A review by lindserature
Brotherless Night by V.V. Ganeshananthan

challenging dark emotional hopeful sad tense 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

4.0

Sashi is a young woman living in early-80s Sri Lanka with dreams of being a doctor. When her country is torn by the violence of civil war, she loses three of her brothers and her love interest to the cause. Still she stubbornly pursues her dreams, even in ways she isn’t sure are the right ones.

This is the story of lives and families torn apart and destroyed by senseless violence and mindless loyalty to a cause. It reminded me at times of PROPHET SONG, which I loved earlier this year and posed similar important questions. Sashi’s voice and direct tone manage to contain much depth and capture the moral complexity of her situation: to join the cause with her loved ones despite the death and destruction they are waging, or to remain neutral? Her situation is complicated, and I’m sure not unique; the questions raised by her character have been asked worldwide for millennia. However, this is also the story of the persistence of dreams, even as they change before our eyes due to circumstances out of control. It is both bleak and hopeful, an incredible read that perfectly captures how civilians are altered by war. Four stars.