Shamini Flint and Jaishree Misra - thrillers all

November 11, 2008

by Suzan Abrams

*the first to blog the news of Jaishree Misra's 3-book deal with HarperCollins besides the media, Outlook Magazine a day ago & Asian Age.

Note: As an aside, Shamini Flint is currently promoting her new book The Seeds of Time which talks about how to save our planet Earth at a round of expatriate christmas charity bazaar events, in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. You may catch up with events from tomorrow if you pop in to check out her schedule here. Royalties from the sale of this book will be donated to the WWF.

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Writing about Singapore's Shamini Mahadevan-Flint just a day ago of how next year, she will be all fired up - not that she isn't already as Flint is the most vibrant and prolific Asian writer I know todate - to produce three thrillers, previously published in Singapore and this courtesy of publishers Little Brown UK in a book deal that features the Inspector Singh Investigates series; I am reminded of yet another exciting news clip from the newest edition of India's literary-influenced Outlook magazine.

What I am to tell you will eventually be Flint's closest competition, especially among readers of multicultural fiction - I won't say thrillers at this stage - in the UK, Commonwealth countries and the US.

HarperCollins has successfully lured Malayalee writer (Kerala, South India), Jaishree Misra away from Penguin UK for the price of a 3-book-for-the-price-of-one-deal. And yes...like Flint's offerings, they're whodunits!

Insert: Jaishree Misra - picture taken from SAWNET

The first manuscript which Misra has already delivered, to her new publisher, talks about six schoolfriends wrapped up reluctantly in the turmoils of a schoolmate's murder.

Misra lives in England. Her debut and partly autobiographical novel Ancient Promises which was published by Penguin UK and sold worldwide, rose to India's bestseller lists. With other novels that have sold equally well in the UK and India, Misra has already secured her buying and reading audiences where it matters.

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Note:

I did predict some months earlier on the Guardian Books Blog that Indian women writers were steadily moving away from the usual emigration-identity stories. They've become bolder and are no longer afraid to take risks with their writings on the international platform.

I had also written a little about Misra the other day, courtesy of my new friend, Suneetha B who is currently translating, one of Misra's novels into Malayalam, the official language of the Keralite population in South India.