This was an enjoyable book to read. It deals with some important themes, to do with women escaping their abusive husbands, and trying to make a life for themselves in a world that struggles to recognise their power in their own right, rather than linked to the men around them. And yet it deals with these themes in a way that is at times amusing, at times moving, and always true to the complicated experience of being a woman.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the eARC!

I'm so excited to read this one, but I've tried several times to read the eARC now and it's formatted so badly that I just can't, so I'll be borrowing this novel from my library in future!

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for providing me with a free eARC in exchange for an honest review!

How has it taken me so long to pick this up? I was gripped by the story from the first chapter, and couldn't stop reading. The story itself is super interesting and discusses many important topics. I love how it's all about a band of women working together to improve their lives. I found myself rooting for all the women in this, hoping they would succeed in their endeavors. This is definitely a book that people should read, as the writing is easy to follow, but the story is one that you cant help but fall into. Overall, I enjoyed my time reading this, and I cant wait to see what else this author has to offer.

This book is well written and also well researched. The study deals with female friendship and sisterhood. The characters are well developed and realistic

4.5* Funny, dark, twisty, delicious. The village believe Geeta has “disappeared”her husband and she lets them. When another wife enlists Geeta help to repeat the “disappearance” for her husband, a messy plot of intrigue unfolds. While this a revenge comedy, it deals with loneliness, isolation, true and fake friendship, gender and caste politics, education, disability, domestic and gendered violence, alcoholism, different forms of poverty, love, sex, and justice in very interesting ways.

I loved this tale of revenge that is full of great characters, adventure, and dark humour. Taken from recent Indian history and based on a real character, this is vivid and gripping, a fantastic story with pitch perfect dialogue that really adds to the narration. The humour works to balance the often intense themes of domestic abuse, the control of women within a patriarchy that appears still full of superstition and tradition, as well as a society riven by the divisions of gender, caste and religion. I felt that I learnt a great deal alongside enjoying a fantastic debut. I have already highlighted this to our book groups.

Geeta’s husband disappeared years ago and everyone in the village thinks she had something to do with it. She didn’t but she doesn’t mind them thinking she’s capable of that. Then one day, Farah, a woman in Geeta’s small-loan group, comes seeking help for making her own husband disappear. She’s inspired by the real life Bandit Queen Phoolan Devi, who took revenge on her own abusers before becoming an activist, Geeta knows that those who do wrong should be punished but what can she really get away with? Ultimately, The Bandit Queens is a novel populated with some fantastically clever and loveable female characters and their escape from the abusive pasts. It’s definitely about their empowerment and their courage and I loved that this book will introduce many people to Phoolan Devi and what she achieved. It’s also blessed with an awesome sense of humour and sisterhood that will tackles some of the darkest of topics but will somehow leave you smiling.

We meet Geeta in her small village in India. Her no-good husband disappeared five years ago, leading some to assume that she bumped him off, which is difficult and handy for her in equal measure. Being something of an outsider, Geeta is surprised when other women in her micro-loan group start turning to her for help with their own marital issues…

This is a great read. The plot is well paced and tackles some very important issues without every getting too bogged down by them. The characters are unique and layered, and there are some genuinely funny interactions between them. I would definitely read more by this author.

My thanks to the author, NetGalley, and the publisher for the arc to review.

I thoroughly loved this!!!!

Thank you to Parini Shroff, the publisher and NetGalley for the opportunity to read this ARC in return for an honest review.

I had the opportunity to read this alongside the audiobook and neither disappointed. The writing flows, the story is enticing and the characters are full of depth, colour and sarcastic wit that they don’t disappoint. The relationship between Geeta and Saloni is fantastic and has so many levels as it develops through the book. Ramesh, Karim and BB help to bring in some important topics for discussion and make the story even more entertaining. The twist towards the end, unexpected and fabulously done.

The plus points of the audiobook, pronunciation of some of the Indian words were made so much easier. The narrator makes this story come alive too.

I’m looking forward to hopefully more from the author. A must read for 2023.

I really really enjoyed this novel. I thought it was so well written I didn't want to put it down. I also thought the characters were really well written and engaging. It was dark as well as having a sense of lightness. The story was intriguing and interesting.

CW: Rape, murder, assault, social prejudices, misogyny, violence

This is a great addition to the feminist revenge literary moment that is happening right now. In rural India, Geeta, who has been ostracised to an extent since her husband went missing, accidentally becomes the go-to person as more women want to "get rid" of their husbands. A very dark and very funny comedy of errors ensues - it's my kind of story and written in a fun and engaging way.

The social commentary on feminism/ women's rights is in no regards subtle, and there were moments when it felt a little heavy handed. I cannot comment on many aspects of this as I don't know anything really about social dynamics/ structures in India - but Srivalli Rekha's Goodreads review explores this in great detail and makes many points that make me reflect on my experience of the book.

In rural India, Geeta is believed to have killed her vanished husband - but she hasn't wasted too much time trying to correct the record, because as a single woman her new reputation has been the one thing keeping her safe all these years. Still, she's paid a price. She's an outcast in her town, estranged from her childhood best friend, Saloni, and from the rest of the women in her microloan group. But that all changes when another member of the group approaches Geeta with a problem of her own. Farah's husband, Samir, is an abusive drunk and she's ready to be rid of him, so she asks Geeta for help, appealing to her expertise. Not wanting to reveal the truth, Geeta reluctantly agrees, but this one small murderous favour sets in motion a chain of events that will change everything - and not just for Geeta, but for Saloni, and Farah, and all the women in their village.It's brilliant. It is well written, with a good plot and the characters are credible and funny.

I was looking forward to Parini Shroff's debut, The Bandit Queens, after reading this fab pitch: ‘For Geeta, life as a widow is more peaceful than life as a wife… Until the other wives in her village decide they want to be widows, too’. But this book isn't the dark satire that this promises but a much more conventional novel. There’s a romantic sub-plot, a cute dog, ‘kickass’ women. To be fair, it does pick up in the final third, but not enough to save it for me. The strongest and funniest scenes are when the women get together and execute (or argue over) their plans, but there isn't a lot of this until well over halfway. And the tone is so uneven; it lurches from satisfying silliness to long, worthy passages where Geeta reflects on patriarchy and misogyny.

Having said all this, though, the thing that really put me off this novel is that I just found it so unbelievable. It's meant to be set in rural India but the characters sound like they live in America half the time. It also delivers familiar story tropes: kickass women, a cute dog, a romantic sub-plot. As Srivalli Rekha writes in her brilliant Goodreads review, The Bandit Queens sells ideas about a dirty, miserable India to a white Western audience at the same time as it gets quite a few things wrong. I'm reminded of Deepa Anappara's useful reflections on writing a book about 'a marginalised, vulnerable community in India'; Anappara was born in Kerala, but recognised that she hadn't lived the same kind of life as her characters, and so trod with care when writing her debut. Shroff does not seem to have been nearly as reflective. This wouldn't matter so much if the book had just run with its fun premise, but it definitely wants to be something more, and that's where it falls down.

I really liked this!! My only reservations are that I didn't feel like I got a good understanding of how dark or how light this story could go, and while sometimes I've been really excited by the possibilities of that, in this writing I felt more like it was a limitation. But yeah! Engaging, I liked the characters, I liked the writing, I would read more from this author.

Reading the premise of this book I really thought I'd enjoy it, and enjoy it I did.

The humour is dark, the plot intriguing and the story has great depth that makes for a fantastic and catching read.

I really appreciated just how much research went into this book and how much detail went into the plotlines and people that form this book throughout - I feel like this is such an impressive debut and that I hope there's more mysteries from this author in the future.

Please check trigger warnings beforehand as there a few few particularly rape, abuse and cruelty, however I do think it is worth a read.

Thanks to Netgalley and the publishers for an ARC to review.

I found The Bandit Queens to be a - sometimes funny, mostly dark - commentary on women's experiences of oppression in India. It's very character-centric, focussing on the ever-changing dynamics of female friendship, with flawed protagonists that have all of their own misunderstandings and misgivings. Add threats of blackmail & revenge into the mix, and a spiralling drama of murder and mayhem ensues...

With lots of dialogue but very sparse physical description throughout the book, I felt it was tricky to work out who was speaking at times. During the end scenes in particular I found myself re-reading paragraphs to decipher who was doing & saying what. It became a little confusing - maybe one to listen to as an audiobook.

That said, despite the women being subjected to abuse, violence, manipulation and theft at the hands of the men in their lives, Shroff brings them shreds of light and strength through the friendships that they've forged together.
In all, I appreciated the characters and the sheer chaos of it all!

Geeta's husband disappeared five years ago and, despite what the local rumour mill says, she didn't kill him. She can't say he's a loss though, there are perks of being a 'self-made' widow, no one messes with her, tries to control her and her business has been booming because no one wants to risk getting on her bad side and getting cursed. But not everyone has it as good as Geeta, and she soon finds that the rumours of murder aren't all their cracked up to be when women from the village start coming to her for help 'dispatching' their husbands, and not all of them are asking nicely. Geeta now has to decide how far she wants to go to protect the reputation she has been given, because even the best laid plans can come back to bite you.

This book was not at all what I expected and I adored it. The story is told from Geeta's POV. After her no good husband disappeared 5 years ago she has created a life that she loves. One where she get's left alone and one where any money she earns she gets to keep and spend for herself. Despite the rumours that surround her, Geeta has an incredibly good heart and likes to see the best in people, something that doesn't always work in her favour. But what I loved most about her character was seeing her come out of her shell as the story went on, she isn't a wholly good person, none of the characters are, and she can be incredibly naive, but as the story goes on we see her start to realise the strength in having people who care for you and that a reputation of fear might not be one she wants to carry forward.

Alongside Geeta the story focuses on the women from her village who she feels have shunned her since her husbands disappearance. Every single one of these characters are well built, not all of them good, but they add a certain humour as well as heartening feel to the story. The female cast as a whole completely stole this story for me. Their vulnerability, their sharpness and wit they were just incredibly brought to life and I loved seeing them wanting and willing to change their own stories, especially in a place and time that was determined to take any free will away.

It's described as dark humour and that's incredibly true, I can't tell you the amount of times I chuckled or full on belly laughed my way through this book. The interactions, and some of the situations out characters find themselves in lend themselves to a humorous take, and Shroff allowed them their humour and wit even in the direst of circumstance. Her writing style is light and makes for an incredibly easy and quick read, I found myself picking this book up at any free chance I could get because I wanted to devour every bit of information and character interaction I could get. She shows the reality of friendship, especially female friendship incredibly well, and how easy it is to have that taken away from you when the men in your life feel threatened. It's a funny story, also one that made me incredibly angry in parts, but filled with heartwarming scenes of sisterhood and shows just how dangerous women can be if we work together.

But there are also scenes and tales in this book that certainly aren't for the faint of heart and are used to show the true reality of being a female in a country that see's you as a second class citizen. Shroff shows this brilliantly through her tales of the Bandit Queen, Phoolan Devi, a real life Robin Hood who underwent some truly traumatic events that lead to her fame. I didn't know that these were based on a true person until I did a little research and that made the book that much more real, but also traumatic in a way. Shroff doesn't shy away from the dark side of being a woman, owned by your husband, the fact that marital rape doesn't exist, as well as the reality of the justice system for crimes against women. So for those expecting a bit of a romp, I would warn you that there are some harrowing stories throughout, as well as on page attempted rape and attack, but this is the reality for women and I'm glad the author didn't shy away from it.

I honestly adored this book, and it's one I will definitely be buying a physical copy of to share with all my friends. If you want a deep dive into Indian culture, the caste system, life as a women, but also want to follow the story of a group of incredible, strong and witty women as they try and change the stories life has given them so far, I can't recommend this enough. Safe to say I will be 100% picking up whatever the author writes next.

The Bandit Queens is a really enjoyable novel about Geeta, a woman living in rural India, trying to get by after the loss of her husband and subsequent ostracism by her local community. Geeta's husband was a violent drunk who disappeared one day - did he leave voluntarily or was he murdered? The neighbours think he was definitely murdered and that Geeta is a dangerous woman. Who better to help them when their own husbands need to "disappear"?

The Bandit Queens is a great book about female friendship, with a little bit of romance and featuring a really cute dog called Bandit. A highly recommended read!

This is exceptionally well written, with strong interesting and well paced plot. The characters are extremely well rounded and I enjoyed discovering more about them, particularly Geeta and her relationships with Saloni and Ramesh, leading to the subsequent change in her demeanour. I adored the setting in India. Although I've never been there, the language, imagery and references to modern Indian culture, really transported me; I could visualise the setting clearly in my mind. This book is laugh out loud funny, but also discusses important themes of patriarchy, discrimination, rapists and child abusers. It absolutely finds the right balance between light and dark, which is what makes this so unique and entertaining. I can't wait to see what Parini Shroff does next

DNF'd, unfortunately. Having read a few other reviews of this book, I also felt like the expectations I was going in with wasn't entirely what I got in the end. I found it quite disorganized as a narrative and struggled to keep track of what was happening and to which characters. Though I enjoyed the concept, I found the book a bit too literary for my tastes and that the balance between reflection and action was off - and I much prefer a persuasion to more action. The edition I had on my Kindle was also very difficult to read, likely what put me off from continuing where I did.