The Bandit Queens

Praise

“This book is so much fun! In Parini Shroff’s dark comedy, the put-upon women of a small Indian village decide to get rid of their husbands—permanently. Things quickly spiral out of control as the bodies start piling up, the police get curious, and Geeta enters into a second-chance romance with a quiet widower who runs a speakeasy. And there’s a dog! What’s not to love?”—CrimeReads

“The Bandit Queens is an original, memorable, and endearing story. At times deeply serious, then laugh-out-loud funny, Parini Shroff has written a sobering but hopeful exploration of womanhood, social injustices, and second chances.”—Charmaine Wilkerson, New York Times bestselling author of Black Cake

“Parini Shroff’s splendid The Bandit Queens is a hilarious romp about serious things—as serious as a novel gets, and as funny, too, with characters who are dear and maddening and indelible and gorgeously drawn. Twisty, compulsive, bold, surprising, moving: It’s a wonderful book.”—Elizabeth McCracken, bestselling author of The Souvenir Museum and The Hero of This Book

“Parini Shroff’s debut novel is a rollicking mash-up of adventure story, thriller, dark revenge, and comedy. Rooted in a rural village in India—and led by the pariah widow Geeta, whom everyone believes to have killed her husband—a handful of women band together to take back their lives, and take down the patriarchy. An immensely enjoyable read!”—Cristina García, New York Times bestselling author of Dreaming in Cuban and The Lady Matador’s Hotel

“Shroff’s debut is a darkly hilarious take on gossip, caste, truth, village life, and the patriarchy. A perfect match for fans of Oyinkan Braithwaite’s My Sister, the Serial Killer and clever, subversive storytelling.”—Booklist (starred review)

“At once immensely sad . . . but it has laugh-out-loud moments too. This is a deeply human book, with women surviving and overcoming in their culture while still remaining a part of it. Similar in feel to Interpreter of Maladies by Jhumpa Lahiri.”—Library Journal, starred review

“Witty one-liners, tender moments of deep female friendship, and salient truths . . . [A] tale of the strength of women in impossible situations.” —Kirkus Reviews

“In Shroff’s acerbic debut, a woman helps other women escape their abusive marriages in their small village in India, often through murder. . . . Readers are in for a razor-stuffed treat.”—Publishers Weekly