With unique access, Gregson has written a stunning investigative account--an intimate glimpse into a troubled monarchy and Nepal, a nation in turmoil. photos.
A prophecy made by a divine sage to Nepal's first king foretold that his successors would reign for another ten generations, and no more. On June 1, 2001, when Crown Prince Dipendra opened fire on his family, killing his father -- the eleventh king of Nepal -- his mother, and his siblings, the prophecy came all too terribly true. Why did he do it? Had a thwarted passion motivated Dipendra or were the killings political? Did he act alone or were others involved?
Author and journalist Jonathan Gregson, an authority on Nepal, tells a chilling tale of madness, love, and the struggle for power in this first full report on the tragedy. With unique access to members of the royal family and palace officials in Kathmandu, Gregson has written a stunning investigative account -- an intimate glimpse into a troubled monarchy and a nation in turmoil. He skillfully weaves historical precedents of age-old violence and trauma with pressures unique to twenty-first-century royalty struggling to reconcile ancient traditions and modernity.
With unique access, Gregson has written a stunning investigative account--an intimate glimpse into a troubled monarchy and Nepal, a nation in turmoil. photos.A prophecy made by a divine sage to Nepal's first king foretold that his successors would reign for another ten generations, and no more. On June 1, 2001, when Crown Prince Dipendra opened fire on his family, killing his father -- the eleventh king of Nepal -- his mother, and his siblings, the prophecy came all too terribly true. Why did he do it? Had a thwarted passion motivated Dipendra or were the killings political? Did he act alone or were others involved? Author and journalist Jonathan Gregson, an authority on Nepal, tells a chilling tale of madness, love, and the struggle for power in this first full report on the tragedy. With unique access to members of the royal family and palace officials in Kathmandu, Gregson has written a stunning investigative account -- an intimate glimpse into a troubled monarchy and a nation in turmoil. He skillfully weaves historical precedents of age-old violence and trauma with pressures unique to twenty-first-century royalty struggling to reconcile ancient traditions and modernity.