Books

New book release–The Forest of Love (2025)

Step into the heart of 16th-century India with The Forest of Love, a captivating tale of love, identity, and spiritual awakening. This richly woven historical novel follows the autobiographical journey of Mirza Shahid, a man navigating the turbulence of Akbar’s expanding empire, the unwavering valor of Rajputana, and the blossoming spiritual renaissance in Vrindavan.

In a World of Empires, One Man Seeks His Soul

• Explores universal themes of love, self-realization, and spiritual awakening.

• Showcases the vibrant traditions of Rajput valor, Mughal court life, and Vrindavan’s spiritual heritage.+

• Highlights iconic landmarks, architectural marvels, and the artistic grandeur of the period.

• Raises profound questions about identity, purpose, and the nature of love.

• Appeals to lovers of history, philosophy, architecture, and spiritual literature.

Horizons (2023)

'His jaw lies here, but he is no more.

He was not his bones turned to ash.

He was not his flesh melted away.’

At the first step of a promising career, Ranchor returns home to face the sobering reality of his father's demise. A railway employee prevents a young man's desperate attempt at suicide. Elsewhere, a doctor faces the harrowing prospect of facilitating euthanasia for a friend. In an idyllic city, Keshav's life is slowly engulfed by a terminal illness, and the spectre of death looms large.+

Written in searing prose, these stories by debut author Himanshu Asnani are a rich portrait of lives that mirror countless others. Probing and often edifying, they capture the pathos of life while offering succour to those traversing similar paths – a reminder of fiction's singular ability to lay bare life's fundamental questions.