#BookReview :: Love Potion Number 10: A Jana Bibi Adventure by Betsy Woodman

The Jolly Grant House still welcomes all its visitors with the sign Jana Bibi’s Excellent Fortunes hanging proudly outside its front door. Jana’s fortune-telling has brought a lot of attention to the small town of Hamara Nagar, and now that the dust has settled and the town is safe from the threat of being flooded by a government dam, all eyes are on the Scottish-born card-reader Jana and her feisty, loose-beaked parrot, Mr. Ganguly. Some people, though, are not to be trusted, and Mr. Ganguly finds himself the target of a potential kidnapping that puts Jana and her household on edge.

Meanwhile, love is in the air and, thanks to Abenath’s Apothecary, it’s also in a bottle. Abenath has created an intoxicating brew that he calls Love Potion Number 10, which seems to have Jana in a tizzy. While she explores her newest hobby, dream interpretation, her head is swimming with questions: Is a new love possible at age fifty-nine? If so, would she ever marry again? All around her she sees different kinds of love and connection—family, arranged marriages, chemical attractions, even intercontinental romance between people who have only met through letters—so when an old flame arrives and rekindles long-gone feelings, Jana begins to think that Love Potion Number 10 just might be the magic elixir its inventor thinks it is.

Though this is the second book in the Jana Bibi Series, this book can be treated as a stand-alone. A word of warning – after reading this book – you will want to go back and read the first book immediately.

Jana Bibi is of Scottish origin but has settled down in a part of Uttar Pradesh. She is the proud owner of The Jolly Grant House at Hamara Nagar & Jana Bibi’s Excellent Fortunes is all settled and is doing well in the 1960s’s India. On one hand there’s this love potion that is making the rounds in the town at the same time when Jana’s old flame arrives to rekindle their relationship. However, she cannot put heart completely into the matter as Mr.Ganguly, her trusted accomplice, is in danger of being kidnapped.

Jana Bibi is a vivacious character who immediately draws you in. Then there’s Mr.Ganguly – a class of his own I must say. Hold on, Mr.Ganguly is not a man though – he is a charming-talking Parrot. Yes that’s right; I did say a charming-talking parrot. You will fall for Mr. Ganguly too. Besides, there are a whole lot of characters – other staff on Jana Bibi’s payroll and the neighbours and clients. Not a single character will seem unnecessary though. They all round up and balance the story well. The plot at first seems simple enough but there are a quite a lot of twists and turns that you have to get through to get to the end. But the best part about the book is the author’s awesome style of narration that helps create a vivid image in your mind. 

I absolutely adored this book and will be getting my hands on the first book soon enough… In the meantime you guys go and get both the books - it is totally worth it!

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