⭐⭐⭐ 3 stars | I'm drawn to epic, historical romances and when I read the synopsis for Meet Me in Bombay, I was sure that was what I was going to get. The first half of the book certainly met that expectation. On New Year's Eve in Bombay, 1913, Madeleine (Maddy) Bright meets Luke Devereaux and it was connection at first sight. He helps her to find the beauty and joys of living Bombay, which helps to assuage her yearning for England and avoid her mother's blatant attempts to set her up with a much older man. Likewise, Luke falls for her kindness and passion for life. But as their relationship is falling into place, he is suddenly sent off to fight in World War I, which separates the two lovers and eventually puts a terrible obstacle between them.
It's during the second half of the book that I struggled. Given the World War I setting, their separation made sense and while it was disheartening to see how the war kept them apart, I understood it. But then the book took a turn that I found very disappointing and it highlighted the flatness of Maddy's character. She had a gut feeling that she should've listened to and fought for but instead caved in to the pressures and societal expectations around her. She very much felt like a two-dimensional character in a book, rather than a flesh and blood person with a heart and mind of her own. It was particularly frustrating to see at this point in the story when she was clearly blossoming early on. And the people around her who claimed to love her, like her mother and her friends? I genuinely believe they did her dirty (with little repercussions for their actions) and it just wasn't the story I personally wanted.
Do I recommend? I liked the book to a certain extent but I really went in expecting to fall in love with it and that just wasn't the case. If you want to check it out, I'd recommend borrowing it from the library.
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The cover of this book is beautiful!
ReplyDeleteI'm sorry to hear that the book didn't hold up for you as much in the secon half! Especially because the cover is so stunning, and I always stop whenever I see it on social media.
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