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3.89 AVERAGE
3.89 AVERAGE
After her grandfather dies and leaves her the family house, a young woman returns to India and the loving but dysfunctional family she left behind.
Stuff is happening but not interesting stuff. Where's the plot?
emotional
sad
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:
No
adventurous
emotional
hopeful
informative
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
emotional
funny
reflective
medium-paced
funny
informative
mysterious
reflective
sad
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
emotional
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
hopeful
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
I really enjoyed this messy, multigenerational family drama that touched on so many different aspects of life that it didn't matter that I don't share the ethnicity and cultural background of the family. Lila returns home to Kolkata following the death of her beloved maternal grandfather, to deal with the estate that he has unceremoniously left to her instead of her mother or uncle. The family waivers between heartwarming love for and backstabbing hatred of one another and Lila must walk a fine line between respect of her grandfather's wishes and respect of the family still living in the house.
The story's dual timeline goes between various life events in the past of multiple characters, and present-day 2015. Mostly the flashbacks were fine, and even historically informative. However, sometimes I found my mind wandering during those chapters.
Lila's struggle with being too much of one culture to fit into another is something that I can personally relate to, and there were quite a few times when I found myself talking to the book (a good sign). However, I didn't love aspects of Lila's character; she made some questionable choices and was sometimes quite unfair to her mother (in my opinion). But then again, that is what drove the drama that I was eating up with a spoon.
The story's dual timeline goes between various life events in the past of multiple characters, and present-day 2015. Mostly the flashbacks were fine, and even historically informative. However, sometimes I found my mind wandering during those chapters.
Lila's struggle with being too much of one culture to fit into another is something that I can personally relate to, and there were quite a few times when I found myself talking to the book (a good sign). However, I didn't love aspects of Lila's character; she made some questionable choices and was sometimes quite unfair to her mother (in my opinion). But then again, that is what drove the drama that I was eating up with a spoon.