Second of Ghosh's Ibis trilogy released

With ‘Sea of Poppies’ being his best-selling till date, Ghosh’s website predicts the sequel would be one of the greatest works of historical fiction of the century. It seemed to hold grain given the response at the launch. Playwright Girish Karnad was among the first few in the long queue to get their copies of the novel signed by the author.  

Speaking to Deccan Herald as to how different a trilogy is from writing a single novel, Ghosh quipped with a touch of humour: “Well, I think a trilogy is my answer to alzheimers. I mean, it is a matter of years, almost seven now, and I sometimes do wonder if I could ever finish it.”

Raghav Rao, from Penguin India Bangalore, declined to comment on the sales figure of the book on the night of its launch.

But, according to national figures, more than 20 000 copies had been sold within days of release.