the twentieth wife by Indu Sundaresan is a masterpiece, and one of those books that you can read in one sitting. i never hear anyone talk about it, even though I feel like it has taken a piece of my heart. the premise of the book is in the mughal empire, and follows one of the most famous queens of that time, it's a historical fiction (kind of, it details many actual events that took place, but an exaggerated version). the feminist messages that the book conveys is so clever and fresh even today.

i'm curious to see who people think of as their historical heroes in books (they can be real people or fake)!