New York: Random House, 2005. First Edition. 396pp. Hardcover: FINE. Dust Wrapper: NEAR FINE. 

Winner of the 2005 Vodafone crossword book award and was a finalist for the Whitbread Book Awards. "This is the story of Maximilian Ophuls, America’s counterterrorism chief, one of the makers of the modern world; his Kashmiri Muslim driver and subsequent killer, a mysterious figure who calls himself Shalimar the clown; Max’s illegitimate daughter India; and a woman who links them, whose revelation finally explains them all. It is an epic narrative that moves from California to Kashmir, France, and England, and back to California again. Along the way there are tales of princesses lured from their homes by demons, legends of kings forced to defend their kingdoms against evil. And there is always love, gained and lost, uncommonly beautiful and mortally dangerous". goodreads.