The Color Of Our Sky by Amita Trasi (Book Review)

Disclosure of material connection- I received a copy of the book from the publisher via Netgalley in exchange for my honest thoughts. I was not required to write a positive review and all opinions stated are 100% my own.
 

About the book-

India, 1986: Mukta, a ten-year-old girl from the lower caste Yellamma cult of temple prostitutes has come of age to fulfill her destiny of becoming a temple prostitute. In an attempt to escape this legacy that binds her, Mukta is transported to a foster family in Bombay. There she discovers a friend in the high spirited eight-year-old Tara, the tomboyish daughter of the family, who helps her recover from the wounds of her past. Tara introduces Mukta to a different world—ice cream and sweets, poems and stories, and a friendship the likes of which she has never experienced before. In 1993, Mukta is kidnapped from Tara’s room.

Eleven years later, Tara who blames herself for what happened, embarks on an emotional journey to search for the kidnapped Mukta only to uncover long buried secrets in her own family.

Moving from a remote village in India to the bustling metropolis of Bombay, to Los Angeles and back again, amidst the brutal world of human trafficking, this is a heartbreaking and beautiful portrait of an unlikely friendship—a story of love, betrayal, and redemption—which ultimately withstands the true test of time.
 

My thoughts-

I can not believe The Color Of Our Sky is a debut novel. It is a beautifully written novel that tackles some hefty subject matter. It is the interwoven story of two girls, Tara and Mutka. There are two stories going on, How Mutka came to live with Tara and her family and about Tara's search to find her a decade later.   The two time periods are woven together nicely and flow very well. The novel is set in India and although Mutka and Tara are from very different social backgrounds. they very quickly form a tight friendship. This is a page turner! There are so many elements to this story that I enjoyed, but the thing that kept me intrigued was definitely trying to figure out what happened to Mutka as little pieces of information are revealed. This is a fantastic debut novel, I look forward to seeing what Amita Trasi comes up with next. I would recommend this book to fans of Khaled Hosseini.