Strong as Fire, Fierce as Flame, Supriya Kelkar
Strong as Fire, Fierce as Flame, Supriya Kelkar
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Strong as Fire, Fierce as Flame

Author: Supriya Kelkar

Narrator: Sneha Mathan

Unabridged: 6 hr 48 min

Format: Digital Audiobook Download

Publisher: Recorded Books

Published: 05/09/2023


Synopsis

India, 1857

Meera’s future has been planned for her for as long as she can remember. As a child, her parents married her to a boy from a neighboring village. On the eve of her thirteenth birthday, she will leave her family to live with her husband. But that night, Indian soldiers mutiny against their
British commanders and destroy the ammunition depot, burning down parts of Delhi. Riots follow, and Meera’s husband is killed. Then Meera’s father insists that she follow the dictates of their fringe religious sect: she must end her life by throwing herself on her husband’s funeral pyre.

Risking everything, Meera runs away, escaping into the chaos of the rebellion. But her newfound freedom is short-lived, as she is forced to become a servant in the house of a British East India Company captain. Through her work, she gains confidence, new friends, new skills—and sometimes
her life even feels peaceful.

But one day, Meera stumbles upon the captain’s secret stock of ammunition, destined to be used by the British to continue controlling India’s citizens.

Will Meera do her part to take down the British colonists and alert the rebellion of the stockpile? Or will she stay safe and let others make decisions for her? It comes down to this: how much fire must a girl face to finally write her own destiny?

About Supriya Kelkar

Supriya Kelkar was born and raised in the Midwest. She learned Hindi as a child by watching three Bollywood films a week. After college she realized her lifelong dream of working in the film industry when she got a job as a Bollywood screenwriter. She has credits on one Hollywood film and several Hindi films. Ahimsa, inspired by her great-grandmother's role in the Indian freedom movement, is her debut middle-grade novel. Supriya still lives in the Midwest with her husband, their three children, and a very hyper dog.


Reviews

Goodreads review by Sahitya

I read only a handful of middle grade novels every year, that too usually fantasy somehow related to Asia because despite feeling that the age group is not for me, I want to support Asian authors always. But when I saw that this book was gonna be a historical fiction set in pre-independent India, I......more

Goodreads review by Bandita

The time is 1857. Our country is under the British Rule. We are oppressed. Our fellow country people are dying of famine or oppression. This is the story of a 12 year old girl, Meera, who lives amid this scenario. Meera’s marriage has been fix with Krishna but she don’t want to marry. But what can sh......more

The year is 1857. A year that witnessed one of the greatest revolts in Indian history. Meera is a young girl, who runs from her dying fate to live a life of freedom. Freedom is relative, because she frees herself from the clutches of the society and unwittingly jumps right into the arms of the East......more

How much power does a 13-year-old girl have? Especially one who has the ill-fate of being a victim of the Sati System, fleeing to save herself, not wanting to follow her husband to the nether world? Can she be like Meera Bai, who refused to jump into her husband's pyre, who led her life singing Kris......more

Goodreads review by Suruchi

Set against the backdrop of India during 1857 when indians were under the colonial power, Strong as fire, Fierce as Flame is an enchanting Historical Fiction novel with a strong female protagonist. Meera is almost thirteen when she runs away from her house pushed to do so by the venomous sting of the......more