After an earthquake, 9 people are trapped in the basement office of an Indian consulate. As they await rescue, which may or may not come, Uma, a college student, organizes the frightened and nervous group to each tell an important story from their life. She had been reading The Canterbury Tales while waiting for her visa appointment. What starts as a distraction from their plight, becomes a lifeline for sharing who they are in what might be the last hours of their lives. Chitra Divakaruni is a great storyteller and each character's story and interaction with the others kept me engaged to the end. My book club loved this.