Swordswoman!

The true story of the fearsome Rani of Jhansi, the Indian Queen who took on the East India Trading Company in the Indian Rebellion of 1857

The British first came to India as traders. Now they're here as soldiers, taking over new territories, and they've got their eye on the small kingdom of Jhansi. But they aren't prepared for the kingdom's courageous queen. Lakshmibai, the Rani of Jhansi, rides a magnificent horse and wields her own sword; she trains other women to fight alongside her; she is determined that the kingdom will pass from her to her adopted son.

So when the British demand that she hand over control, she refuses. And when an uprising begins to stir, the Rani will have to decide whether or not to join the fight.

Devika Rangachari is an award-winning writer whose book, Queen of Ice (Duckbill), was on the White Raven list, won the Neev Young Adult Book Award and has been optioned to be made into a movie/TV series. Her other books include 10 Indian Monarchs Whose Amazing Stories You May Not Know, Tales of Love and Adventure, Swami Vivekananda - A Man With A Vision, Harsha Vardhana, The Merry Mischief of Gopal Bhand, The Wit of Tenali Raman and Growing Up. She is currently the recipient of a prestigious national fellowship awarded by the ministry of culture in India to research aspects of gender and historical fiction in Indian children's literature.