Category: Historical Fiction Romance
Doctor Margaret’s Sea Chest, is Book I of a series of historical fiction set during India’s struggle for freedom—Azadi—from the British Raj. The Books weave a tale of international intrigue, conflict, and poignant love between interesting characters of that era.
In 1965 an over 100-year-old sea chest, believed to be that of an American doctor, Margaret, is discovered in the storage room of a hospital in Delhi. Another American doctor, Sharif, who originally hails from Delhi and is on contract at the hospital, is entrusted with the task of locating the mysterious woman’s relatives and returning her trunk. Sharif tracks down Margaret’s descendants in Grimsby, Ontario, Canada. Her diaries, and other artifacts—such as the Kingdom of Jhansi’s crown—are found in the coffer.
Margaret, born in New Jersey to a Scottish Presbyterian clerical family, overcomes tremendous obstacles and achieves her heart’s desire, in 1850, to become one of the first North American women doctors. She marries her Canadian cousin, Robert, and travels with him to serve in the Crimean war of 1854. In Crimea, they have to not only face hardships of battles, but also endure other conflicts.
From events leading to and after the infamous Charge of the Light Brigade, Margaret meets a Russian officer, Count Nicholai. The surprise ending of Book I, leaves Margaret in a quandary, whether to seek vengeance or to continue on with her journey to India. In the end, she believes she has made the right decision.
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“[Waheed’s] take on the Indian Mutiny from an Indian point of view is fascinating to the Western reader and should be well received…” – Ian Walker, author of LOCA and By Virtue of Insanity
Genre: FICTION / HistoricalThe book is available on Amazon and other book stores. Sales have been good as well as the Amazon Rankings.
The book also won the "Honorable Mention" award (and sticker) from the Global eBook Awards competition.
THE FULL MOON hung in a cloudless sky, like a lantern held by an invisible force. We galloped over a treeless plateau that sloped down to the glittering waters of a wide river. The mighty Ganges, I thought, eyeing the numerous smoldering pyres visible along the ghats*. The river flowed endlessly on, seeming to drain into the star-studded heavens to deposit the ashes of the departed. While I had gazed at the flickering stars countless times before, there seemed something strange about them that night, although I could not determine just what. Was it the weird pattern they had formed, or their unusual brightness? In the hot night-air, sweat poured down my face and body, drenching my light cotton tunic and riding breeches.
The rider charging ahead of me, clad simply in a white wrap, waved frantically at me to keep up. Were it not for the fact that the rider rode side-saddle, and had long, blonde hair that shone in the moonlight, I would have taken her for a man. Her horsemanship was flawless; in the bright moon-glow, she jumped her mount over dry gullies and maneuvered around large boulders without breaking stride.
Tall mountains loomed ahead above the long shadows cast by clusters of leafy trees. Apart from the clatter of hooves, the unmistakable, albeit faint, sound of cannon fire reverberated like distant thunderclaps from the far side of the mountains. I leaned down to make sure my musket was still in its saddle holster, for I feared that the Godiva-like maiden, rushing headlong forward, was surely leading me into battle. While I knew a rebellion had broken out across the land, whether we would fight for the Indian revolutionaries or on the British side, I could not comprehend.
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Afrikaans
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Already translated.
Translated by Adri van Schalkwyk
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Author review: Adri did a wonderful translation of this long novel, which was liked by my South African friends. It was a pleasure to work with Adri, she communicated regularly, and she delivered the translated book's cover, text, synopsis, and author bio, all on time. I am looking forward to have Adri translate my other books and would highly recommend her to other authors. |
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French
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Already translated.
Translated by Isabelle Weissmann
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Author review: Isabelle did a "merveilleux" job of translating this novel into French. It was liked by all those who read its initial drafts. Isabelle, was very cooperative all during the translating process and inquired about any of the Indian language terms that were not clear. She has also "Tweeted" about this book. Isabelle is highly recommended as an English to French translator. |
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Hindi
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Already translated.
Translated by RAJIV KUMAR SRIVASTAVA
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Author review: Rajiv worked very hard and diligently from the beginning, the book's front cover, to the end, and to the back cover of the project. It was a pleasure to work with him, and he was always mindful of any suggestions and comments, and delivered the product on schedule. My Hindi speaking relatives and friends, who read the translation, spoke very highly of the quality of the translation, particularly that he maintained the author's voice and the novel is a pleasure to read. Thank you very much, Rajiv, for all your efforts and I'm looking forward to your translation of my other novels. Rajiv is highly recommended to other authors for translating their novels into Hindi. Waheed Rabbani |
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Italian
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Already translated.
Translated by Riccardo Mainetti
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Author review: Riccardo Mainetti, did a wonderful job of translation this book, which was liked by all my Italian speaking friends. During the translation, Riccardo, was communicative and most helpful in clearing up any translating issues. He produced the files on time and was able to complete the translation and have Babelcube publish it in good time. Riccardo has also been promoting the book on his Facebook page and elsewhere, to assist in marketing the book. I would highly recommend Riccardo Mainetti as an English to Italian translator. |
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Portuguese
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Already translated.
Translated by Raul Adalberto de Campos
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Author review: Raul worked very hard also on this translation, as he'd done for the Book-2 of the series, to make it a smooth and a pleasurable read. He again took particular care to get the English/Hindustani/Urdu terms into Portuguese just right. He met the work completion deadlines in good time and communicated well with the author throughout the project. Raul is highly recommended as a translator. |
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Spanish
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Already translated.
Translated by John William Whitten
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Author review: John worked very hard and diligently from the beginning, the book's front cover, to the end, the back cover of the project. It was a pleasure to work with him, and he was always mindful of any suggestions and comments, and delivered the product ahead of schedule. My Spanish speaking relatives and friends, who read the translation, spoke very highly of the quality of the translation, particularly that he maintained the author's voice and the novel is a pleasure to read. Thank you very much John, for all your efforts and I'm looking forward to your translation of my other novels. Waheed Rabbani |
