OnlineBookClub.org

[Following is the official OnlineBookClub.org review of "The Runaway Bridegroom" by Sundari Venkatraman.]

Sundari Venkatraman has created an enticing, fictional love story, "The Runaway Bridegroom". The book is based on romance, family ties and the repercussions of child marriages in India. This is an act that still occurs in the rural areas of India. Sundari enjoyed reading "happily ever after" stories as a child. One day she became tired of just reading the stories and decided to write her own novel with an Indian hero and heroine. She has stated the she "views the world via rosy spectacles". Publishing didn't happen at first, but she continued to write and persevere until her dream was met.

At the beginning of the book, eight year old Chanda Maheswari and thirteen year old Veera Choudhrys are married, while still too young to understand what is happening. Veera knows enough to try to stop the marriage, but his family forces him to go through with it. He decides to flee afterwards, rather than remain in a child marriage. Chanda's family is embarrassed and decides to leave their small village and start a new life in the nearby city of Jaipur.

Fourteen years later, Chanda is a beautiful, young woman living in Delhi. She is pursuing her MBA. The story touches on still-ingrained Indian traditions and the effect they are having on the family, even at this point in life. Chanda's marriage is still upheld and she has stayed away from men and dating. None of her brothers have married yet because they are waiting on Chanda to get her life in order. This section of the book made me think about the long-term effects on children when their parents make the wrong decisions. The consequences can affect the entire family.

The male hero, Ranveer, has grown up under the tutelage of a husband and wife who took him under their wing. He has become a successful businessman and owns the software company that Chanda is trying to get an internship with through her college. Ranveer and Chanda are attracted to each other from the moment they meet. Ranveer hires her as one of the interns for his software company. At this point in the story, several secondary characters are focused on; in particular, Ranveer's secretary. I think she is used to show the different sides of Ranveer's personality as he attempts to draw closer to Chanda.

While Chanda and Ranveer are getting closer, Chanda's parents have been meeting with a local astrologer. He predicts things about Chanda's future and the location of the missing Veera. When the Maheswaris meet with Veera's family to give them hope, Chanda is crushed and only wants to end her child marriage and be with the man she loves. To find out how this mysterious love connection is resolved, read this entertaining book yourself!

Although I was thinking there would be a deeper discussion into the tradition of child marriages in India, the topic was only woven into the fabric of the story. The characters could have been developed more, but overall are an interesting group that draws you into their story. I noticed a few grammatical errors, but nothing that distracted from the fun, feel-good read that is this book. For those reasons, I rate "The Runaway Bridegroom" 3 out of 4 stars. I would recommend this book to a female audience looking for a light, enjoyable read.

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The Runaway Bridegroom
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Thank you so much "Momlovesbooks" for your lovely review of my book The Runaway Bridegroom. I am glad you enjoyed reading it

Nice review! It's strange to think of a runaway bridegroom as thirteen years old, but obviously there are cultural differences between India and the U.S.

bookowlie wrote:Nice review! It's strange to think of a runaway bridegroom as thirteen years old, but obviously there are cultural differences between India and the U.S.

You are absolutely right about the cultural differences. Living in a metro like Mumbai, even I find it difficult to relate to the child marriages that happen in rural areas in this 21st century.

That's interesting. An Indian-American computer programmer used to work for me, and she told me she got married when she was 13 or 14. My jaw dropped.

Exactly my point!