East of the Sun

I adore all things India, having spent a summer there in college. I fell in love with the whole country. Thus, whenever I get a chance to escape into India via literature (since the real thing is too expensive right now) I do.

 

I was nervous that the book wouldn’t capture India correctly (some books don’t catch the small details that make the experience false for me). However, Gregson completely caught EVERY small India detail that I could remember.

 

East of the Sun is historical fiction. The action is set in the 1920’s and deals with the movement of women who would head over to India to find husbands. In the end, the book talks not just about what it meant to be a woman in the 20’s or India. It covers so many topics. There are 3 main heroines: Viva (the misunderstood and introspective writer), Rose (the blushing and beautiful bride to be), and Tor (the heartbreakingly insecure and love hungry seeker of a husband). There are also several other main characters: Jack (Rose’s husband), Frank (Viva’s love interest), Guy (a enigmatic character), Ci (the bitchy rich lady), and Daisy (the chronic do-gooder).

 

The story is rich with detail. Most characters feel completely three dimensional. Some characters (like Guy) feel almost like an afterthought. The setting is vivid. The storyline is mostly believable. The ending, the bit about Guy, some of the other details feel contrived. They feel like they were tacked on for length or were shortened to save space. Either way, the story doesn’t suffer from these things.

 

My only problem with this book is the ending. I feel like she finally just ended the book to be done with it. Good endings are ridiculously hard and I find most endings don’t work for me. Oh well.

 

Grade: A to E (Acceptable to Exceeds Expectations)