PART FIVE OF A SCINTILLATING NEW TRANSLATION OF THE CLASSIC TAMIL NOVEL. Prince Arulmozhi Varman, the beloved Ponniyin Selvan, has vanished after a devastating shipwreck off the coast of Lanka. Or, has he? What is his connection to the Buddhist monastery in Nagapattinam? And who stands to gain the most from his mysterious disappearance surrounding his fate? Meanwhile, his friend Vandiyadevan tries to figure out the dark game the Pazhuvoor Rani Nandini seems to be playing, even as he feels helplessly sorry for her. This scion of a clan that has lost its wealth, titles and influence, Vandiyadevan stands at a crossroads: he must decide between the offers two women make to him. Both may lead him back to his lost kingdom, but only one will give him true happiness. In the Chozha court, through all this, treasonous forces are still at play-so-called loyal allies of the throne are moving swiftly to crown the puppet prince Madurantaka Devar. Is there anyone who can put an end to this rising treacherous tide? When Ponniyin Selvan was first serialised in Kalki, no one could have imagined the impact it would have on the circulation of the magazine. The novel invented a distinct style, in which slang alternates with erudition, wordplay with euphoric prose and vivid imagery?a style that critics came to call ?Kalki Tamil?. Today, this pioneering work is considered one of the great classics of Tamil literature. This unabridged translation of Kalki Krishnamurthy?s masterwork by Nandini Krishnan is at once faithful to the original and accessible to the readers of this day. Carefully crafted in lyrical prose, the Ponniyin Selvan series is the quintessential page-turner: full of adventure, intrigue, conspiracy and romance.