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It is also her duty to limit her involvement to the Indian community. Tilo can see into people's hearts and minds but it is a mistress's duty to keep herself at a distance, "not too far nor too near, in calm kindness poised." However, Tilo is unable to obey her charge, and she becomes emotionally involved with her customers as they struggle with the demands of their families, the clash of the old way versus the American way, racism, abusive husbands-all of the complexities of living in the modern world. Her special knowledge leads her to Oakland, California where she uses it to help the local Indian community by opening a spice shop from which she administers spices as curatives.

'I felt excited and empowered by the way she used words' NAOMI ALDERMAN, author of THE POWER 'Unusual, clever, and often exquisite' LA TimesA first novel by the author of the short story collection,Arranged Marriage,The Mistress of Spicesis a mystical tale told by Tilo, a young Indian woman in an old woman's body who has been trained in the secret powers of spices. But when a lonely American ventures into the store, a troubled Tilo cannot find the correct spice, for he arouses in her a forbidden desire - which if she follows will destroy her magical powers.Compelling and lyrical, full of heady scents and with more than a touch of humour, this novel explores the clash between East and West even as it unveils the universal mysteries of the human heart.

While she supplies the ingredients for curries and kormas, she also dispenses wisdom and the appropriate spice: for Tilo is a Mistress of Spices, a priestess of the secret magical powers of spices.To those who visit her shop, Tilo prescribes coriander for the restoration of sight, chilli for the cleansing of evil, fenugreek for the pain of rejection. woven with poetry and storyteller magic.' AMY TANĪn immigrant from India, runs a spice shop in Oakland, California.

SHORTLISTED FOR THE WOMEN'S PRIZE FOR FICTION