very talented and well-written story with some awesome vibes in this work of historical fiction. would definitely recommend. 5 stars. tysm for the arc.

Six Days in Bombay is a standalone novel by Alka Joshi.I loved her trilogy and was glad to have the chance to read this new book!It did not disappoint!It is the story of the connection between two women from different backgrounds.Mira Novak is a patient at Wadia hospital in Bombay and Sona Falstaff is her nurse.The story takes place as World War II is brewing.. Sona travels to Florence,Prague and Paris to deliver three paintings for Mira.The book has a great sense of place on her travels and you will enjoy smells.sounds and tastes!The book studies identity showing that things are not always what they first appear.SPOILER ALERT. I did wonder why Sona was not upfront about the parentage of her child when she was so upset about her own father’s secrets .I really enjoyed this book!Thank you NetGalley and Harlequin Trade Publishing/Mira for allowing me to read this ARC.

Another book in Alka Joshi series about women in India. An Anglo-Indian nurse tries to clear her name when a patient dies on her watch.

The major theme of this book was about how certain people can come into your life for such a short time and have such big influences over the rest of your life. I found myself wishing that I were as brave as the main character to explore the people and places that she was led to... I enjoyed the various settings of this book (Bombay! Florence! London! Prague! Paris!) and enjoyed Sona's journey. I enjoyed this one quite a bit.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for an eARC in exchange for an honest review.

Sona Falstaff, a hospital nurse in Bombay, has things more or less where she wants them. Yes, she faces a certain discrimination, positive and negative, because of her mixed heritage, which makes her a “half-half” in the lingo of 1930s India. She lives in a poor section of the city, and she must work to support herself and her aging mother. India itself is a state of flux as the British Raj comes to an end and demands for independence increase in intensity and volume. But all in all, Sona wants nothing more than to cling to the job and the life she knows.

Yet when the painter Mira Novak is admitted to the hospital, she upends Sona’s carefully constructed world. Mira’s vibrancy, passion, and generosity awaken a yearning to explore that Sona didn’t even know she had. But just as she begins to cherish the possibility of friendship, Mira dies, six days after entering the hospital. The job Sona loves is threatened by suspicion that she somehow contributed to the painter’s death.

Sona soon discovers that Mira has left her a set of four paintings with instructions to deliver them to their rightful owners. Now she faces a choice: fight for her job and play it safe at home, or take a chance on finding her true self in the wider world, whatever risk that involves?

The contrast between Sona and Mira, the friendship that develops between them, and the slowly revealed history that lies beneath Sona’s reluctance to take chances are all beautifully laid out in this well-written novel, making it a delight to read.

I hope to chat with the author on the New Books Network (link below) in April 2025.

Six days in Bombay follows Sona, a nurse, as she is tasked with finding people from her patient’s past. The journey to find them takes her from Prague, to Paris to Florence. Along the way she learns about herself, her patient and the people flags meets along the way. She is also pushed to confront someone from her past.

Alka Joshi has a way to completely transport you to all of the places her characters visit. The way places are described visually as well as by scents and sounds gives the reader a full picture.

2/14/25: It is a fitting day (Valentine's Day) to have finished Alka Joshi's 4th novel after her Jaipur trilogy (The Henna Artist | The Secret Keeper of Jaipur | The Perfumist of Paris), as the novel is all about Main Character Sona, an early 20's woman living in 1930's Bombay, falling in love with life.

This 352-page novel (hardcover) is set to release April 15, 2025, and is a historical fiction with a straight forward timeline, no back and forth to modern day. It has a pretty clear plot line of Sona being exposed to and befriended by a very worldly, charismatic, and beautiful artist, Mira, during Mira's 6-day hospital stay when Sona cared for her as a nurse. Sona's circle is largely filled with "good" people, including her mother, other patients Sona befriends, one of the doctors and a hospital handyman. But she is a sheltered and fairly poor person, living alone with her seamstress mother with no support from her father.

Author Joshi weaves in couple different mystery situations, as well as suspicious characters who are not nice or possibly not nice, friends or possibly not friends? (the nurse at the hospital, her friend's husband, one of the doctors, her father, the hospital handyman), and several instances to demonstrate how women were (still are?) 2nd class citizens. She deepens the "othering" of Sona by making a "half/half" or a product of a white British father and an Indian mother.

The first half of the book centers on those 6-days in Bombay and establishing Sona's life situation and her developing friendship with Mira. Through Mira she begins to experience new things outside the world of her mother and nursing. The second half of the book takes us on a bit of a global adventure as Sona takes on a special request by Mira. Throughout the book there is a bit of romance as one would expect in a novel about a beautiful young woman, but it is not the central theme of the novel. Along the way some of Sona's beliefs are challenged and as she exposed to new people and new situations she begins to grow up, toughen up, and see the massive potential and opportunities of her life.

Joshi does a great job of making us see and feel Bombay and understand what Sona felt like as a young woman. She also does a subtle but compelling job of educating the reader on how India was controlled by Great Britain. The other thing she does well in this book is show how people are not black or white, all good or all bad. This concept is a key plot element for Sona's maturation through the novel.

The only thing I felt was a little out of place was one "sexy" scene in the book that felt a little graphic to me compared to the rest of the novel. It felt unlikely to me given the era and the influence of Indian culture, but I could be wrong. I would have been perfectly happy to have the scene happen with more allusion than description. Similarly, I felt the cover art on this copy was too "romance" vibe. I feel it would have been good to show her in her nurse uniform to establish she is more than just a beautiful woman, but smart and serious about having a career and earning money on her own.

Overall this is a great historical fiction combined with a coming of age era for our MC Sona. 4.5-stars rounded up. Thank you NetGalley and Harlequin Publishing for providing a Kindle copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.

1/18/25: Yes! I was approved for a free copy of the book from NetGalley in exchange for my honest review!

1/17/25: Huge fan of Alka Joshi and had the great fortune to virtually meet her on a zoom author talk for her original 3-book series (she was lovely). So excited to enter the giveaway for her upcoming 4/15 new release, and have requested it on NetGalley. Hoping I get approved!!!

I really liked this historical fiction! The main character and host of secondary characters are endearing and I loved following along with the story. This was a quick read for me because I had to know what was happening next.

I was a little worried reading the description of this book that it might be sad, but although there are some sad things that happen the author really focuses on backstories and the positive that is happening.

Got about 30% in and had to DNF. Loved the Henna Artist and I can't help but compare and this one fell extremely flat. Nothing interesting was happening and the characters weren't interest enough to push through. Overall it was boring.

I received this book as an ARC for free from NetGalley.com in exchange for an honest review.

I previously read Alka Joshi’s The Henna Artist, and fell in love with the way Joshi immersed her readers into the story. While I forget many of the details of The Henna Artist, the soul of the story remains etched within me. The feeling the story invoked remains unscathed.

So naturally, I was overjoyed when I saw Joshi had written another book. Ecstatic doesn’t even begin to capture my emotions when I received the ARC. Perhaps it’s because I started Six Days in Bombay expecting to be transported to a whole another world, but the book kind of fell short of my expectations.

Sona’s relationship with Mira seems almost… artificial. It didn’t feel authentic. Nor did it feel realistic. It almost felt like an obsession. To travel to Europe all for the word of a woman you’ve only known for 6 days seems ridiculous.

However, it was a quick read that was still enjoyable.

Thank you NetGalley and Harlequin Trade Publishing for the ARC.
I was thrilled when I received an advance reading copy (ARC) of Alka Joshi’s new book. I was eager to dive into it and found the writing style to be accessible. Set in pre-independence India, the book is a piece of historical fiction. Like Joshi’s previous works, it centers on a female protagonist who navigates numerous challenges and ultimately achieves success. Unfortunately, I struggled to connect with the character, and the book’s portrayal seemed somewhat idealized.

A beautiful novel that takes you through Bombay and Europe in the 1930s before Indias independence. When famous painter Mira Novak arrives at Wadia hospital due to a miscarriage, nurse Sona is charged with her care. During her stay her life stories, friendship and half Indian heritage bring the two women close. Sona is in awe of Mira's larger than life view of the world and longs to experience it herself. When Mira dies suddenly Sona is dealt a blow by the hospital and must decide what she will do with her life. Mira has left her paintings with a cryptic note to Sona asking her to deliver them to former friends and lovers throughout Europe while the countries are at the verge of a war.
A novel that emits laughter and heartache I was drawn in from the first page. Once again Alka Joshi has taken my breath away with a novel you won't soon forget.

Beautiful writing and storytelling by Alka Joshi. It transforms me into a different place, culture, and it’s so enlightening.

Sona, a hard-working night-shift nurse faces challenges in life due to being half-Indian and half-English. Abandoned by her English father at three years old, she and her mother do their best to make ends meet. Then, Sona meets a patient, Mira Novak, a well-known painter, who is also Anglo-Indian and encourages Sona to dream bigger. Her six days caring for this patient will lead Sona to undertake a life-changing journey.

Six Days in Bombay depicts life in Bombay between the world wars and the fascinating politics of that time in India, while also representing the every day life of our main character. I enjoyed following Sona as her world widens and new possibilities present themselves. In the first half, we are firmly rooted in Bombay and then in the second half we get to travel through Europe with Sona. I’ve loved all of Joshi’s novels thus far and this one does not disappoint.

Thanks to Netgalley for the ARC.

I read The Henna Artist by Alka Joshi a few years ago and liked it but didn't love it. I could see that there was a lot to like in her writing so I was excited to try another book of hers and I wasn't disappointed.

Six Days in Bombay tells the story of Sona Falstaff, a young nurse living in India. Her mother is an Indian woman and her father was an Englishman who ultimately left the family when she was 3. After a patient of hers dies, Sona heads off on a journey of self discovery across Europe.

I really liked the way Sona was written; I felt it was very reflective of her lived experience, although the cultural accuracy I can't speak to as a white American woman. I also appreciated the exploration of what it was like for someone of mixed heritage to live in India in the 1930's.

Because of the time period of the book, Ms. Joshi also touches on some of the political turmoil that was starting in Europe at the time. I think those reminders are incredibly timely right now and they were woven into the book so seamlessly.

The book spends some time reflecting on how we often don't fully know a person. We just know the parts of them that they want us to see and I think that's such a powerful idea to reflect on. Sometimes they also show us the parts of themselves that they need us to see. I think that's a lesson Sona learns by the end of the book.

Ultimately, I really enjoyed the book. I do wish there would have been more exploration into the character Rebecca and I was a little skeptical on how quickly characters were able to travel, find each other, and get in contact. It required a little suspension of disbelief for me. The book was well worth that disbelief though.

Thank you to NetGalley and Harlequin Trade Publishing for this ARC for review. All opinions are honest and my own.

This was my first book by Alka Joshi and I am so pleased it was! Her Jaipur trilogy has been on my TBR but now I will happily move it up! This was a lovely novel about two women - Sona Falstaff, a young nurse of British and Indian descent, and Mira Novak, a young painter of Czech and Indian descent. When these two meet in the hospital where Sona works, their lives are forever intertwined. The author takes her model from Amrita Sher-Gil, a Hungarian-Indian artist that Mira is modeled after. A deathbed task forces Sona to travel halfway across the world to reconcile differences with strangers, her family, and her heritage. Along the way she learns to love and be loved.

I enjoyed this book more than I expected I would! As someone of Indian descent, I’m always a little more cautious when reading works about India, especially while under British occupation because sometimes it’s handled well and other times less so. Here, however, it is evident that so much time and effort and research went into this work and has rendered a good fruit. I love the author’s writing style, and her pacing was appropriate for this story.

My many thanks to NetGalley, Harlequin Trade Publishing, and the author for allowing me to read an electronic ARC of this book in exchange for an open and honest review! I am so excited to purchase this book on publication day!

She does it again. The masterful author of character building, Alka Joshi has written a beautiful coming of age story of Sona, a English-Indian nurse that works in a Bombay hospital on the night shift. This mild mannered, shy nurse befriends an artist who has come to the hospital for a miscarriage. During her stay, Sona takes care of her and learns about the artist<s life. Seeing the Sona leads a plain life, Mira gives her a task to deliver three paintings to different people. After her death, Sona is discharged from the hospital and embarks on the adventure of a lifetime. From Bombay to Prague, to France, Florence and England, Sona grows as a woman and learns to live. Her guardian Angel Dr. Stoddard guides her through her adventures. We all need a Dr. Stoddard in our lives. Bravo Alka Joshi. I just couldn<t put it down.

Alka Joshi's Henna Artist is my favorite and since I read it, I make it a point to read her books. Although "Six Days in Bombay" wasn't as exciting for me as her previous books, I still loved reading.

The story is about self discovery, and growth amid the tensions of the British colonial rule and travel through cities of Europe. Sona, an Anglo Indian nurse at Wadia Hospital, dislikes her father for living abruptly from her, mother's and sibling's life. She is trying to make ends meet for her mother and herself, yet wanting more from her life.

Mira Novak is admitted at Wadia Hospital due to her pregnancy complications and is assigned to Sona. Mira's death is assumed to be Sona's misjudgement, Mira has left a letter to Sona which takes her through cities of Europe. What happens during the journey is her self discovery and finally the truth which is revealed.

The story started slowly and it wasn't until half of the book that started gaining momentum. It is a good read, which shows complexities of human characters, and some gray shades.

Six Days in Bombay is a story of Sona, a nurse who goes on a journey to fulfill wishes for her artist patient who died. While Sona entering this journey on behalf of a patient she knew for only 6 days seemed a bit unrealistic, I did enjoy the book and the parallel journey of Sona's own growth. The story felt like Bildungsroman even though Sona was in her early 20s. I thought she was a likeable, yet imperfect character. The book was slow-paced and would like to name trigger-warnings for deaths.

Alki Joshi is an extremely talented storyteller and writer. I’ve read all her books and I love the way they transport me to India. An India that is both wonderful and horrible. Horrible, the way women are second class human beings. Horrible the way that even some women not only accept this - but believe this also. And wonderful too showing the compassion of certain men who don’t believe this.

This story centers on a nurse, Sona, who meets a patient, Mira, who changes her life. The six days that Mira is a patient fills Sona with a new outlook on her own life. A life that will take her to Prague, Florence, and London all because of a patient named Mira.

Another excellent journey that Ms Joshi takes the reader and Sona on in discovering these cities and ultimately herself.