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noble_editorial's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
Graphic: Classism, Drug use, Gun violence, Car accident, Cursing, Emotional abuse, Murder, Sexual assault, Toxic relationship, Trafficking, Violence, Forced institutionalization, Blood, Child abuse, and Addiction
berylbird's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Graphic: Kidnapping, Alcohol, Car accident, Colonisation, Death of parent, Cursing, Gun violence, Injury/Injury detail, Physical abuse, Sexual harassment, Drug abuse, Emotional abuse, Murder, and Classism
breacommelafromage's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.75
I found the ending to be quite unsatisfying but not in a bad way if that makes sense? The author was very intentional with how they ended it and it makes perfect sense for the story but at the same time I wanted more!! I was just so engrossed with the lives and story of each character I didn’t want a vague ending — but that is just me being greedy as a reader and not a short coming of the writing.
I don’t know that this book will be everyone’s cup of tea, but I think the people it’s meant for, it will leave them reeling and with a massive book hang over the way it left me.
Graphic: Child abuse, Emotional abuse, Car accident, and Gun violence
Minor: Fatphobia and Sexual violence
15ash's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
4.5
Graphic: Car accident, Death, Sexual violence, Toxic relationship, Classism, Drug use, Gun violence, Murder, Suicide, Trafficking, Rape, Sexual content, Abortion, Addiction, Drug abuse, Emotional abuse, Slavery, Torture, and Violence
okiecozyreader's review against another edition
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
4.5
From the first page, the story is gripping. They find Ajay in an expensive car, wrecked, which killed people. He is sent to prison, when he beats up some gang members who attack him, the warden tells him:
“ There’s been a mistake. I wasn’t told,” he says. “If I’d been told, this would never have happened. Really, no one knew, not even your friends. But things will be different. You’ll be taken to your friends here now. You’ll be free, within reason. And this unfortunate business with those other men, this will be forgotten…. You should have said something. You should have made it clear. You should have let us know. Why didn’t you let us know?”
Ajay stares at the food, at the cigarette pack. “Know what?”
The warden smiles. “That you’re a Wadia man.”
So then, we go back in time, to learn what it means that he’s a Wadia man. Later, we meet the infamous and wealthy Sunny Wadia, and Neda, the reporter; and how their lives all intersect. I loved each of these characters (until the end).
Part One
“…no one abuses him or threatens to kill him. It’s a better life than any he’s ever hoped for or known.” New Delhi 2004 / 4
“And he discovers something else: It gives him pleasure to please, it gives him pleasure to anticipate every possible need, not just Mummy’s and Daddy’s but everyone’s, the farm workers’, the animals’, the shopkeepers’ pleasure. Not just pleasure, not really, more like the stanching of a wound, more like the holding of a tide, a sacrifice, negating the trauma of his birth.” Maharajganj 1991 / 5
“The girls often ask about him. But he’s too shy; he recoils. He cannot conceive of it, his own body terrifies him, his own needs. He likes to set himself within limits; those limits keep him strong.” Maharajganj 1991 / 6
“Madam,” he replies. “Don’t tell us about our culture. We’re not zoo animals for your pleasure, not the smiling native to accessorize your enlightenment. The simplicity and honesty you think you know is simply your eyes deceiving your brain. …If you knew our culture, you’d know respect is one currency, but at the end of the day, money talks. Finally, understand this one thing. India is our country, not yours. You are guests here. We are great hosts, but don’t disrespect us in our own home.” Ch 7
“I’m tired. I’m stuck between the shit my father does and the things I can’t do.” Ch 15
“…she understood in that moment how the sources of strength are illusory.” Ch 15
“The chains of existence … have to be weak enough to break.” Ch 15
“Remember, nothing will change, this is Kali Yuga, the losing age, the age of vice.” Ch 16
Graphic: Drug abuse, Drug use, and Alcohol
Moderate: Physical abuse, Abortion, Sexual content, Toxic relationship, Police brutality, Emotional abuse, Vomit, Abandonment, and Death
hilaryreadsbooks's review against another edition
4.0
Graphic: Abortion, Emotional abuse, Addiction, Violence, Toxic friendship, Suicide, Sexual violence, Murder, Kidnapping, Cursing, Confinement, Rape, Gun violence, Drug use, Death, Self harm, Alcohol, Drug abuse, Physical abuse, Trafficking, Suicidal thoughts, Sexual harassment, Panic attacks/disorders, and Grief