The Fertile Earth -Ruthvika Rao
5 ⭐️
This book was written so beautifully. The details in everything, from the smells to the colors, made me feel like I was watching it all happen before my eyes. I felt all of their joy and all of their pain. The imagery was beautiful. The friendships were beautiful. Even the complicated relationships were beautiful. I highly recommend this wonderful piece of historical fiction.

Thank you to NetGalley and Flatiron Books for the ARC of this book in exchange for my honest review.

An impressive debut that makes you feel the sights and sounds and tastes of the era. Looking forward to future works from the author

a gorgeous literary fiction tale that smelt likea mango grove and felt like blooming. thanks so much for the earc.

This is an elegant yet brutal tale of love and political violence. I enjoyed the novel beginning with the perspective of a young Untouchable boy, witnessing the local zamindar family's downfall in the nighttime before delving into the intricacies which led to said downfall--and then at the very end of the novel, swooping back to this boy's perspective (but as a young man now). Each chapter is full of vivid, haunting imagery and beautiful, complex characters, full of flaws and longing and loss. The character dynamics are so provocative--How can a mother hate her daughter? How does a sister live with the guilt of causing such life long pain for her little sister? Vijaya, Krishna, Sree, and Ranga are characters that will linger in your mind even after the book has ended.

Thank you to Flatiron Press and NetGalley for providing an arc of this book.

I savored this novel. The imagery was insane. At times there was almost too much detail and it took away from the moment. I enjoyed the way the story unfolded. Immediately after being introduced to the village of Irumi, BAM, heads hanging on pikes! It was a great beginning. What follows are the events that lead to the heads. The story is told through friendship, adventure, exile, resistance, and love. As I previously mentioned, at times there was too much detail. I found this to be especially true in part 2 and I actually skipped entire paragraphs because of the overwhelming amount of detail. I will be reading this novel again and have already recommended it to other bibliophiles.

Wow. An absolutely phenomenal debut novel by Ruthvika Rao that is so beautifully written. I can clearly picture the orchards and the gadi, taste the sweet mangoes, feel the immense loss, pain and moments of joy these characters experienced. What an exceptional story and so worth a read. Thank you, NetGalley!

I loved the author’s take on this Romeo and Juliet kind of romance. This book explores a forbidden love that crosses so many lines including political and socioeconomic. The genre this is under is quite broad. I feel like this is more than just literary fiction as there’s a historical hand in play as well as a romance that endures.