Meet Me in Bombay - Jenny Ashcroft - ★★★★.½

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AUTHOR: Jenny Ashcroft
GENRE: Historical Fiction
PUBLICATION DATE: June 1, 2020.
RATING: 4.5 stars.


I must confess. The first thing that appealed to me about this book was its title. "Bombay" is not just a word, it is a feeling. I have never been able to feel as close to the word "Mumbai" because I have grown up in Bombay. So when I saw the ARC of this book listed on NetGalley, I had to have it, irrespective of its genre. It has been ages since I've read a romantic drama, but I am glad that this time lapse was rectified by this book. It is such a gem!

Maddy Bright and Luke Devereaux meet in the British-governed Bombay of 1913. Head over heels in love from the moment they see each other, they start making plans for the future, which has different plans for them. The First World War brings in its wake an unexpected upheaval in the lives of the young couple and their families.

Jenny Ashcroft has a firm grasp over her plot at all times. With a deft use of varied timelines, she creates a narrative that sustains the interest of the reader from the first page to the last. Rather than succumbing to plain old mushy romance, Meet Me in Bombay creates a fabulous blend of romantic moments along with adequate drama and thrills to interest even a mature reader. Her tendency to hint at a change in the characters' destinies with appropriately-placed suspenseful statements creates an stimulating atmosphere that doesn't allow the reader to relax.

In spite of not being in a mood for romantic dramas, and in spite of not having read romantic dramas in almost a decade, Meet Me in Bombay kept me hooked. It was wonderful to see my Bombay from the eyes of a outsider. Initially, I thought this book might have certain similarities with "East of the Sun" by Julia Gregson due to the timelines of both the books, but thankfully, it doesn't go that way and is a much better read.

If I had read this book in my teens of early twenties, I have no doubt that this would have been an emotional read with a 5/5 rating. But with middle age comes a little rigidity and stinginess in giving ratings to books. I really enjoyed this book and would recommend it to all lovers of historical fiction or romantic dramas. I'd rate it 4.5, thereby still giving me the pleasure of putting a 5 star rating on Goodreads.

Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

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