The Forbidden Daughter (Paperback)

~ (Author)
Key Phrases: Shobhan Bantwal, Mother Regina, Isha Tilak (more...)

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Bantwal (The Dowry Bride) shifts her focus from arranged marriages to the high stakes parents place on producing a male heir in contemporary India in her middling sophomore outing. Isha Tilak and her husband, Nikhil, are counting on their second child to be a son. But when an ultrasound reveals she's carrying a girl, an illegal abortion is proposed, both by Nikhil's wealthy parents and by Isha's physician, Dr. Karnik. Nikhil staunchly refuses and soon turns up dead, and Isha can't help wondering if he may have been killed for not going along with the abortion. Unfortunately, the dialogue is often flat and didactic ( Did you know that a conservative estimate puts anywhere between eight and ten million girls as either aborted or killed in infancy in the last two decades?), and the narrative shifts too late from ponderous exposition to almost page-turning suspense as Isha tries to determine who was involved in Nikhil's murder. Less time on the soapbox and more time getting into the heads of the characters would have helped. (Sept.) ""
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Product Description

Set in the sensual richness of India, Shobhan Bantwal's gripping new novel asks: Where can a woman turn when her life's greatest blessing is seen as a curse? It's a girl! For most young couples, news of their unborn child's gender brings joyful anticipation. Not so for Isha Tilak and her husband, Nikhil. They already have a beloved daughter, but Nikhil's parents, hard-wired to favor male children above all, coldly reject little Priya at every turn. Vain and selfish, they see female grandchildren as burdens, and would just as soon never meet the one growing in Isha's belly. Even the obstetrician agrees, going so far as to suggest the unthinkable, throwing Nikhil into a rage and changing Isha's life forever. When Nikhil is discovered brutally murdered, Isha is convinced it had something to do with his reaction to the doctor's hideous "solution" to their problem. Alone, grief-stricken, and relentlessly oppressed by in-laws who believe her baby is a bad omen, Isha sets out on her own. Born into a privileged class, Isha doesn't know the first thing about fending for herself, but to protect her precious daughters, she will learn. And she will cling to the hope given to her by a strange old mystic: that her baby will arrive on the auspicious night of Kojagari Purnima, the full harvest moon, and be a gift from Lakshmi, the goddess of well-being. Isha and her girls will need all the blessings they can get, for the greatest danger of all lies ahead. --This text refers to the Kindle Edition edition.

Product Details

• Paperback: 336 pages
• Publisher: Kensington (August 26, 2008)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0758220308
• ISBN-13: 978-0758220301
• Product Dimensions: 8.2 x 5.6 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 11.2 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.9 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (22 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #43,504 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Absorbing story of modern India, September 2, 2008

By	C. Anderson - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

Isha Tilak is happily married with a small daughter and pregnant with her second child. She lives with her husband, Nikhil, and his parents in Palgaum, a small town in southwestern India. Her life begins to change, though she doesn't know it, with a visit to her doctor for an ultrasound. As she and her husband watch the test, the doctor tells them that the baby Isha is carrying is a girl. Then he says "We can fix that."

Isha and Nikhil are stunned. The doctor is suggesting terminating the pregnancy because the child is not a boy! They are both aware that in the past boys had been much preferred to girls in Indian culture but are shocked that a modern doctor would be so nonchalantly suggesting an abortion on the basis of the baby's sex, which is against the law in modern India. They refuse, of course, but are deeply disturbed.

A short time later, tragedy strikes the Tilak family. Nikhil is found dead at the family business. It looks as if he was robbed and stabbed while he was in the process of closing for the evening. He was the only son in his family and his parents' grief is overwhelming. They start to take their anger out on Isha and her small daughter. They say the baby girl she is carrying is a curse on the family and was the cause of her father's death. They make it obvious that they think she should have had the abortion. Isha finds that she cannot continue to live with them and subject her child to their animosity. Despite the fact that she has nowhere to go, no status as a widow and no way to earn any money, she takes her daughter and leaves.

Thus begins Isha's journey to finding herself, finding out what really happened to her husband, and creating a future for herself and her two beautiful daughters. She surprises herself with her own strength and ability to adapt and grow despite the challenges that she encounters.

I really liked this book. The characters felt real, were interesting and well written and the story was engaging. Though the idea of using abortion as a means of sex selection is disturbing, I think the author right to bring it to light in this way. I look forward to reading future books by Shobhan Bantwal.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars From S. Krishna's Books, October 31, 2008

By	skrishna (http://www.skrishnasbooks.com) - See all my reviews (TOP 1000 REVIEWER)

Isha Tilak is distraught. Her beloved husband, Nikhil, has been murdered under suspicious circumstances, and she is heavily pregnant with their second child. To make matters even worse, Nikhil's parents are pressuring her to abort her unborn baby - not because the child would be a burden, but because it is a girl. Isha has witnessed their mistreatment of her older daughter, Priya, and refuses to subject her second child to that harshness simply on the basis of her sex. When her in-laws' request for an abortion becomes a demand, Isha leaves their home and sets out on her own, not knowing where she can go or who she can turn to. All she knows is that she must protect her children, her beautiful daughters.

Shobhan Bantwal has a history of writing about controversial Indian subjects. Her first book, The Dowry Bride, was about bride-burnings in India; specifically, it was the story of a woman who wasn't producing children in a marriage and uncovered a plot by her mother-in-law to kill her so she wouldn't have to return the dowry (which she would have to do if there were a divorce). This second book is about female abortions and infanticide. These topics, while uncomfortable, do take place in India (female abortion much more so than bride burnings, if I am not mistaken), and it is important that people become aware of them. Bantwal writes her novels in a manner that is easy to digest and, while shocking, brings important issues to light. Her resolve to educate others is admirable.

The story of the novel, while a bit stilted in places, is sweet. We follow Isha's story and watch her develop from a pampered girl into a strong, independent woman. She is very human - guarded and careful, not quick to forgive others. Sometimes in stories of adversity, the protagonist is written as a superhuman, someone better than the rest of us. Isha isn't like that; she is very real and only does what she must do to protect herself and her children. The end of the story is a little crazy and unbelievable; one of the characters remarks that he feels like he is in a Bollywood movie. However, it is still an extremely worthwhile and enjoyable book.

Though the controversial subject of female infanticide doesn't receive much publicity in the United States, it is a real problem in India. It is now illegal in India for a doctor to discuss the sex of a child with its parents before birth, though as we see in The Forbidden Daughter, that doesn't prevent many doctors from doing it anyway. It is important to note that this isn't a general mindset - my parents, who are Indian, have two daughters and have always been more than thrilled to have us. While a reader shouldn't make the mistake of thinking that this is the mindset of all Indians, it is a serious and very heartbreaking problem.

The Forbidden Daughter is a wonderful story that defies genres. It is a daring book, bringing to light a problem that has been hidden just beneath the surface in India for quite some time. I highly recommend it to anyone who is interested in controversial issues, or anyone simply looking for an engaging story.

4 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Not a piece of great literature by any means, February 2, 2009

By	Carol Galuskin "Carol" (Tucson, AZ) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

While this story about the practice of aborting female fetuses in India because of the cultural desire for male offspring is timely, the book is not particularly well written. The evolution of the story is very predictable and the author just cannot help herself, it seems, from constantly stating the obvious. We readers are capable of drawing those simplistic conclusions ourselves.