<b><i>'In the house of Nanda and Yashoda, Vrindavan reared a boy that would first grow into a man, then a warrior, a statesman, a lover, a sage – and finally, a god.'</i></b>

There are armed soldiers at Nanda's door. They have come from the palace of Kamsa, Mathura's High King, on orders to kill every newborn babe in the city. Krishna and Balarama are at their mothers' breasts, and tending to their needs is a thirteen-year-old cowherd girl.

Her name is Radha. And it is she who must protect the two princes from the tyrant's men.

Then there are dangers that spring from within. Mandira, the pregnant wife of the merchant Shaunaka, dreams of chieftainship for her to-be son, and for that to happen, Nanda's heirs will have to be dispensed with. She comes to Yashoda's hut bearing warm smiles and venom-filled breasts.

Will Radha succeed in saving the...