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beate251's review against another edition
emotional
funny
lighthearted
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Bel Kumar, 36, gets a wake-up call when she survives a fall down a deep hole and her ICE contact is her ex from four years ago because she has lost touch with family and friends. So she starts reconnecting with her parents, sister Devi, niece Karen and a gang of old friends. There are lots of flashbacks to 20 years back to find out what went wrong back then to make her lose touch with her friends Ama, Ling and Marina (only one of which is white).
Bel is in advertising and has nothing but disdain for a Diversity & Inclusion project at work which she deems virtue signalling. She tries to help to make it relevant but the project is ultimately led by white people who don't understand the importance of it in terms of value to the company.
This is very much a novel about racism, about what it means to grow up brown in England, to have immigrant parents who come here to give you more choices only to expect you to make the same choices they did, and that a careless remark from 20 years ago can still sting today. There is a lot about family, female friendship and forgiveness but there is no real romance in the book - get over it.
Poorna Bell is a wonderful storyteller, and this is such a complex story.
Bell concentrates on the women in the story - Bel's overprotective mother, her older sister who is going through a divorce, her niece who tackles her Indian heritage head-on, and her former BFF Ama, who has come out gay and is about to marry.
Bel is in advertising and has nothing but disdain for a Diversity & Inclusion project at work which she deems virtue signalling. She tries to help to make it relevant but the project is ultimately led by white people who don't understand the importance of it in terms of value to the company.
This is very much a novel about racism, about what it means to grow up brown in England, to have immigrant parents who come here to give you more choices only to expect you to make the same choices they did, and that a careless remark from 20 years ago can still sting today. There is a lot about family, female friendship and forgiveness but there is no real romance in the book - get over it.
Poorna Bell is a wonderful storyteller, and this is such a complex story.
Bell concentrates on the women in the story - Bel's overprotective mother, her older sister who is going through a divorce, her niece who tackles her Indian heritage head-on, and her former BFF Ama, who has come out gay and is about to marry.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Racism
Moderate: Misogyny, Racial slurs, Medical content, Toxic friendship, and Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Sexual assault
hodgeonlucy's review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Racism and Toxic friendship
courtneykingxo's review
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
this is an amazingly written story with incredibly fleshed out characters and relatable characteristics and journeys. i’ve never been so inspired and hopeful after finishing a book.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Misogyny and Racism
Minor: Sexual assault and Violence
what_heather_loves's review
emotional
funny
hopeful
inspiring
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
"I realised something had shaken loose in me since the accident. Nothing that would show up on a brain scan, perhaps more a loosening of the internal framework I'd painstakingly built to separate the different parts of my life."
Present day London and thirty-six year old advertising executive, Bel Kumar is making a mess of her life. In a well-paid, but soulless job, it takes a freak, near-fatal accident to make her realise she has isolated herself from those who care about her, leaving her emergency contract her ex, who she broke up with four years ago. As she recovers, Bel is determined to make changes, to re-connect with the important people in her life - her sister, mum & dad and her best friend from childhood. Will she unravel her past, can she ask for help and what will she discover about herself, her friends and family, on the way?
I loved Bel immediately, her relatable experiences, humour and spirited determination. The characters, particularly her family and immediate friends, are well-drawn and real with flaws and needs and the plot moves along at just the right pace to keep me reading. The focus on female friendships and familial relationships was a refreshing change from romantic relationships often found in novels, as were the astute observations about how those relationships work, struggle to work and even fail. Bel's friendships demonstrate joy and connection as well as sadness and betrayal. Her experiences in a South Asian British woman as well as her experiences with privileged, white men (and their "mental Rolodex of reference points for people who looked like me: corner-shop owner's daughter, demure, frigid onion chopper, garlic masher, terrorist's wife") are, I expect, spot-on. Witty and warm whilst covering complex issues, experiences and emotions with panache, I highlighted so many of the author's wise words. I absolutely loved this and would definitely like to read what Bel does next.
Present day London and thirty-six year old advertising executive, Bel Kumar is making a mess of her life. In a well-paid, but soulless job, it takes a freak, near-fatal accident to make her realise she has isolated herself from those who care about her, leaving her emergency contract her ex, who she broke up with four years ago. As she recovers, Bel is determined to make changes, to re-connect with the important people in her life - her sister, mum & dad and her best friend from childhood. Will she unravel her past, can she ask for help and what will she discover about herself, her friends and family, on the way?
I loved Bel immediately, her relatable experiences, humour and spirited determination. The characters, particularly her family and immediate friends, are well-drawn and real with flaws and needs and the plot moves along at just the right pace to keep me reading. The focus on female friendships and familial relationships was a refreshing change from romantic relationships often found in novels, as were the astute observations about how those relationships work, struggle to work and even fail. Bel's friendships demonstrate joy and connection as well as sadness and betrayal. Her experiences in a South Asian British woman as well as her experiences with privileged, white men (and their "mental Rolodex of reference points for people who looked like me: corner-shop owner's daughter, demure, frigid onion chopper, garlic masher, terrorist's wife") are, I expect, spot-on. Witty and warm whilst covering complex issues, experiences and emotions with panache, I highlighted so many of the author's wise words. I absolutely loved this and would definitely like to read what Bel does next.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Bullying, Racism, Toxic friendship, and Alcohol
Minor: Sexual assault
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