A gothic romance where ancestral secrets, forbidden love, and a forgotten bride converge on a remote island steeped in mystery. When librarian Priya journeys to the enigmatic island of Vatu Vara to catalog a private collection in a decaying mansion known as Serpent's Embrace, she expects silence, solitude, and the sea. Instead, she finds whispers in the walls, a portrait of a woman who looks just like her, and a stranger named Nadeem, whose gaze stirs memories she shouldn't possess. As storms gather and the house reveals its hidden passageways and ghostly warnings, Priya is drawn into a century-old tale of a bride in saffron, a love that defied tradition, and a betrayal that left behind a curse waiting to awaken. But the deeper Priya ventures, the more she begins to suspect she hasn't come to this place by chance. The mansion remembers her. The sea sings her name. And love-haunting, dangerous, impossible-awaits in the shadows. Laced with Indo-Fijian history, lush romantic tension, and atmospheric gothic beauty, The Serpent & The Saffron Bride is a hypnotic debut that explores the thin veil between past and present, fate and free will, memory and myth. Perfect for gothic romance lovers who crave lyrical prose, ancestral hauntings, and aching, slow-burn romance.