In support of a good summary on the back of a book
Novel set in SOUTHERN INDIA in later 20th Century
19th September 2026
The Fertile Earth by Ruthvika Rao, novel set in Southern India in later 20th Century.
WINNER of the 2026 Wilbur Smith Adventure Writing Prize
Vijaya and Sree are from the wealthy Deshmukh family, Krishna and Ranga are sons of a family servant decide on an expedition into the wilds of the forest to hunt down an errant tiger. But their mission ends in disaster with long-lasting consequences.
The book opens in 1970 in the small fictional village of Irumi where a young boy spots the heads of members of the Deschmukh family, skewered onto spikes, and thus already the reader is prepared for violence, at a point in time when there is political unrest, and uprisings and the poor have no voice. They are subjugated and humiliated and the ruling classes vie for superiority. The underdogs are championed to some extent by the Naxalites.
As the children grow, the political backdrop continues to boil, and growing feelings between two characters from disparate ends of the caste system naturally has ramifications.
The sense of texture and description in this novel is exceptional, and conjures up time and place through carefully crafted characters. The sweeping story moves around from the village to Madras and overall conjures up a terrific sense of the country at that time.
A Glossary of some of the terms would have been useful.
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