Set Me Free

Blurb...

Mani and Nu. Sister and brother. Forced to flee their home in fear of their lives, Mani and Nu find themselves in a dark London flat. When the worst happens, fate abandons them far from the family who might love them. And so Mani accepts an offer of marriage in hope of finding comfort for Nu - but her dreams of happiness soon evaporate and she is left with no way of revealing the truth about the life she and Nu are leading. Little by little, Mani reaches out to the world with love ...it is only a matter of time before the world reaches back for her.

SET ME FREE by Hina Belitz is a beautiful, unforgettable novel that shines a gentle light into the shadows of life and shows how sometimes reaching out to the world is all it takes to set you free...

I was drinking...

A nice refreshing cup of Darjeeling tea

In my opinion...

When you read as many books as I do, it is a breath of fresh air to come across one that is really different. Even better if it is actually enjoyable! I loved this book and didn’t want to put it down, towards the end I was propping my eyes open to reach the final chapter!

Hina Belitz’s novel covers extreme brutality, guilt and is very dark, but it is also a story of love, recovery and redemption. Within the first few pages we view horrific scenes, and much of the rest of the book is influenced by these terrible events. As the main character, however, Mani is very sympathetically portrayed. I really cared about her, and, in spite of her young age, she shows much wisdom and compassion.

The story is set in a world very different to my own and it was interesting to learn something of a different culture. There are discreet footnotes which gently explain the occasional word, which I liked.

This book tackles some very tough issues, but without lecturing. The author is both knowledgeable and passionate about her subject, there are several twists to the story- and the final few chapters brought a tear to my eyes.

My rating...

Thank you www.lovereading.co.uk and Headline Review for providing me with an advance copy of this novel, prior to publication in August 2016