Black Narcissus

Summary

Now a major BBC drama starring Gemma Arterton. High in the Himalayas near Darjeeling, the old mountaintop palace shines like a jewel. When it was the General's 'harem' palace, richly dressed ladies wandered the windswept terraces; at night, music floated out over the villages and gorges. Now, the General's son has bestowed it on an order of nuns, the Sisters of Mary.  Well-intentioned yet misguided, the nuns set about taming the gardens and opening a school and dispensary for the villagers. They are dependent on the local English agent of Empire, Mr Dean; but his charm and insolent candour are disconcerting. And the implacable emptiness of the mountain, the ceaseless winds, exact a toll on the Sisters.  When Mr Dean says bluntly, 'This is no place for a nunnery,' it is as if he foresees their destiny.

©1939 The Rumer Godden Literary Trust (P)2014 Oakhill Publishing