Leaping into the Star of Ishta Lore

Tamarind and the Star of Ishta is Jasbinder Bilan's second, wondrous middle grade novel. After a weekend of being laid up with a sneaky little stomach bug, I devoured Tamarind's heart warming story in two days and loved every moment of it.

Tamarind has never known her Indian mother, what happened to her, or the other half of her family. Her life is in Bristol with her father, her friend, football, and school. So when her father and his new wife Chloe announce that they are taking Tamarind to India and leaving her with her mother's family while they take their honeymoon. To say the least, Tamarind is not pleased. Honestly, she's terrified. She doesn't know these people, the culture, anything, and yet her family is abandoning her there for a whole week leading up to her birthday.

Her whole trip is surrounded in so many secrets, what happened to her mother, why the family hates her father, and where her place is in this family. Answers only start to reveal themselves once she finds an old ring of her mother's in a hidden hut in her Nani's wild garden. The amazing stone shines a light for Tamarind's right path.

Jasbinder is a master at writing complex, loving families, but I especially love that she has worked lore and spiritual, magical elements into both of her stories. It makes the reality of her stories all the more magical. Her characters are well rounded, and always have beautifully complete character arcs. Tamarind's Nani's wild jungle is magical, a place I'd love to explore myself, and really more than anything, this book really made me want a fresh samosa.

If you're interested, Jasbinder's first book is Asha and The Spirit Bird, still one of my favorites!