Minor disturbances at Grandlife apartments by Hema Sukumar. I couldn't enjoy this book. Many scenes seemed stereotypical. The characters also felt very one dimensional. A pity since the blurb was exactly something I would usually enjoy

Its been rare of late to come across a well written book that I could just sink into and drift away with the story but Minior disturbances at grand life apartments did just that, taking on life's struggles with likeable characters and a connected voice this story played out like a film for me, the structure and prose were throughly enjoyable.
It will make for a fantastic summer read my only criticism is that it also mace me incredibly hungry when the food was talked about in the book, and unfortunately the food I had on hand did not satisfy the longing so I would suggest to preplan food when reading it, honestly an extremely satisfying read.

This is a lovely debut novel by Hema Sukumar. It follows the lives of the residents of an apartment block in Chennai. It is full of humor and empathy and lots and lots of food. It is easy to get drawn into the story and enjoy the everyday lives and relationships of the residents of the Grand Life Apartments. The characters are well drawn with good interactions and sharp dialogue. A thoroughly enjoyable read.

Wow! Why did I take so long to get round to this>? Oh yeah, I'm a Netgalley addict and I can't stop re4questing all these wonderful books.

This did not disappoint at all, It's a warm, cosy read, I love books that show a sense of community and this did that in spades. Lots of great characters all coming together to fight to save their building, .

Hema Sukumar's debut novel, "Minor Disturbances at Grand Life Apartments," is a delightful concoction of chaos, humor, and the intricacies of human relationships, all set against the backdrop of an upscale apartment complex. The author masterfully weaves together the lives of the residents, bringing out their eccentricities and the inevitable conflicts that arise from living in close quarters.

The story revolves around the lives of the diverse inhabitants of Grand Life Apartments, each with their unique quirks and idiosyncrasies. The book is structured as a series of interconnected short stories, allowing readers to delve into the lives of these individuals and explore the complexities of their relationships.

The residents have their own complicated lives to navigate, but what they all have in common is their love of where they live, so when a developer threatens to demolish the apartments and build over the gardens, the community of Grand Life Apartments is brought even closer together to fight for their beautiful home.
One of the strengths of "Minor Disturbances at Grand Life Apartments" is Sukumar's ability to infuse humor into even the most mundane situations. The dialogue is sharp and engaging, keeping readers invested in the narrative and eager to learn more about the residents' exploits.

Another aspect that sets this book apart is its exploration of human emotions and the challenges of maintaining relationships in a confined environment. Through her characters, Sukumar delves into themes such as loneliness, jealousy, and the need for validation. She does so with sensitivity and empathy, allowing readers to connect with the characters on a deeper level.

While the book is a delightful read, some may find the pacing uneven, as certain stories seem to drag on longer than necessary. Additionally, a few of the characters could have benefited from further development, as they occasionally come across as one-dimensional.

Overall, "Minor Disturbances at Grand Life Apartments" is a charming and entertaining read that offers a refreshing take on the complexities of human relationships. Hema Sukumar's keen eye for detail and her ability to infuse humor into everyday situations make this book a must-read for fans of contemporary fiction. With its memorable characters and engaging narrative, "Minor Disturbances at Grand Life Apartments" is a delightful debut that leaves readers eagerly anticipating more from this talented author.

A detailed depiction of different people's lives, troubles and the relationships that grow between them. This was actually a really sweet story, with a lot of the characters just living their daily lives (and deliciously described food) it was really heart-warming to see people come together form different backgrounds and help them overcome their problems. It was also really interesting to learn a bit more about Indian culture and how multiple generations learn and treat each other. Overall this was a really great debut and if you want to read a nice, easy read with characters you can root for I would recommend this.

I was so happy to have been sent an advanced reader’s copy of Hema Sukumar’s debut novel, Minor Disturbances at the Grand Life Apartments. Minor Disturbances at the Grand Life Apartments follows the lives of the residents of the Grand Life Apartments in Chennai, specifically focussing on: Kamala, a dentist whose daughter is studying university abroad in the UK, Revathi, an engineer struggling with the societal pressure to find a husband whilst being passionate about her career, and Jason, a British chef who came to Chennai for a much needed fresh start.
This book is classed as General Fiction (Adult) and is set to be released in July 2023.

What I liked about it
Fair warning - this book will make you hungry. Sukumar goes into wonderful detail carefully describing almost every dish mentioned in the book in a way which blends with the storytelling itself. In fact, Sukumar is so incredible at describing the entire setting that I felt as though I was with the characters themselves in Chennai. I loved every second of reading this book. I especially liked that it started off as almost three separate stories and over the course of the book became a lot more interlinked. All of the characters were complex but still relatable in one way or another. It was refreshing to read a book that a wonderful dive into another culture, that I was previously uneducated about, whilst reading a captivating and wholesome story about community.
This book does deal with some themes of homophobia and sexism, so please be mindful if these topics are triggering for you.
Overall, this book was absolutely amazing and wholesome, and I have already been telling my friends and family that they should read it when it gets released later in the year.

Minor Disturbances... is a bit of a conflicting novel: there is a nice freshness to Hema Sukumar's characters and the narrative is a breeze, but the book falls well short of communicating a sense of space, of going deeper into the spaces it tries to probe, and the dialogue is remarkably stilted for much of the page count.

The narrative is what is nicely done: the exploration of the lives of tenants in an old-ing apartment building in Chennai is not revolutionary, but it doesn't need to be. Sukumar lets the situation breathe, lets her characters wander a bit. The characters too are quite interesting: the foreigner Jason, the young working woman Revathi, and middle-aged dentist Kamala (whom my film-addled brain kept visualising as being a Revathi), each of them has a lifelike feel about them, which helps Minor Disturbances..... hobble over the less-assured parts of the novel.

Sukumar does let the reins go too often, though. The dialogue feels very written rather than spoken, and the conflicts are repetitive in a manner that is grating rather than in a way to impress upon the reader the need to think and rethink each move in how to go about resolving the trouble at hand.

All told, though, Minor Disturbances is a nice, balmy read that should do wonders in lightening the reading load for anyone struggling this summer.

This story revolves around the residents of an apartment building in Chennai, as well as focusing on their daily struggles it also tells the story of their attempts to stop a construction company forcing the sale of their building. I liked the relationships between the different characters but I think more time needed to be spent on Kamala’s trip to London and her attempts to fix her relationship with her daughter.

A cast of lovely characters (apart from the very obvious baddies in the story), a beautiful setting and descriptions of food and flavours that will make your mouth water!

It's no secret that I love India and this book made me feel right there, in the middle of the hustle and bustle of it all!

This was an utterly enjoyable read and I would very much like to thank NetGalley and the publishers for gifting me the ARC that introduced me to this novel. It is set in an apartment complex target by property developers in Chennai, India. Among the characters that are skilfully drawn and developed by the author are two compelling male characters: Mani is the owner of the apartment block who is coming under increasing pressure to sell up to increasingly forceful property developers; meanwhile Jason is one of his tenants who is seeking refuge in the apartment complex and in a new career in India from an intense breakup in the UK. These two characters are joined by three equally compelling female characters: thirthy-something Revathi whose mother wants to see her married, single mother Kamala who is missing her gifted Oxbridge student daughter Lakshmi, and her good friend Sundu who often makes an appearance at the apartments. Despite its precise portrayal of the ordinary details of the protagonists’ daily lives, there is nothing trivial at all about this book – it offers, in fact, many wise insights into ordinary people forging lives together and represents a wonderful homage to the power of community. Warmly recommended!

Neighborhood shenanigans in Chenai through the daily interactions of various people inside a small building, a novel reminiscent of R.K. Narayan or the early V.S. Naipaul.

Cleverly plotted and full of humor, this charming fictional tapestry really deserves to be discovered and enjoyed without any moderation whatsoever.

Many thanks to Hodder & Stoughton and Netgalley for this delicious literay treat

This was a quiet and gentle kind of book, it was a nice quick palate cleanser between some heavier books and I thoroughly enjoyed meeting all the residents of the Grand Life Apartments.

I’ve never been to India so can’t say how accurate the descriptions are but they were very evocative. I could clearly picture Chennai and the apartments, hear the dangerous autos zooming around, feel the relentless scorching heat and the food made my mouth water. I really enjoy mixed generation stories and learning about other countries, cultures and religions.

I would definitely read more from this author in the future.

Minor Disturbances at Grand Life Apartments traces the lives of a group of people living in an apartment building in Chennai. The characters are all good people dealing with life's struggles and this is a book which contains a great feeling of warmth towards the characters and flashes of humour and insight. There are some wonderful descriptions of place and food and the author has really brought this small patch of Chennai to life. However, there's also some quite awkward writing, particularly the dialogue, which is very stilted and unnatural in places. Overall, it's a good book but the author's excellent ability at descriptions needs to be transferred to her writing of dialogue.

My thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for providing me with an early copy of this book in return for an honest review.

The book tells the story of a small building in Chennai and its four tenants. Mani, the genial and kind landlord, who is struggling against a construction company using aggressive practices to take over his land. Kamala, a middle aged single mother whose daughter, the centre of her existence, studies in the UK and puts Kamala's traditional values and aspirations under pressure. Reva, an early 30s successful professional, who is stuck between filial obligations (and the meekness expected of her) and her natural instincts to want something new and different for herself. Finally, Jason, a British expat, who left the UK on a whim to try and mend his broken heart, and is now working as a chef in a local Western hotel, getting to know Chennai through its food and its people.

In essence, this is a story of simple struggles by average people, reminding us all that is unique in every single one of us. In the background, there is also a love story between Chennai (and its food) and its residents There is really no broader or more complex agenda here. In some ways, I see this as the antithesis to Last Man in Tower.

I really liked the book. It was well written and well paced. The characters made you fall in love with them from the minute you met them, despite their idiosyncratic behaviours and frustrating decisions (or because of?). Chennai is described with such warmth and affection that its hard to not want to visit it (or at least go out for a dosa).

It's also essentially a feel good kind of book. Nothing really bad happens, and it's refreshing to read something like this once in a while, especially about India, books about which are often grim, sad, and depressing. This is a celebration of life and the humans inhabiting it, and its just lovely.

My one (minor) frustration is the huge potential the story had beyond what it delivered. I finished it with a distinct sense of a meal unfinished.

Can't wait to read more of the author's work.

It was nice to read about a story in India. Loved the entwined nature of the main characters. You can just imagine being there whilst reading the novel.

This is a brilliantly evocative book. It follows four people who live in the Grand Life Apartments. Kamala (whose daughter has gone off to university, leaving Kamala feeling a bit lost), Revathi (whose job is treating her apallingly and whose mother is nagging her to get married), Jason (who is running away from his heartbreak) and Mani (who owns the building and is fighting a battle of his own).
We get to meet each of them and see the ups and downs of their lives.
It's a quiet book - nothing overly dramatic, but it vividly describes every day life in modern Chennai.
I really enjoyed reading and the food description meant I was craving a decent curry by the end.

What a lovely, lovely book. The storylines of each of the main characters are intertwined and believable. A feeling for life in India with an engaging plot. Highly recommend for an uplifting read.

This was a wonderfully evocative read. I sometimes take a long time to engage with characters when they have their own separate storylines but our three main characters interwove so beautifully, I really engaged with each of them. The setting was so clearly written; I could conjure up the sights, smells, sounds and tastes.

I loved all the characters in this story and I was rooting for them in their fight to save their lovely apartment block from developers.
As different people's lives intertwine we follow the residents of the Grand Life Apartments through the trials and tribulations of daily life; jobs and families, love and heartache. It is beautifully told, I felt the heat of Chennai warming me and the descriptions of food were absolutely mouthwatering.