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mama_waves's review against another edition
3.0
The Bandit Queens promotes as a dark comedy and it does not disappoint. The funniest parts were often chaotic and confusing to read because of the number of characters. However, between these escalations, there was a lot of reflective content with regards to women's rights (in India) including childlessness, abuse, access to resources through marriage, love in marriage and in friendships.
This book would have been a 4 for me if it was shorter, if the author had gone a bit deeper into the issues mentioned, and if there had been more connections to the somewhat significant end characters throughout the story (ex BB, Geeta's mil).
I loved the following quotes:
'Nothing's changed, look at us. We only got the micro loans because the men think the female empowerment is cute. Harmless. Don't you get it? We were never actually advancing; we were just being tolerated.'
And this one that compares marriage to friendship:
'I should have had the same rule with Saloni. Why didn't anyone say, You've attached your life to hers, you must forgive and make it work,' and all that? I'd known you for a minute and her my whole life. But still, it didn't occur to me that it was just as important to not let a fight with her ruin our friendship. Why was I so busy protecting the copper I had with you that I destroyed the gold I had with her?'
This book would have been a 4 for me if it was shorter, if the author had gone a bit deeper into the issues mentioned, and if there had been more connections to the somewhat significant end characters throughout the story (ex BB, Geeta's mil).
I loved the following quotes:
'Nothing's changed, look at us. We only got the micro loans because the men think the female empowerment is cute. Harmless. Don't you get it? We were never actually advancing; we were just being tolerated.'
And this one that compares marriage to friendship:
'I should have had the same rule with Saloni. Why didn't anyone say, You've attached your life to hers, you must forgive and make it work,' and all that? I'd known you for a minute and her my whole life. But still, it didn't occur to me that it was just as important to not let a fight with her ruin our friendship. Why was I so busy protecting the copper I had with you that I destroyed the gold I had with her?'
mminkc's review against another edition
5.0
I loved this book, and I laughed out loud more than I have with a book in awhile.
theponderingkitten's review against another edition
4.0
The writing style is engaging. The topic so sensitive but dealt so well in what is a drak-comedy setting.
Highly recommended.
Highly recommended.
krystalle116's review against another edition
3.0
⭐️⭐️⭐️.5
This book was fun and funny. I love dark humor. I found myself cracking up at all the antics of the women in this story. It’s no piece of literary wonderment, but I enjoyed it all the same.
This book was fun and funny. I love dark humor. I found myself cracking up at all the antics of the women in this story. It’s no piece of literary wonderment, but I enjoyed it all the same.
ashinkfield's review against another edition
3.0
A little too slow at times to be fully absorbing. Geeta was really annoying for a lot of the book too. I liked Saloni and felt like she was the most rounded of all the characters. The plot was ok if a little predictable.
twhissemore's review against another edition
5.0
Why aren't more people reading this book? It has humor, heart, and suspense. It made me cry a little and got me all worked up about the injustices facing some of the characters. And then it made me cheer as women took control of their lives.
nikiwhittet's review against another edition
5.0
Love love loved this book. The author does such a wonderful job of discussing hard/heavy topics (patriarchy, India’s caste system, domestic violence, etc) while inserting perfect snippets of dark humor and cuss words that had me laughing one minute and enraged the next. I listened on audiobook and think I might read this one too just to make sure I loved it as much as I think it did. It also tells the true/exaggerated myth story of the actual Bandit Queen, Phoolan Devi, and learning about her was super awesome. Loved this book- one of my favorites, I think.
asiporaspoonful's review against another edition
3.0
3.5*. For the first third of the book, it took a bit of effort for me to stick with it because I found almost every one of the characters infuriating. By the last third, I was fully invested and thought the ending was *chef’s kiss*. With that said, the focus on how terrible women can be to other women, sheer pettiness, and really terrible domestic violence and cruelty at the hands of a few of the male characters made this book hard to stomach at times, and if it wasn’t for the humor running through continuously, I wouldn’t have made it. I was glad for the turnaround by the end in many of the female friendships/relationships, as that made it worth it for me.
susiedoom's review against another edition
4.0
Geeta’s husband went missing five years ago, and local gossip says Geeta murdered him herself. But there’s an upside to the situation: Geeta has more freedom to run her jewelry business, and few people are brave enough to cross her. When women in town start asking Geeta to help them off their own abusive husbands, she must decide how far she’s willing to go to keep her reputation.
This is a darkly funny, action-packed novel that also raises some serious feminist issues. Geeta is a grumpy, "unlikable" protagonist, but her sense of humor and begrudging affection for the people in her life wins you over by the end. If you can handle the violence, abuse, and making light of painful situations, it's a highly entertaining ride.
This is a darkly funny, action-packed novel that also raises some serious feminist issues. Geeta is a grumpy, "unlikable" protagonist, but her sense of humor and begrudging affection for the people in her life wins you over by the end. If you can handle the violence, abuse, and making light of painful situations, it's a highly entertaining ride.