Ms Peters is a prolific novelist with an impressive reputation, but this is the first novel of hers that I have read. I certainly would read another, as it took me back to how much I used to enjoy reading the works of Victoria Holt and other romantic suspense authors whose books had the power to transport me to a different place and time. Maybe Ms Peters is bucking the trend and bringing this type of fiction back into fashion - I do hope so. Although I have read more tangible accounts of 19th century India this one was tactile enough, and I particularly enjoyed the way Melody’s back story is told in flashbacks as she makes her way towards Parakesh and Captain Hallett. Also commendable is her handling of the Indian Mutiny; seen at first hand by Melody and her companions it seems all the more chilling and immediate. Romantic, exciting and historically fascinating.