this series is as the most enjoyable I have EVER read. That is a really big call!

I have a fascination for India and its people, history and cultures. Having travelled there many times, these books take me back. I purchased this book for family and friends who have no experience or little interest in India, to share this wonderful story. Like me, they too loved it. Alka's writing makes you feel like you are there - the intensity of the colours, sights, smells etc.. The character development is fabulous.

Forever indebted to the publisher for providing me with an ARC in return for my honest review.

Can't wait to devour the next instalment!

Thank you Alka!

Since I loved The Henna Artist, I was eager to read The Secret Keeper of Jaipur. Alka Joshi is a skilled storyteller with a compelling narrative to share. I love that we got three different perspectives in this novel and that Lakshmi's was one of them. This story takes on a political angle in regard to caste and who should be carrying the blame for a tragic accident. I also loved the romantic subplots in this novel. You should definitely read The Henna Artist first as there are a lot of spoilers for that novel in this one.

This story felt a bit slow for a while, but then picked up steam after a bit. It was interesting overall, but didn't carry the same emotional weight as its predecessor. Just like with Henna Artist, it was annoying to have to go to the back of the book each time I didn't recognize a word. Some words weren't even included in the back anyway.

I already can't wait to read the next book in this series! I really liked Nimmi and hope she'll make an appearance in that book too.

This sounded promising and I was excited to get it and read it, but then discovered it was book 2 after The Henna Artist and I was a little lost when I read it since I hadn't read the first book.
I could figure out enough of what was going on and enjoy it some, but it would have been better if I had read The Henna Artist and had more information and backstory to the characters and everything first. It talks about family and happiness and follows up on the characters from The Henna Artist.
I would recommend this especially if you've already read The Henna Artist. Thanks so much to NetGalley and Harlequin for letting me read and review this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

The plot of The Secret Keeper of Jaipur by Alka Joshi unfolds at different levels. A construction disaster. Palace intrigues. A romance. The expedient decision vs the right decision. The family we choose. All of this set in the midst of the beautiful Pink City and the colors, tastes, and sounds of India makes for an engaging story beginning to end. Please note that this is book 2 in a trilogy. I feel it can be enjoyed on its own, but, then again, I have read the first.

Read my complete review at http://www.memoriesfrombooks.com/2022/07/the-secret-keeper-of-jaipur.html

Reviewed for NetGalley.

Alka Joshi's novel, the Secret Keeper of Jaipur , is a wonderful introduction to a society not many Americans are familiar with. Her deep characters , particularly the strong Lakshmi, who was the main character of the first book , the Henna Artist. Now, twelve years later, her protege Malik takes center stage here, involved in different aspects of this world. He So we get to see Lakshmi, and her world through different eyes. The scenes come alive as you read, and you feel everything Malik sees. More of a mystery this time, Malik uses all parts of his life, both as the street urchin he was, and the educated young man he has become to be able to work through the challenges that lay before him.

There's a piece of wisdom that says that an author's sophomore effort is always a disappointment. I'm pleased to say that I've found the exception that proves that rule on more than one occassion. Joshi's sequel to The Henna Artist is another exception, making me think that perhaps we ought to stop making generalizations about sophomore efforts.

The Secret Keeper of Jaipur picks up 12 years after the events in The Henna Artist. Lakshmi has married Dr. Jay, and they are settled into their lives at the hospital, clinic, and healing garden. Malik is a young man of 20, who feels enormous fondness and not a little bit of indebtedness to Lakshmi, or "Auntie Boss". When she asks him to go back to Jaipur to apprentice in the building trade with their old friend, Manu, he of course agrees, even though he's just at the beginning of a promising relationship with Nimmi, a young widow with two children who left her tribe to try to make a life in Shimla after her husband died. In Jaipur, Malik is impressed with the Manu's biggest project, the Royal Palace Theater, and learns all he can. In Shimla, Nimmi finds out that her brother has been involved with gold smugglers. The intersection of those two plots is the driving force behind the book, but Joshi fills it out with beautiful language describing Malik and Nimmi's path toward each other and Lakshmi's road to come to peace with her path, as a catastrophe forces her to return to Jaipur for the first time in twelve years.

Anyone who enjoyed The Henna Artist will get immense satisfaction from reading this second installment. Anyone who hasn't, but is looking for a well-written story about found families, with some intrigue and royalty thrown in will like this as well. It's not strictly necessary to read The Henna Artist first, but it will be easier to understand some of the action in the sequel if you do. I'm hearing rumors that this is meant to be a trilogy, and I'm excited for the third.

The Secret of Jaipur is the sequel to The Henna Artist. The main charcter ,Lakshimi, is now married to Dr.Jay Kumar.Her protege,Malik, has completed his schooling and is ready to begin his career. The writing is vividly descriptive and the reader is transported to India to follow up on the lives of Lakshimi and Malik. I am looking forward to reading the third book in this trilogy. Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for the ARC in exchange for my honest review.

Historical Novels Review 97 (August 2021):
Joshi enjoyed terrific success with her debut novel, The Henna Artist, when it was chosen for Reese Witherspoon’s Hello Sunshine book club in 2020. Fans of that novel will be thrilled to revisit her beloved characters in this sequel. The story picks up 10 years after the events that moved the narrator, Lakshmi, from the vibrant city of Jaipur in northern India to the much quieter environs of the village of Shimla in the foothills of the Himalayas. The year is 1969, but the setting is still a very traditional segment of India; she has married her friend and ally, Dr. Jay Kumar, and they have set up a practice together at a small community hospital, where Lakshmi tends an herbal Healing Garden and assists her husband. Her young ward, Malik, has finished school and is about to make the trek back to Jaipur to learn about business from Lakshmi’s friend Manu Agarwal, the adoptive father of the son of her sister Radha, whose pregnancy in the first novel caused such difficulties for Lakshmi’s hard-won status as a respectable henna artist catering to the rich and powerful women of modern urban India.

There are multiple narrators in this book: Lakshmi, Malik, and a new voice, Nimmi, a tribal woman who becomes Malik’s love interest. The action alternates between Jaipur, where Malik investigates the tragic collapse of the palatial new cinema house his mentor’s firm has built, and Shimla, where Lakshmi and Jay try to protect Nimmi from murderous gold smugglers who operate in her tribal lands. Joshi preserves the charming details of food, fashion, and herbal cures that were so appealing in the first novel, while managing the complex threads of the plot neatly. The contrast between Old and New India is vivid, but Lakshmi, as empathetic and practical as ever, moves smoothly between the two worlds.

Alka Joshi's follow-up to The Henna Artist provides a dash of adventure and romance.
Alka Joshi's The Secret Keeper of Jaipur is the sequel to her 2020 bestseller The Henna Artist and the middle entry in the planned Jaipur Trilogy. The story opens in 1969, 12 years after the conclusion of the earlier work, and the three main characters (henna artist Lakshmi, her younger sister Radha and Lakshmi's ward Malik) have experienced great changes in their lives. Lakshmi is now married to Dr. Jay Kumar, a physician in remote Shimla (an Indian city in the foothills of the Himalayas). She works alongside him, balancing his formal medical skills with her knowledge of herbal remedies. Radha has become a perfumer living overseas with her French husband and their two daughters. And Malik has graduated from private school and returned to Jaipur (see Beyond the Book) at Lakshmi's insistence, apprenticing as an accountant at the Jaipur Royal Palace.

Most of the minor characters who played significant roles in The Henna Artist (the Singh family, Maharanis Indira and Latika, Manu and Kanta Agarwal) are represented in the sequel. While The Henna Artist is primarily relayed in the first person by Lakshmi, in this novel Joshi chooses to divide the narration between Lakshmi, Malik and a new character, Nimmi, a young widow from a Himalayan hill tribe whom Lakshmi invites to work at the Shimla clinic.

The bulk of the plot revolves around Malik and his new position in Jaipur. The Maharani Latika commissions the construction of a grand cinema, and he is present on opening night, granted the honor due to his apprenticeship with the palace architects. When the unthinkable happens and part of the structure collapses, blame lands where convenient, on those close to Malik. Sensing an injustice in progress, he seeks to uncover clues that point to those truly responsible. A secondary storyline concerns the relationships between the three main characters, as Malik and Nimmi fall in love and Lakshmi comes to realize that she must let the young man live his own life.

Joshi's writing shines as she describes the streets of Jaipur and the Himalayan countryside, as well as those who inhabit both environs. At one point Lakshmi thinks:

I'm looking out the window, enjoying the choreographed chaos of the city: a lipsticked hijra on her way to market, slim hips swaying; a wagon drawn by a bony laborer carrying old tractor tires; children flicking marbles on a dusty street corner…

Indian terms often appear without much context for readers who are unfamiliar with them, but a dictionary is included at the end of the book. The author also comments on cultural social norms in a way that feels natural.

Manu looked so lost; I wished that I had words to help him…He'd been raised to never question his superiors…For fifteen years, the royal family had employed him. He'd sooner cut his arm off than question their decisions or blame them for anything inappropriate.

Unfortunately, I didn't find Joshi's sophomore effort up to the standard set by the first book of the series. What made The Henna Artist so appealing was the strong, long-suffering Lakshmi, able to overcome all obstacles placed in her path with grace, fortitude and cleverness. That book was character-driven with very little action, yet its gossipy nature propelled the plot forward in a way that kept me rapt. I didn't like this version of Lakshmi as much — she's more reactionary and less self-reliant — and Nimmi often comes across as shrill and unnecessarily distrustful. Joshi has attempted to create a more plot-driven novel here, but there's no mystery, no tension; the outcome is a foregone conclusion that surprises no one. And finally, the sex scenes simply don't work; one in particular is completely gratuitous, being neither necessary nor a good fit for the rest of the story. The book is still certainly entertaining — it's just not at the level of The Henna Artist.

The author provides enough background information (including a helpful "who's who" at the front of the book) that for the most part the novel can be read as a stand-alone work. Indeed, there's some argument to be made that one might enjoy it more without the inevitable comparisons to the earlier book. Tackling the series in order, though, will allow readers to understand the characters and their motivations better, and for that reason I'd recommend the latter approach.

The Secret Keeper of Jaipur is a fast-moving, entertaining novel, and is recommended for most audiences looking for a light read. Readers who are interested in learning about Indian culture will find the author includes many interesting tidbits that will add to their knowledge. Those who enjoyed Joshi's earlier book will likely appreciate this new entry in the series.

Thank you to NetGalley for an e-ARC of The Secret Keeper of Jaipur by Alka Joshi.
As a fan of the Henna Artist, I was excited to read another book about Lakshmi and Malik. However, this story fell flat for me. The plot was too predictable and the characters underdeveloped. Lakshmi finds ways to perfectly fix all the problems. Because Joshi gives great detail to the back story, this book could easily be a stand alone; however, the Henna Artist is the real treasure.

The sequel to The Henna Artist did not disappoint. The vivid writing transports you back to 1969 Jaipur and Shimla while the characters are just as lovable as ever. Alka Joshi does a phenomenal job with the narration as she effortlessly & rhythmically moves back and forth between Lakshmi, Malik, & Nimmi.

Following Malik's journey twelve years after we left off is a perfect place to pick up the story. I thoroughly enjoyed reading about his days as a student at The Bishop Cotton School for Boys, him falling love with Nimmi, and his apprenticeship with Manu Agarwal. I was especially delighted to see that our Malik's morals & personality remained intact even with his upscale education. He is still the Malik we all fell in love with.

The mystery at the center of the plot involving the collapse of the Royal Jewel Cinema in Jaipur is expertly handled by Joshi. She weaves the personal stories of Shimla with the going-ons in Jaipur and pulls in readers right from the start. The Prologue is well done and placed me right into the tension of the story.

The new character, Nimmi, brought the tribal life of the Himalayan Hills into vivid reality as I was able to fall into step right beside her as she described her nomadic days and nights.

Karma has a way of coming full circle in this book. It was satisfying to see the resolution at the end and the maturity of both Malik's & Lakshmi's characters. The glimpse we catch of Radha & her family in the Epilogue excited me to see where her story will take us in the next book. Her sadness in giving up Nikhil for adoption is still palpable 12 years later and I hope Joshi is able to bring a resolution to that storyline.

More than the history, culture, or the plot, my focus as a reader fell to the characters in this book. The story Joshi has told is one of love, fulfillment, purpose, tragedy, & life's daily moments. It's about relationships and each person's striving to make a connection which will effect their life in a positive & uplifting way. Again, I am left with a longing for the book to not have ended and an impatience for the next book. (As a side note, I found myself smiling as I read the post-story sections pertaining to Indian gold, food, & the infamous Maharani Cocktail. These sections made me feel like I was sitting down at a table with Alka Joshi and discussing Lakshmi, the Maharani Indira, & life in Jaipur or Shimla in 1969 while sipping a cup of chai & eating a warm crisp samosa. I may or may not have immediately gotten into my car to pick up the ingredients for the infamous Maharani Cocktail.)

THE SECRET KEEPER OF JAIPUR is the second book of the Jaipur trilogy. It is 1969.
Lakshmi is happily married to Doctor Jay Kumar and oversees the Healing Garden at the local hospital in Shimla. Malik has finished his education and is set to go work at Facilities Office of the Jaipur Royal Palace. He will work as an apprentice and will be working on a project that involves the construction of a state of the art cinema.
While in Shimla, Malik met Nimmi a widow with two young children who he leaves behind to take the job in Jaipur.
The story unfolds from the three main character's point of view with Malik taking centre stage.
Malik soon discovers the ways of the palace have not changed during his absence.
A tragedy at the opening of the cinema occurs. The balcony collapsed leaving some dead and many people injured. The blame looks like it will be put on the easiest target.
Malik’s suspicions have been aroused by some information that has come across his desk at the Facilities Office. He decides to investigate aided by Lakshmi.
I enjoyed THE SECRET KEEPER OF JAIPUR. Alka Joshi is a talented writer. The story she tells flows along smoothly with strong characters and an element of suspense.
I think you could read THE SECRET KEEPER OF JAIPUR without have read THE HENNA ARTIST but it would lose some of its’ richness.
Looking forward to the final instalment of the Jaipur trilogy.
Thank you to Harlequin and NetGalley for the opportunity to read an advanced e-edition of THE SECRET KEEPER OF JAIPUR.

I enjoyed this, but was a little disappointed as well. I was left wanting more at the end and thought the conclusion to the mystery was abrupt. The audiobook was wonderful and I loved the characters. I hope there is a third book with Radha’s story.

An absolutely phenomenal read. The Henna Artist was exceptional, and The Secret Keeper of Jaipur was no different. The characters are riveting, and Alka Joshi is one of the few authors who I believe does an excellent job in switching narrators every chapter (I'm not usually a fan of this writing style). The writing is vibrant, painting a brilliant picture of both Jaipur and Shimla (both in India) and the myriad of smaller settings within the novel. It paints a vivid picture - you can really envision everything happening in the book. The overarching plot of this novel was a winding, nail-biting mystery. I was so thoroughly immersed, I couldn't stop thinking about this book and it's characters. I can't wait to read what Alka Joshi writes next!

The Secret Keeper of Jaipur is the follow up book to The Henna Artist. I greatly enjoyed The Henna Artist and was looking forward to continuing their stories. This book is mostly about Malik and Lakshmi.
Once again the author totally transported me to India. Her description of setting is wonderful. While The Henna Artist’s plot revolved around personal intrigue and gossip, This story has gold smuggling, embezzling and a little more action centered plot along with the continuing battle with the Singh-Sharma clan. Malik is sent to Jaipur to learn the business trade and to separate him from a girlfriend that Lakshmi deems inappropriate. While Malik seeks to discover why a building collapses, Lakshmi and his girlfriend start to bond and have to deal with gold smuggling. Lakshmi and Malik find their problems intersecting and they need the help of their old friend the elder Maharani to solve the puzzle. Well devised plot and fast pace with great characters made this a very enjoyable read.The book was filled with old and new characters. The backstory was explained so this book could be read on its own- but then you’d miss out on The Henna Artist !