Reviews

I firstly want to thank Harvill Secker and vintage books for sending me a proof copy in exchange for an honest review.

The first book I've read by this author. It touches on personal relationships and important convocations.

It detailed on social issues; racism, class and it touches on grief, family values.

I did enjoy how the narrator was observing the characters and telling the story from their prospective.

You can tell that Sunjeev is a talented author, who has put a lot of effort into this story. I'm sure this is going to be liked by a lot of people.

It contains some difficult events and I found myself quite sad at times, but it is still a beautifully wrote book and I'm so glad I read it.

breeisreading_'s review against another edition

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emotional mysterious reflective sad medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

Thank you to NetGalley and Random House UK, Vintage for providing me with an ARC.

The Spoiled Heart is an interesting and intriguing contemporary literary fiction with a story of mystery at its heart, but also a tale of love, family, and the secrets that are held and festered for so long, as well as a warning of politics, misogyny and patriarchy, race and privilege.
There is a lot going on in this book. We follow Nayan Olak, running for general secretary of the union and his relationship with Helen and her son Brandon, who left town twenty years ago (and have just returned) at the same time that Nayan lost his mother and son in a fire that destroyed his life. Although the main portion of the book, these events are being told for us by our narrator Sajjan, who knew Nayan as a child, and quickly becomes obsessed with Nayan’s story and relationship with Helen. He recounts for us Nayan’s past and present, and the perspective and time period jumps around as he fills in the background of these characters for us. There is definitely a sense of an unreliable narrator here, as we hear everything through a third party – a writer none the less – who is crafting this story for us, embellishing what he wishes to embellish.
There is a lot of emphasis on the general secretary run, as Nayan battles against Megha, a newer and more privileged union member. Their ideas clash disastrously, leading to the climax of the novel, where Sahota explores ideas of privilege, race, the working class, and also accountability and ‘cancel culture’. There is a lot of interesting ideas being explored here, sometimes too many themes being commented on at once.
This was such a gripping novel, my first from Sahota, and it definitely has me eager to pick up his previous works. The mystery at the heart of the novel unfolded brilliantly, if a little predictably, but combined with the retelling of the general secretary run and the sense of tragedy, community, and secrets, I couldn’t put the novel down.

nic_readsbooks's review

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emotional informative medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes

4.0

This book was powerful. The author dealt with some really important issues in a way that was accessible but incredibly impactful at the same time.

The book covers content including racism, class, grief and love.

I liked the writing of another person’s story being narrated by someone who was learning about them. It was unique way of writing and to me it really added to the story as we learnt about Nayan alongside the narrator.

I think the story of Nayan’s life was incredibly interesting and I enjoyed reading about it.

The pace of the book is good and it was an enjoyable read.

lorrared's review

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4.0

Thank you to @vintagebooks and @penguinrandomhouse for the eARC.

This is my first book by Sunjeev Sahota and I can clearly see why he is two-time Booker Prize nominee!

After his son and mother were killed in a terrible fire twenty years earlier and the subsequent break up of his marriage following this. Nayan Olak has put his heart and soul into his work and is about to run for General Secretary of a Union he is extremely passionate about, in the hope he can help to make a fairer world for all.

Helen Fletcher has moved back to the village with her son Brandon and Nayan is drawn to her mysterious nature.

It’s a tragic story of family, love, loss, secrets, community, fear and politics.

I would definitely recommend and I will be reading more from this author.

oldyorkcity's review against another edition

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challenging emotional informative medium-paced

Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.75

A big leap forward for Sunjeev Sahota: this highly accomplished novel is a sophisticated exploration of class and identity politics, but it's also a thought-provoking journey into the head of a narrator whose motives are not at all clear. Not an unreliable narrator exactly, but one with skin in the game.

charlotte_molloy_'s review against another edition

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Heavy handed race and class themes.

None of the characters were strong enough to make me stay.

The writing style was bland, quite dry, typical of Sahota but usually there's something in his writing to sink your teeth into, either character wise or plot wise, and this just wasn't there.

Whether it's a slow burn or not, getting to the 40% mark and nothing much has happened is unsatisfying.

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