Order of Alka Joshi Books

Alka Joshi is an Indian-American author best known for writing The Henna Artist, the first in a trilogy. That book was her first novel, a Reese Witherspoon x Hello Sunshine Book Club pick, and it has since been optioned for a screen adaptation.

Joshi was born in the desert state of Rajasthan in India before her family immigrated to America in 1967. She would go on to attend Stanford University where she earned her BA and then headed to the California College of Arts in San Francisco where she earned her MFA. Alka ran an advertising and marketing agency for 30 years before the release of The Henna Artist.

Publication Order of Henna Artist Books

If You Like Alka Joshi Books, You’ll Love…

• Brit Bennett
• Fredrik Backman
• Jeanine Cummins

The Henna Artist sees a seventeen-year-old girl named Lakshimi escaping from an abusive marriage and heading to the vibrant 1950s pink city of Jaipur. She finds work as a henna artist and soon becomes the most request in the city as she is not only a great artist, but a confidante to the wealthy women of the upper class. She is known for her designs and advice while making sure to avoid any of the jealous gossip that could ruin her career. Her life is rocked one day when she is confronted by her husband and a young girl, a sister she didn’t know she had.

The series continues with The Secret Keeper of Jaipur. The story picks up in the spring of 1969 when Malik has finished his private school education. He is twenty and has just met a young woman named Nimmi when he has to leave to apprentice at the Facilities Office of the Jaipur Royal Palace. Malik returns to the Pink City of his childhood and finds that not much has changed. It’s still ruled by power and money, and when the cinema’s balcony collapses on opening night – Malik suspects it was no accident.