Prisoners of Secrets | Lata Gwalani | Book Review

Seldom, we’d come across stories that leave our hearts full, if not exactly brimming, with emotions. Such stories linger in your minds, long after you’ve read them, and allow you to see the world and its intricacies in a new light.

Prisoners of Secrets by Lata Gwalani is a heart-wrenchingly beautiful tale of Meera, Manuel, and Shankar, each guarding their own secrets. They live their lives, being captive of those secrets, that’d pounce on them when the time would will. Love is the quintessential emotion that continues to bind them but does love last forever? Does love remain long after separation? Or, is there any separation when love reigns your heart?

Right from the onset, I lived the lives of the central characters of this book. For some part, I was Manuel who had the urge to slip away from his house and find his freedom. I was the man who was weighed down by shame and guilt and loneliness. In another part, I was that young and careless girl, Meera, who found love, just like that. I was the girl whose grandfather loved her immensely and her Amma whose brows never relaxed for her daughter was so brash. I was also Shankar who lived his life, with his secret neatly carpeted, that never left him, really.

Prisoner of Secrets was a book that instantly drew me in with its rich writing that explained characters, storylines, and emotions, equally well. I couldn’t put it off until I absorbed the intensity of love, longing, dynamics of relationships, the shams of society, the burden that weighs down one’s heart, until the last breath. The depth of the characters and the multi-layered narrative added positively to my reading experience. From the vivid description of places to the raw emotions of the characters, everything felt real.

And did I mention there are ample quotes of Rumi, Shakespeare, and more literary stalwarts that perfectly blend with the lyrical narrative? If you’re looking forward to reading a book on love and relationships, pick this one up!