For the Love of Apricots by Madhulika Liddle
My take on the book:
Nandini has been living in the small, quaint hill town Mukteshwar with her father Mr. Mathur for over a decade now; divorced in her early twenties without kids, Nandini who is now forty years old, initially struggled to adjust to this remote place when they shifted here from Delhi. As her bird-lover father kept himself busy chasing all kinds of birds in the woods, Nandini started a pickle cooperative with the local women, in a bid to find meaning to her life.
Vikas Joshi who was once the ‘IT’ guy, now shifted to Mukteshwar after he bought the apricot orchard of the Negis. Without any prior experience of tending to an apricot orchard or living in such a small town surrounded by total strangers, Vikas encountered Nandini on multiple occasions in weird and awkward situations.
Will the young widower Vikas develop feelings for the independent and feisty Nandini and will both give a second shot at relationships forms the rest of the story.
Set against the backdrop of a small hill station, this story explores the relationship between two individuals from contrasting backgrounds and personalities and how love can develop in the most unexpected situations. The author uses the town not just as a romantic destination as hill stations are generally portrayed but creates meaningful business backgrounds for both the protagonists — Nandini running a pickle cooperative and Vikas running an apricot orchard. Both the businesses are also described in detail, with the many stages playing a good part in the narrative, and the author also connects both the businesses in a smart way.
In a generation of going on multiple dates in a single day has become the norm, the author describes how a real love story actually looks like. Nandini being aware of how her looks and body have changed from mid-twenties to early forties is what every woman experiences at some point irrespective of their marital status. Vikas’s clarity on loving, liking, admiring, and being infatuated by a woman, especially after his experience from his first marriage showcases why people who have a failed first marriage/relationship have better clarity on choosing partner later on.
There are limited number of supporting characters and each of them have a meaningful role to play in the narration. If you always wanted to read a mature love story with realistic characters, then this is the perfect one. The story reads like a warm hug through and through.
My rating:
4.5/5.