Intriguing. This book has so many layers. Part erotica, part murder mystery, part coming of age, plus immigration from India to London and the culture wins and woes that come with it. I was hooked. It took turns I didn’t expect, has a lovely main character with a beautiful arc and brings to life and empowers older women. I appreciated the messages that were shared and can clearly see why it was a Reese’s pick. Queer rep: one of the intimate stories features two women.

Short summary: Nicki needs a job, so even though it’s in Southhall in the Punjabi community she’d rather avoid, she applies. When she arrives to teach English literacy, she doesn’t expect to find a group of widows. She’s even more surprised to learn they don’t care to read but rather to share stories of an illicit nature. But there are conservative forces that do not like the idea of women’s sexuality or worse- empowerment and support. As Nicki spends more time with the women, a dark undercurrent of the community is exposed. The women are used to turning a blind eye, what with honor and all, but perhaps with the support of each other, they’ll explore another path.

⭐ ⭐ ⭐ ⭐