Book Review : The Bitter Pill Social Club by Rohan Dahiya

By Murtaza Kuwarawala -
It's been a pretty long time that I have posted a review. I have completed a lot of books in these days but procrastinating the reviews for quite a while but I had to start somewhere. Enters 'The Bitter Pill Social Club', Rohan Dahiya's take on the high society life of India and how a dysfunctional family works which looks happy on the outside but broken on the inside.

Blurb:

The Bitter Pill Social Club takes a look at the lives of the Kochhar family, who find themselves drifting apart in the city of gins and fake friends, wrapped in cigarette smoke. As one of their own gears up to tie the knot, three siblings come home to the neurotic parents who raised them. Meanwhile the parents face the family patriarch's constant judgment. Divorce, disappointment, and disasters ensue as the entitled Kochhar brood dodges old lovers and marriage proposals.

What's good about the book:

1. The author here does not dwell much into the introduction of the characters. The characters seem to develop as we progress along with the book which in turn allows us to jump right into the story.

2. The book is quite quirky along the plot. The concept of a Uber rich dysfunctional family from India is a concept that have not been touched upon much.

3. The author has not stuck the protagonist into any stereotypes unlike other books by Indian debut authors. What we see here is a mix bag that a person sees in their everyday life.

What's wrong with the book:

1. As good as the concept of the book is, at times the book falls quite flat as the plot turns out pretty predictable in places.

2. What as a reader I would have loved here was smoother transitions when the author changed the narratives of the characters. It took me a while to get used to his writing style.

My take on the book:

Though the book is pretty promising and fresh, it does have its own boundaries. The book largely caters to the audiences who have been through the social life of Upper class families which is not the case throughout the country. As I had mentioned earlier, the writing style did take its own sweet time to grow on me, the book sure made me rethink on the books of Indian authors which do deserve a second chance.

My Ratings : 🌟🌟🌟1/2 out of 5

Book in Three Words : Fresh. Fast. Improvable.

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