Rumer Godden (1907-1998) was the acclaimed author of over sixty works of fiction and non-fiction for adults and children. Born in England, she and her siblings grew up in Narayanganj, India, and she later spent many years living in Kolkata and Kashmir. Several of her novels were made into films, including Black Narcissus, The Greengage Summer and The River, which was filmed by Jean Renoir. She was appointed OBE in 1993.
A remarkable and beautiful book * Daily Telegraph * Godden's wonderful book sets out a complex vision of the variety, necessity and danger of desire, rendered into a story that is completely pleasurable. I envy anyone reading it for the first time. A remarkable novel. One in a thousand * Observer * Like Daphne du Maurier's Rebecca or Margaret Mitchell's Gone With the Wind, Black Narcissus is one of those rare novels that combines huge popular appeal with emotional subtlety and literary skill [A] beautiful novel * Daily Mail * [Godden has] a genius for storytelling * Evening Standard * All [Godden's novels] have one important thing in common: They are beautifully and simply wrought by a woman of depth and sensitivity * Los Angeles Times *