The Homecoming is the much-awaited sequel to Preeti Shenoy’s popular book A Place Called Home; a book that dealt with the central character Alka’s childhood struggles, college life, and her secret identity. While The Homecoming follows Alka’s tryst with life after all the revelations, Shenoy surprises her readers with a riveting account of how our choices in life can come to haunt us back decades later. If you have read A Place Called Home, fasten your seatbelts because you still haven’t seen it all! And if you have not had a chance to read it, Shenoy has adeptly woven the background story succinctly in The Homecoming, captivating you from start to finish by combining the elements of forbidden love, trauma, forgiveness, regrets, and resurrection.
Set against the picturesque backdrop of a lush green coffee estate in Sakhleshpur, the book begins with Alka juggling her roles of a stay-at-home mother, a wife, her complicated past, and her strained relationship with her husband, Subbu. To the outside world, Alka is living a comfortable life as the wife of a coffee estate owner in a grand heritage Bungalow and is a doting mother to two young girls. But on the inside, she is enduring some inexplicable fallouts with her husband, who seems to have grown distant and secretive. But a fatal accident of Subbu suddenly leaves Alka at the crossroads of too many directions to navigate, all at the same time. From a loss-making coffee estate to manage to raising her two daughters, to an unconscious husband lying in a hospital bed in another city, to the resurgence of feelings for her brother-in law Krish, and the unraveling of traumatizing secrets of her husband’s past; Alka is swarmed with issues to juggle.
All this creates enough and more drama for the reader to stay put. Alka’s character sees phenomenal growth at this stage of the story. Her transformation from a homemaker overnight to a prudent business woman taking research-based business decisions, and risks; her readiness to outsource help for the benefit of the business, is the highlight of the story. I think Shenoy has cleverly showed a way to inspire many a woman out there through Alka’s struggles and her strong headedness.
The characters of Subbu and Krish are unmissable as well. While Subbu’s shocking past despite his otherwise unassuming demeanor creates the much-needed twist in the story, Krish’s maturity and sincerity is a winner throughout. The introduction of Chanda’s character is another high in the story.
The relationship between Subbu, Chanda, Krish, and Alka, as convoluted as it may seem, also brings to the fore the fact that all human beings are normal and perfectly capable of lying, deception, and forgiveness. Thankfully, Shenoy’s characters never claim to be ‘holier than thou.’ It could be the reason why the element of relatability is often quite high in her books.
The descriptions of the tranquil coffee estate contrasted with the vulnerability of the characters created a fine balance in the story.
Though Shenoy ended the book with several loose ends as opposed to a clearer ending, she made sure that the readers are hooked till the last page of the book. A third part may very well be in writing as I write this!
Well, that’s Preeti Shenoy for you. Always leaving the readers with a hope and desire for more.
If you like to read fast-paced engaging books around complex relationships, relatable characters, and life, then go ahead. Pick up The Homecoming. It truly is a page-turner. Link to buy the book- The Homecoming https://amzn.in/d/hy4vPiL
This review is part of the Blogchatter Book Review Program.