Vanitha Sankaran's Watermark is a beautifully written piece of historical fiction that will completely immerse you in the story within the first few pages. Auda is a unique and interesting character and it is impossible not to be immediately drawn into her life. Her struggles are the same struggles universal to women of the time period, but are amplified by her physical and educational differences. Auda and the other characters in Watermark are realistic and well-written, and come to vivid life through Sankaran's imaginative descriptions.

Sankaran's writing style if phenomenal. Her depiction of 1300s France - the people and small towns - as well as details of papermaking and scribing, are well-researched and artistically portrayed in Watermark. Auda's story is engrossing and memorable. Once I picked up Watermark, it was unimaginable that I would put the book down until I had devoured every last word. Fascinating and expertly paced, Watermark is a definite literary gem.