The Bandit Queens by Parini Shroff (Atlantic, £16.99)
Longlisted for this year’s Women’s prize, Shroff’s debut is a darkly funny revenge drama rooted in the reality of rural India, where the toxic brew of poverty, domestic violence, adulterated alcohol, corruption and the caste system makes life for women very hard indeed. Acerbic Geeta has been largely ostracised by the rest of the village, who believe she murdered her abusive husband. She earns a precarious living, dreams of a refrigerator, and takes inspiration from the real-life “Bandit Queen” Phoolan Devi, who avenged herself on the men who abused her. However, when frenemy Farah asks for help in getting rid of her own brutal spouse, things start to spiral out of control: Geeta becomes involved with the village bootlegger, falls foul of a crime boss, and receives more requests for help from desperate women. Shroff doesn’t pull any punches in this vivid, unsentimental story that succeeds in being both satirical and moving.
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