Today is my turn on the blog tour for Lilac Skies by Shivani Bansal

Here’s the blurb.

Punjab, India. It’s 1942 and Meena is still a girl when her parents tell her she is to be married, in five days, to a total stranger. What’s more, he lives in Kenya. A different country, a different continent, thousands of miles away from everything she knows. She doesn’t want to marry, but with four brothers and sisters, Meena knows she will be a burden to her parents if she stays. And it isn’t her decision to make.

Nairobi, Kenya. Meena’s new home is beyond anything she could have imagined. Nairobi is beautiful, but tensions under the colonial British rule run high. She is told she is lucky because her husband Amar is young and handsome, but all is not as it seems within her marriage… Tucked away from the outside world, Meena spends her time by the mango tree dreaming of going home… until she realises the friendships that she forges here are all she can hold onto.

Going from girl to woman in a strange land, can Meena find a way to finally make her life her own?

Review

Not the typical book I’d pick up but something about the blurb just sucked me in.

Meena is a happy young woman living in India with her family, unfortunately times are tough and with many mouths to feed her parents make the decision for her, that she should marry.

Amar shows interest in the marriage and dowry agreed so in 5 days they will be man and wife. This is real emotional struggle for Meena as not only does she not know the man but he’s also from Kenya so this marriage will mean moving to another country.

At first things look ok, maybe just a little shaky as Meena is very home sick. This is made so much worse as Amar’s mother lives with them and treats her son like butter wouldn’t melt, he’s the golden boy. This means no one would be good enough for her boy and she constantly undermines Meena. It doesn’t help that Meena hasn’t learnt the skills to cook. She’s essentially a slave.

There’s a ray of hope for Meena when Amar’s sister arrives and they soon form a friendship but nothing can save her from Amar’s darkside which ultimately leads to some very tragic events.

The story moves at a decent pace and Meena ends up in the UK but it’s not going to be the dream life, and the events that happen ensure Amar’s darkside comes out time and time again.. he promises to change.. but they always say that..

Meena’s only happy times is with her children or the friend she makes, Kanika. Kanika understands Meena’s pain more than most and ultimately is the one who keeps Meena going, they support each other.

Lilac Skies is a beautiful but harrowing disturbing tale that touches on many difficult subjects, arranged marriages, miscarriage, domestic abuse… you’d think with such subjects the book would be a difficult read but I found it the opposite, it was so beautifully written it flowed and you just got invested, knowing Meena would find the strength to keep going.

While reading I can honestly admit the story flowed so well I described it as poetry so it was wonderful to read towards the end of the tale that Meena takes up poetry.. it just felt like the character really did write her own story.

Hauntingly beautiful, beautifully written, a story that will really stay with you.

5/5 Stars

To find out more head to Goodreads or Amazon

My thanks go to the author, the publisher and Rachel’s Random Resources for having me on the blog tour! I received an ARC of the book as part of the tour but I’ve already bought a copy myself too!

Why not following the tour?

Author Bio –

Shivani Bansal has a First Class degree in International Relations and Politics, which has yet to be put to use! She works full time in digital marketing in the charity sector, and also runs a small baking business from home called Sweet Beginnings Bakes. She loves writing story ideas in her Pusheen notebook in her spare time.

Social Media Links –

Twitter: https://twitter.com/shivanib_writer