Review of "The Letters We Keep" by Nisha Sharma
Doing an internal happy dance because I got my hands on the ARC
I would first like to say that I am so grateful to be selected to receive an ARC copy of this book! It had me hooked from the moment I read the dedication. I haven’t read another book that has beautifully and successfully conveyed the guilt that comes with having immigrant parents who came from nothing and worked hard so that they could give you the life that they didn’t get the opportunity to have.
Nisha also tackled the fact that many people in this situation often cast their dreams aside to pursue career paths that somewhat guarantee financial stability, and she also highlighted the conflict that can occur within families when a child wants to pursue a more untraditional career path. The difference in the values of rich and middle-class families was also showcased, as was what it is like to date when a huge wealth gap exists.
Aside from the serious stuff that I greatly appreciated, the book explored two love stories, and I loved every bit of it. As the title suggests, ‘The Letters We Keep’ tells the stories of two lovers through their letters. They were an interracial couple, so they had to sneak around, as relations like this were frowned upon in the 1970s. Not to mention that interracial marriages were not fully legal across America until 1967 and coming from a strict Indian family posed difficulties.
These letters brought characters Ravi and Jessie together, and this sparked a romance of their own. Listen when I tell you that Ms. Nisha Sharma can write a good romance novel. Everything about their relationship was absolutely swoon-worthy, and Mr. Ravi Kumar was putting in the work before Jessie even cared about him. I loved it so much. When I began reading it, seeing that it was a young adult romance, my expectations in the romance department were low, but Nisha delivered. My one and only complaint was that the ending felt rushed, so that would make me reduce my rating to 4.5 stars, but I wholeheartedly enjoyed this novel so much that it deserves the entire 5 stars.