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dmillet's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
hopeful
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
imlouisamay's review against another edition
4.0
Very slow start, and felt a little rushed to end but I still enjoyed reading this overall
booklin's review against another edition
emotional
funny
hopeful
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
kimmaloo's review against another edition
3.0
3.5. The audio is well done. In the beginning, I struggled because I was not sure I cared for any of the characters but as the book progressed my affinity for them grew.
bhnmt61's review against another edition
4.0
The three Shergill sisters were once close, but after one marries and moves to Australia, and the other two have a hallway fistfight in the hospital where their mother is dying, they’re barely speaking. Their mother’s deathbed wish was that they travel back to Punjab in India, their ancestral homeland and the heart of the Sikh faith.
The setup is fairly unbelievable. Their mom is dying and in horrendous pain, and yet somehow she is able to handwrite pages and pages of detailed instructions for the trip she wants them to take, including sanctimonious advice about their spiritual lives. Her tone is so smug that it’s hard to believe they agree to do it.
But they do, and if you can live with that setup, it ends up being an entertaining story. As you expect in this type of plot, secrets are revealed, past misunderstandings are explained, and by the end the sisters are united once again. It’s a speedy, heartwarming read. Enjoyed it.
The setup is fairly unbelievable. Their mom is dying and in horrendous pain, and yet somehow she is able to handwrite pages and pages of detailed instructions for the trip she wants them to take, including sanctimonious advice about their spiritual lives. Her tone is so smug that it’s hard to believe they agree to do it.
But they do, and if you can live with that setup, it ends up being an entertaining story. As you expect in this type of plot, secrets are revealed, past misunderstandings are explained, and by the end the sisters are united once again. It’s a speedy, heartwarming read. Enjoyed it.
bnielsen214's review against another edition
emotional
lighthearted
reflective
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
anne_floor's review against another edition
adventurous
funny
inspiring
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
mariahistryingtoread's review against another edition
5.0
I'm very picky when it comes to straight up contemporary. It usually puts me off for one reason or another; off slang, too many pop culture references, tone deaf critique on modern society, etc. But, this book was amazing. I read Ayesha at Last by Uzma Jalaluddin a couple months ago and I really enjoyed being immersed in a different culture than mine. So when I saw this at the library I took a chance. And I'm glad that I did.
Three sisters, uptight Rashdi, flighty Jezmeen, and 'perfect' Shireena go to India as part of their recently deceased mothers' dying wish. The sisters altogether for the first time in years, are forced to come to terms not only with their own fractured relationship to one another, but the individual baggage each is carrying now.
The biggest strength is the characters. The book alternates perspectives at will so you get a full picture of each sister. This made it really easy to empathize and/or identify with all of them. Rashdi was so stringent because it was only way she could feel in control. Jezmeen was grappling with the thought that her whole life had been flushed down the toilet due to one mistake. Shireena was struggling under the weight of her everyone's expectations of her. All things that I have dealt with at one point or another. It added a whole extra layer of emotion because of how I could relate to it.
Even when I disliked what one sister was doing I was able to balance that with what I knew of her through a different sister. It helped put everything into perspective. Their varied interpretation of the same situation was so frustrating sometimes, but it was also super engrossing because of how it reflected their shared history. The little mystery going on helped keep tension high as well.
It also had a very cool take on India - from my uneducated point of view. I don't know that much about the country outside of random trivia and stereotypes so it was nice to explore it through the eyes of someone who understands the culture more than I do. It also seemed really fair? Like it was a balanced view of India; one that acknowledged its faults without writing the entire country off for it either.
That being said I did go back and forth for a bit on 4 or 5 stars because of one element related to Rashdi. The issue with her son that she had made complete sense and it was weird that she was made out to be the bad guy for something that any sane person would have concerns about. And I get why it couldn't be explore a lot more because it wasn't about that, but it was weird to me how it kind of gets glossed over. Yet, on the other hand it also played into Rashdi's story arc with the way it did turn out. So in the end I don't think my dislike of it was enough to truly detract from the story so I went with 5.
I highly recommend it in every way. I can't wait to read whatever else that Balli Kaur Jaswal has to offer.
Three sisters, uptight Rashdi, flighty Jezmeen, and 'perfect' Shireena go to India as part of their recently deceased mothers' dying wish. The sisters altogether for the first time in years, are forced to come to terms not only with their own fractured relationship to one another, but the individual baggage each is carrying now.
The biggest strength is the characters. The book alternates perspectives at will so you get a full picture of each sister. This made it really easy to empathize and/or identify with all of them. Rashdi was so stringent because it was only way she could feel in control. Jezmeen was grappling with the thought that her whole life had been flushed down the toilet due to one mistake. Shireena was struggling under the weight of her everyone's expectations of her. All things that I have dealt with at one point or another. It added a whole extra layer of emotion because of how I could relate to it.
Even when I disliked what one sister was doing I was able to balance that with what I knew of her through a different sister. It helped put everything into perspective. Their varied interpretation of the same situation was so frustrating sometimes, but it was also super engrossing because of how it reflected their shared history. The little mystery going on helped keep tension high as well.
It also had a very cool take on India - from my uneducated point of view. I don't know that much about the country outside of random trivia and stereotypes so it was nice to explore it through the eyes of someone who understands the culture more than I do. It also seemed really fair? Like it was a balanced view of India; one that acknowledged its faults without writing the entire country off for it either.
That being said I did go back and forth for a bit on 4 or 5 stars because of one element related to Rashdi. The issue with her son that she had made complete sense and it was weird that she was made out to be the bad guy for something that any sane person would have concerns about. And I get why it couldn't be explore a lot more because it wasn't about that, but it was weird to me how it kind of gets glossed over. Yet, on the other hand it also played into Rashdi's story arc with the way it did turn out. So in the end I don't think my dislike of it was enough to truly detract from the story so I went with 5.
I highly recommend it in every way. I can't wait to read whatever else that Balli Kaur Jaswal has to offer.
sandiet's review against another edition
4.0
Three sisters who've never gotten along or understood each other are forced to make a pilgrimage to India to honour their deceased mother's wishes. The mother's hope is of course, to bring the sisters closer together. I didn't start to enjoy this until around chapter 18 and I was thinking of putting it down, but I'm glad I stuck with it. Definitely not as enjoyable as Erotic Stories but still a good story.
tams112's review against another edition
adventurous
hopeful
inspiring
lighthearted
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75