The Hand of Destiny

Book excerpt: Rajalakshmi Meenakshisundaram, a traditional, god-fearing wife and mother, has led a sheltered life in India. Her happy world in Chennai is shattered when her only child, Venkat, dies on his birthday, the victim of a terrorist attack in France. She must now travel to Paris with her husband to claim Venkat’s body. Katherine Mary Flannigan, a mother of three, is a loving wife and staunch church goer. The Irish Flannigans have lived in the little town of Blue Hampton, outside London, for generations. Jonas, her eldest son has been missing for a week when she learns that he has blown himself to bits in France, having secretly converted to Islam just a year before. The village is split on accepting his body for burial in the church cemetery. Katherine and her husband James must now travel to France to claim Jonas’ body. What happens when the two women meet? How do the men in their lives battle their own vulnerabilities and inabilities as they come to terms with their loss? How do those around them deal with the tragedy? This is the gripping and poignant tale of going past the biases we all carry, the assumptions we make, and the guilt within when we have failed those we love. What links us? What separates us? What is identity after all? What remains of faith when it is put to test? What is destiny? Is there hope at the end of the maelstrom?