Borne by Varuna

The ancient kingdom of Jālaka is without an heir. Its hope rests with the eldest Rajkumari, who must, in time, produce a successor to the throne. But what if the Rajkumari entertains hopes of ascending to the throne herself?
When Rajkumari Chitra of Jālaka is banished from the kingdom due to a prophecy, she decides to take matters into her own hands. Masquerading as boys, she and her trusted companion Saubha join a gurukul to get trained on statecraft and warfare. Here, she competes with the students to win the legendary Varunāstra. Chitra’s joy, however, is short-lived when her guru is brutally murdered by assassins from Dvipura. A grief-stricken Chitra along with an army of gurukul students, Rakshasas, Gandharvas and Kinnaras, sets out to avenge the guru. But the odds are stacked heavily against them. With just weeks left for her Swayamvara, can Chitra take on Dvipura’s massive army and finally convince the Jālakans, and her father, that she alone is worthy of the throne?

Set in the time of the Mahabharata, author J.U. Menon’s Borne by Varuna follows Chitra’s extraordinary journey to acquire forbidden knowledge and discover her true potential, ultimately rewriting her own destiny.