Five years ago, Geeta lost her no-good husband. As in, she actually lost him—he walked out on her and she has no idea where he is. But in her remote village in India, rumor has it that Geeta killed him. And it's a rumor that just won't die. It turns out that being known as a "self-made" widow comes with some perks. Freedom must look good on Geeta, because now other women are asking for her "expertise," making her an unwitting consultant for husband disposal. And not all of them are asking nicely.
...covers a litany of grim realities in rural India: poverty, hunger, alcoholism, domestic violence, sexual assault and a caste system, to name a few. This might sound depressing, but Shroff manages to spin all of the above into a radically feel-good story about the murder of no-good husbands by a cast of unsinkable women ... The Bandit Queens' quick pacing stems from Shroff’s reliance on rapid dialogue, which is sometimes clever, sometimes inane, but always succeeds in creating the vibe of village gossip, with its volley of quips and comebacks ... Occasionally, the constant chatter feels misplaced...Overall, however, the characters’ stubborn levity and goofiness work well in a tale that demonstrates how the antidote to bleak circumstances is female friendship.
As the book progresses, might Geeta be able to find her place within her community of women? Might she realize that she has been extremely bad at reading social cues and has suffered as a result? Perhaps, but Shroff’s narrative was never quite successful in engaging this reader enough to really care about the outcome.
The serious and grim nature of domestic violence and caste discrimination give the novel its backbone, but it’s Shroff’s sharp humor, in the form of witty dialogue between the women, that makes this book memorable.
