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OUR FRIENDS IN GOOD HOUSES: A NOVEL
Neel is a journalist drawn to war zones. It's in these spaces riven by conflict that his sense of dislocation, of not belonging anywhere, drops off him. At all other times, he's in quest, seeking solid a home. It is a pursuit that takes him halfway across the world to America and back to the urban dystopia of Delhi, headlong into fleeting relationships that glimmer with the promise of shelter
Is Neel—haunted by the past and exiled from the present—likely to find what he desires in ephemeral associations? Will he chance upon the quiet anchorage he seeks in short-term dwellings and the objects he gathers within them-coffee percolators and rugs, posters and penknives? Or is the home he so badly wants elsewhere? Not in the noise and blood and lust outside, but in some sanctuary within?
Our Friends in Good Houses—renowned journalist Rahul Pandita's first novel-takes a precarious double journey, into the world and into the heart.
Vulnerable, provocative and astute, it is one of the finest explorations yet of the long road to a place called home.
Is Neel—haunted by the past and exiled from the present—likely to find what he desires in ephemeral associations? Will he chance upon the quiet anchorage he seeks in short-term dwellings and the objects he gathers within them-coffee percolators and rugs, posters and penknives? Or is the home he so badly wants elsewhere? Not in the noise and blood and lust outside, but in some sanctuary within?
Our Friends in Good Houses—renowned journalist Rahul Pandita's first novel-takes a precarious double journey, into the world and into the heart.
Vulnerable, provocative and astute, it is one of the finest explorations yet of the long road to a place called home.
- GenresIndia
Kindle Edition
Published October 13, 2025
10 people are currently reading
153 people want to read
About the author
Rahul Pandita
9 books407 followersRahul Pandita is an Indian author and journalist. Pandita has worked as a war correspondent, and is known for his ample news reporting from the war hit countries like Iraq and Sri Lanka. However, in the recent years, his focal point has been the Maoist movement in India's red corridor. He has also reported from North-Eastern India. He has worked with The Hindu, Open Magazine among other media organizations. He is a 2015 Yale World Fellow. He was awarded the International Red Cross award for delivering news from war zones, in 2010.
He has written several books. Among them are The Absent State: Insurgency as an Excuse for Misgovernance, co-authored with Neelesh Misra, Hello Bastar – The Untold Story of India's Maoist Movement (2011), and Our Moon has Blood Clots: The Exodus of the Kashmiri Pandits.
He has written several books. Among them are The Absent State: Insurgency as an Excuse for Misgovernance, co-authored with Neelesh Misra, Hello Bastar – The Untold Story of India's Maoist Movement (2011), and Our Moon has Blood Clots: The Exodus of the Kashmiri Pandits.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 30 reviews
December 15, 2025
Rahul Pandita's novel, " Our Friends in Good Houses" , is a contemplative and remarkably articulate work that explores the profound human themes of displacement, memory, and the search for an authentic sense of belonging.
The novel centers on Neel, a journalist whose professional life is spent navigating zones of conflict and change. This external journey from Delhi to various global cities mirrors an intense internal search for stability. Pandita masterfully handles the concept of home not as a fixed geographical point, but as a fragile, often elusive, emotional and psychological state.
The prose is consistently gentle, delicate, and deeply poetic, even when dealing with the harsh realities of a life spent in transit. This tone provides a compelling contrast, allowing the narrative to delve into complex political and social undercurrents without sacrificing the vulnerability of the protagonist's personal quest. The author's use of language is highly evocative, carrying a quiet sweetness and contemplative weight that remains with the reader long after the book is closed.
Reading this book felt less like turning pages and more like being invited into a shared, quiet moment of reflection. I found myself having to pause often, looking up from the text because Neel’s sense of 'ungrund' (a lack of foundation) resonated so deeply.
The novel stands out as conscientious fiction. It is an insightful meditation on what it means to be an outsider, and the irony of striving for permanence when your existence is defined by movement. Neel's attempts to anchor his life through relationships or small, acquired objects highlight the universal human desire for security.
" Our Friends in Good Houses" is a compelling and necessary read. It is highly recommended for those who appreciate literature that is both historically aware and emotionally intricate. Pandita delivers a book that is beautifully written and profoundly moving, earning its place on the shelf as a significant work of modern fiction.
The novel centers on Neel, a journalist whose professional life is spent navigating zones of conflict and change. This external journey from Delhi to various global cities mirrors an intense internal search for stability. Pandita masterfully handles the concept of home not as a fixed geographical point, but as a fragile, often elusive, emotional and psychological state.
The prose is consistently gentle, delicate, and deeply poetic, even when dealing with the harsh realities of a life spent in transit. This tone provides a compelling contrast, allowing the narrative to delve into complex political and social undercurrents without sacrificing the vulnerability of the protagonist's personal quest. The author's use of language is highly evocative, carrying a quiet sweetness and contemplative weight that remains with the reader long after the book is closed.
Reading this book felt less like turning pages and more like being invited into a shared, quiet moment of reflection. I found myself having to pause often, looking up from the text because Neel’s sense of 'ungrund' (a lack of foundation) resonated so deeply.
The novel stands out as conscientious fiction. It is an insightful meditation on what it means to be an outsider, and the irony of striving for permanence when your existence is defined by movement. Neel's attempts to anchor his life through relationships or small, acquired objects highlight the universal human desire for security.
" Our Friends in Good Houses" is a compelling and necessary read. It is highly recommended for those who appreciate literature that is both historically aware and emotionally intricate. Pandita delivers a book that is beautifully written and profoundly moving, earning its place on the shelf as a significant work of modern fiction.
November 27, 2025
Rahul Pandita’s latest is a story of displacement, a quiet restlessness that brews within one’s own heart and of finding love and camaraderie in the most unexpected places. At the very heart of the novel is Neel, our protagonist who struggles with the sense of ungrund wherever he goes. Having been exiled from Kashmir back in the 90s and setting up a house in Delhi, moving to the States later in life, he has always felt a strange sense of displacement that never goes away until he meets a group of people living in conflicted areas. Neel starts taking assignments that are risky, that puts him in the heart of danger yet he finally finds himself completely at home with the people who live there.
Our Friends in Good Houses is a complex read, one that dabbles with the world’s opinion of righteousness and the internal conflict that builds within the reader as he dives deep into the novel. It may be fiction, but traces of his own life inevitably seep through, especially for readers familiar with his previous books. For anyone who grew up constantly on the move, this novel might feel strikingly personal. Much like Neel, I finally had a word for a feeling that had followed me all my life. Having loved the author’s previous works, particularly Our Moon has Blood Clots, I found this one a bit less striking. Maybe it stems from Neel’s character lacking a bit of depth. I wanted to know more about his mother, about this woman who was a silent spectator of the events unfolding in the house.
Pandita writes with heart, something that I have come to admire over the years. It carries layers and a sense of urgency that many fail to master. I do hope he writes more fiction, and probably a little sooner because the reader in me is always eagerly looking for his next work to hit the shelves.
Our Friends in Good Houses is a complex read, one that dabbles with the world’s opinion of righteousness and the internal conflict that builds within the reader as he dives deep into the novel. It may be fiction, but traces of his own life inevitably seep through, especially for readers familiar with his previous books. For anyone who grew up constantly on the move, this novel might feel strikingly personal. Much like Neel, I finally had a word for a feeling that had followed me all my life. Having loved the author’s previous works, particularly Our Moon has Blood Clots, I found this one a bit less striking. Maybe it stems from Neel’s character lacking a bit of depth. I wanted to know more about his mother, about this woman who was a silent spectator of the events unfolding in the house.
Pandita writes with heart, something that I have come to admire over the years. It carries layers and a sense of urgency that many fail to master. I do hope he writes more fiction, and probably a little sooner because the reader in me is always eagerly looking for his next work to hit the shelves.
December 23, 2025
"Our Friends in Good Houses" is a haunting, introspective novel about displacement, memory, and the lifelong search for belonging. Author writes with restraint and clarity, drawing us into the inner world of Neel, a journalist who feels most alive in war zones and most lost everywhere else.
Neel’s journey moves between continents, relationships, rented rooms, and temporary shelters, yet the real movement is inward. The novel beautifully captures the loneliness of a man who collects objects instead of roots, moments instead of permanence. Coffee makers, rugs, short-term houses each becomes an attempt to build a sense of home where none truly exists.
What gives this book its depth is the emotional honesty with which exile is portrayed. There is no melodrama, only a steady ache of the past that refuses to loosen its grip and a present that offers no firm ground. Author’s background as a journalist lends the narrative a sharp observational quality, especially in how violence, desire, and restlessness intersect in Neel’s life.
This is a novel that asks difficult questions: where does home really exist, and can it be found outside ourselves? The answer is never handed to the reader. Instead, the book allows silence, memory, and introspection to do the work.
Quiet, unsettling, and deeply thoughtful, "Our Friends in Good Houses" is a powerful exploration of what it means to live between worlds and the long, fragile road toward inner anchorage.
Neel’s journey moves between continents, relationships, rented rooms, and temporary shelters, yet the real movement is inward. The novel beautifully captures the loneliness of a man who collects objects instead of roots, moments instead of permanence. Coffee makers, rugs, short-term houses each becomes an attempt to build a sense of home where none truly exists.
What gives this book its depth is the emotional honesty with which exile is portrayed. There is no melodrama, only a steady ache of the past that refuses to loosen its grip and a present that offers no firm ground. Author’s background as a journalist lends the narrative a sharp observational quality, especially in how violence, desire, and restlessness intersect in Neel’s life.
This is a novel that asks difficult questions: where does home really exist, and can it be found outside ourselves? The answer is never handed to the reader. Instead, the book allows silence, memory, and introspection to do the work.
Quiet, unsettling, and deeply thoughtful, "Our Friends in Good Houses" is a powerful exploration of what it means to live between worlds and the long, fragile road toward inner anchorage.
January 4, 2026
“The night is magical. They sit at the farthest table in the airport bar, drinking overpriced whisky. Their flights have long departed; he has lost all sense of the world around him. He is torn between listening to her and looking at her—and it sounds easy but is a most difficult thing to do.”
Our Friends in Good Houses — A Reflection
Some books don’t tell a story.
They hold a feeling.
Our Friends in Good Houses is a meditation on displacement—on what it means to leave home once and spend a lifetime circling its absence. The novel moves gently, almost hesitantly, as if afraid of disturbing memories that still ache.
Rahul Pandita writes with restraint. Loss appears in silences, in unfinished conversations, in the quiet understanding that belonging is not a place but a fragile emotion.
The protagonist drifts through cities and relationships, carrying a restlessness that never quite settles. Even moments of closeness feel temporary, shaped by the knowledge that some lives are defined more by departure than arrival.
This is not a book that offers closure.
It simply stays—with memory, with longing, with the idea that home may never be returned to, only remembered.
Our Friends in Good Houses — A Reflection
Some books don’t tell a story.
They hold a feeling.
Our Friends in Good Houses is a meditation on displacement—on what it means to leave home once and spend a lifetime circling its absence. The novel moves gently, almost hesitantly, as if afraid of disturbing memories that still ache.
Rahul Pandita writes with restraint. Loss appears in silences, in unfinished conversations, in the quiet understanding that belonging is not a place but a fragile emotion.
The protagonist drifts through cities and relationships, carrying a restlessness that never quite settles. Even moments of closeness feel temporary, shaped by the knowledge that some lives are defined more by departure than arrival.
This is not a book that offers closure.
It simply stays—with memory, with longing, with the idea that home may never be returned to, only remembered.
December 12, 2025
-How to Trap a Memory in Pages-
Review of 'Our Friends in Good Houses' by Rahul Pandita
Quote Alert
"𝐍𝐞𝐞𝐥 𝐚𝐥𝐰𝐚𝐲𝐬 𝐛𝐞𝐥𝐢𝐞𝐯𝐞𝐝 𝐭𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐢𝐭 𝐰𝐚𝐬 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐠𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐭𝐞𝐬𝐭 𝐫𝐞𝐬𝐩𝐨𝐧𝐬𝐢𝐛𝐢𝐥𝐢𝐭𝐲 𝐨𝐟 𝐦𝐞𝐧 𝐭𝐨 𝐞𝐬𝐜𝐚𝐩𝐞 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐢𝐧𝐞𝐯𝐢𝐭𝐚𝐛𝐢𝐥𝐢𝐭𝐲 𝐨𝐟 𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐢𝐫 𝐟𝐚𝐭𝐞—𝐭𝐨 𝐛𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐤 𝐚𝐰𝐚𝐲 𝐟𝐫𝐨𝐦 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐩𝐚𝐭𝐡 𝐭𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐨𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐫𝐬, 𝐰𝐡𝐨 𝐡𝐚𝐝 𝐜𝐨𝐦𝐞 𝐛𝐞𝐟𝐨𝐫𝐞, 𝐡𝐚𝐝 𝐨𝐫𝐝𝐚𝐢𝐧𝐞𝐝 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐦. 𝐓𝐡𝐞𝐲 𝐡𝐚𝐝 𝐭𝐨 𝐜𝐥𝐞𝐚𝐯𝐞 𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐢𝐫 𝐨𝐰𝐧 𝐩𝐚𝐬𝐬𝐚𝐠𝐞, 𝐞𝐯𝐞𝐧 𝐢𝐟 𝐢𝐭 𝐦𝐞𝐚𝐧𝐭 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐰𝐡𝐢𝐭𝐞 𝐨𝐟 𝐛𝐨𝐧𝐞 𝐬𝐡𝐨𝐰𝐞𝐝 𝐨𝐧 𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐢𝐫 𝐞𝐥𝐛𝐨𝐰𝐬. 𝐈𝐭 𝐡𝐚𝐝 𝐭𝐚𝐤𝐞𝐧 𝐡𝐢𝐦 𝐭𝐰𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐲-𝐟𝐢𝐯𝐞 𝐲𝐞𝐚𝐫𝐬 𝐭𝐨 𝐜𝐚𝐫𝐯𝐞 𝐡𝐢𝐬 𝐨𝐰𝐧 𝐩𝐚𝐭𝐡, 𝐭𝐨 𝐦𝐨𝐯𝐞 𝐨𝐮𝐭 𝐨𝐟 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐨𝐫𝐛𝐢𝐭 𝐡𝐢𝐬 𝐩𝐞𝐫𝐬𝐨𝐧𝐚𝐥 𝐡𝐢𝐬𝐭𝐨𝐫𝐲 𝐡𝐚𝐝 𝐩𝐮𝐭 𝐡𝐢𝐦 𝐢𝐧𝐭𝐨. 𝐈𝐭 𝐰𝐚𝐬 𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐬 𝐢𝐦𝐩𝐞𝐭𝐮𝐬, 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐚 𝐟𝐮𝐭𝐮𝐫𝐞 𝐨𝐟 𝐡𝐢𝐬 𝐨𝐰𝐧 𝐦𝐚𝐤𝐢𝐧𝐠, 𝐭𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐡𝐚𝐝 𝐦𝐚𝐝𝐞 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐟𝐞𝐥𝐥𝐨𝐰𝐬𝐡𝐢𝐩 𝐚𝐭 𝐘𝐚𝐥𝐞 𝐩𝐨𝐬𝐬𝐢𝐛𝐥𝐞."
In Our Friends in Good Houses, emotional violence and (thoughts/memories of) physical violence are peppered throughout the narrative. It's as much an ode to exile as it is a yearning for the birth soil. The protagonist Neel is like a memory trapped in pages, leaving his imprints on every new land he goes. He lives everywhere but he struggles to belong, not really rooted to anywhere. Like a kite struggling to stem the wind tearing through the holes that have rent not just its fabric but it's very soul. It's coming undone string and spine.
The multiple refrences to movement and leaving and going back, returning and departure are strewn across the story. Have a look:
"Annie, too, he thought, was aware of their impermanency. But they never brought up his impending departure. They talked about their lives, their families. And the more important things, they expressed through raw, physical love. Neel wanted to be like that bicycle, not leaving High Street ever. He imagined getting buried next to Augur, and Annie would visit him, bringing cigarettes and coffee and Laphroaig, and bread from her Italian friends."
Pandita's prose thrums with a humane energy. It is like a river and a boulder sitting amidst the flow. Motion and pause. Control and impulse. His story has a beating heart that adds an affection to the story. Have a look:
"And then, the time had come to return. He did not resist the return; he knew it had to happen. His life was in India; it was here, over the last two decades, that he had witnessed things ordinary men only learnt of from the newspapers or remained oblivious to all their lives. It had taken grit and a persistent fight against the whale of fate trying to swallow him and make him stew in its dark belly of ordinariness."
The writing, in many passages and pages, flickers like a flame, words burning themselves upon my reader's palate while I try and not let my wings singe like a common moth.
Thick with drama of real emotions, the story imitates life. The lines about love are something I can frame on my wall and look at them every day:
"For him, love has two components. One is the miraculous phenomenon through which all the beauty of the world converges on the face of the beloved. There may be other faces he also finds beautiful, but here, in the person he is drawn to, everything is in place-the face is the garden of paradise, and it is only with this person that a physical (external) garden of paradise-what home really feels like to him-can be built. The beloved is the one who has the power to prevent dread from returning after everyone has left the party. It is the assurance of her, the warmth of her body, that makes the tundra of the universe bearable. It is her face for which he feels like growing flowers. It is this person for whom-if she is the first to die-he will put a gun in his mouth and blow his brains out."
Pick it up this week.
Review of 'Our Friends in Good Houses' by Rahul Pandita
Quote Alert
"𝐍𝐞𝐞𝐥 𝐚𝐥𝐰𝐚𝐲𝐬 𝐛𝐞𝐥𝐢𝐞𝐯𝐞𝐝 𝐭𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐢𝐭 𝐰𝐚𝐬 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐠𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐭𝐞𝐬𝐭 𝐫𝐞𝐬𝐩𝐨𝐧𝐬𝐢𝐛𝐢𝐥𝐢𝐭𝐲 𝐨𝐟 𝐦𝐞𝐧 𝐭𝐨 𝐞𝐬𝐜𝐚𝐩𝐞 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐢𝐧𝐞𝐯𝐢𝐭𝐚𝐛𝐢𝐥𝐢𝐭𝐲 𝐨𝐟 𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐢𝐫 𝐟𝐚𝐭𝐞—𝐭𝐨 𝐛𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐤 𝐚𝐰𝐚𝐲 𝐟𝐫𝐨𝐦 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐩𝐚𝐭𝐡 𝐭𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐨𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐫𝐬, 𝐰𝐡𝐨 𝐡𝐚𝐝 𝐜𝐨𝐦𝐞 𝐛𝐞𝐟𝐨𝐫𝐞, 𝐡𝐚𝐝 𝐨𝐫𝐝𝐚𝐢𝐧𝐞𝐝 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐦. 𝐓𝐡𝐞𝐲 𝐡𝐚𝐝 𝐭𝐨 𝐜𝐥𝐞𝐚𝐯𝐞 𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐢𝐫 𝐨𝐰𝐧 𝐩𝐚𝐬𝐬𝐚𝐠𝐞, 𝐞𝐯𝐞𝐧 𝐢𝐟 𝐢𝐭 𝐦𝐞𝐚𝐧𝐭 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐰𝐡𝐢𝐭𝐞 𝐨𝐟 𝐛𝐨𝐧𝐞 𝐬𝐡𝐨𝐰𝐞𝐝 𝐨𝐧 𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐢𝐫 𝐞𝐥𝐛𝐨𝐰𝐬. 𝐈𝐭 𝐡𝐚𝐝 𝐭𝐚𝐤𝐞𝐧 𝐡𝐢𝐦 𝐭𝐰𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐲-𝐟𝐢𝐯𝐞 𝐲𝐞𝐚𝐫𝐬 𝐭𝐨 𝐜𝐚𝐫𝐯𝐞 𝐡𝐢𝐬 𝐨𝐰𝐧 𝐩𝐚𝐭𝐡, 𝐭𝐨 𝐦𝐨𝐯𝐞 𝐨𝐮𝐭 𝐨𝐟 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐨𝐫𝐛𝐢𝐭 𝐡𝐢𝐬 𝐩𝐞𝐫𝐬𝐨𝐧𝐚𝐥 𝐡𝐢𝐬𝐭𝐨𝐫𝐲 𝐡𝐚𝐝 𝐩𝐮𝐭 𝐡𝐢𝐦 𝐢𝐧𝐭𝐨. 𝐈𝐭 𝐰𝐚𝐬 𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐬 𝐢𝐦𝐩𝐞𝐭𝐮𝐬, 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐚 𝐟𝐮𝐭𝐮𝐫𝐞 𝐨𝐟 𝐡𝐢𝐬 𝐨𝐰𝐧 𝐦𝐚𝐤𝐢𝐧𝐠, 𝐭𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐡𝐚𝐝 𝐦𝐚𝐝𝐞 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐟𝐞𝐥𝐥𝐨𝐰𝐬𝐡𝐢𝐩 𝐚𝐭 𝐘𝐚𝐥𝐞 𝐩𝐨𝐬𝐬𝐢𝐛𝐥𝐞."
In Our Friends in Good Houses, emotional violence and (thoughts/memories of) physical violence are peppered throughout the narrative. It's as much an ode to exile as it is a yearning for the birth soil. The protagonist Neel is like a memory trapped in pages, leaving his imprints on every new land he goes. He lives everywhere but he struggles to belong, not really rooted to anywhere. Like a kite struggling to stem the wind tearing through the holes that have rent not just its fabric but it's very soul. It's coming undone string and spine.
The multiple refrences to movement and leaving and going back, returning and departure are strewn across the story. Have a look:
"Annie, too, he thought, was aware of their impermanency. But they never brought up his impending departure. They talked about their lives, their families. And the more important things, they expressed through raw, physical love. Neel wanted to be like that bicycle, not leaving High Street ever. He imagined getting buried next to Augur, and Annie would visit him, bringing cigarettes and coffee and Laphroaig, and bread from her Italian friends."
Pandita's prose thrums with a humane energy. It is like a river and a boulder sitting amidst the flow. Motion and pause. Control and impulse. His story has a beating heart that adds an affection to the story. Have a look:
"And then, the time had come to return. He did not resist the return; he knew it had to happen. His life was in India; it was here, over the last two decades, that he had witnessed things ordinary men only learnt of from the newspapers or remained oblivious to all their lives. It had taken grit and a persistent fight against the whale of fate trying to swallow him and make him stew in its dark belly of ordinariness."
The writing, in many passages and pages, flickers like a flame, words burning themselves upon my reader's palate while I try and not let my wings singe like a common moth.
Thick with drama of real emotions, the story imitates life. The lines about love are something I can frame on my wall and look at them every day:
"For him, love has two components. One is the miraculous phenomenon through which all the beauty of the world converges on the face of the beloved. There may be other faces he also finds beautiful, but here, in the person he is drawn to, everything is in place-the face is the garden of paradise, and it is only with this person that a physical (external) garden of paradise-what home really feels like to him-can be built. The beloved is the one who has the power to prevent dread from returning after everyone has left the party. It is the assurance of her, the warmth of her body, that makes the tundra of the universe bearable. It is her face for which he feels like growing flowers. It is this person for whom-if she is the first to die-he will put a gun in his mouth and blow his brains out."
Pick it up this week.
December 22, 2025
our friends in good houses by rahul pandita
genre: literary fiction
My 💭:
[22/12/25 8.03 PM]
Novels that feel like memoirs are always such memorable reads! And when it is authored by a journalist, I know I am reading a gem.
This books honestly felt like a treasure trove for introspective people like me. It's written for the people like us who enjoy moments of silence to orient themselves and who have travelling all around, inside and outside, just to find that sense of belonging and roots - home. Most of the time, we already have felt that emotion as a child somewhere, but we keep chasing life to recreate that feeling. Over and over again.
The protagonist of this book, Neel, is a journalist whose work and search for home lands him in places here and far, peaceful and wartorn areas. He kept finding himself on the verge of putting his roots in, only for him to take a thousand steps back. Whether it was with fun and stable girl next door Annie or with rebellious Gurupriya. When he finally lived the life of a rebel along with his friends in jungles and rural places, I could feel that he could empathise a lot about the other people, both from civilised society to war torn places, but he kept running in order to find his place. And finally he does. With Aarani. And then...
Honestly, this book feels like a rollercoaster went over me. So much feelings and thoughts and introspections in the span of a mere two hundred something pages, that it took me today whole day to finish. The way Neel gradually understands that "home" might not be what he is chasing everywhere - it has always been something innate to him, a memory, a feeling, a reminiscence of his old home in Kashmir before getting uprooted, really resounded my own beliefs about a 'home'. I have heard so much about displaced people and I cannot imagine how groundless they feel all throughout their lives.
.
The plot is quite dynamic and interesting with fine lyrical yet relatable prose. The way the inner world of Neel ranges from being a writer and a story explorer to a lover and a man searching for his soulmate ! There were certain parts that absolutely broke my heart and there were certain parts that made me happy about his suffering. All throughout his story there was one common string that held me afloat - his realm of home with his father and ailing mother. Maybe in life, this is the only kind of somewhat constant home that we can ever have.
.
This book brought forth a lot of emotions inside me. When Neel laments about the transient nature of this life, I want to jump up and offer him some kind words, for change is the only constant in life. How unusual the true nature of life is! We grow unsatisfied in our parents' home, long for something more, but once we build our own, we realise that something is missing - the very loved ones we kept for granted in our lives. And the very ones with whom life will present us our most precious moments and will teach us the epic lessons of letting go.. Ahh, life is so diabolical!
.
This book opened up a lot of Pandora's boxes in my mind. I would definitely be having an introspective kind of night today.
genre: literary fiction
My 💭:
[22/12/25 8.03 PM]
Novels that feel like memoirs are always such memorable reads! And when it is authored by a journalist, I know I am reading a gem.
This books honestly felt like a treasure trove for introspective people like me. It's written for the people like us who enjoy moments of silence to orient themselves and who have travelling all around, inside and outside, just to find that sense of belonging and roots - home. Most of the time, we already have felt that emotion as a child somewhere, but we keep chasing life to recreate that feeling. Over and over again.
The protagonist of this book, Neel, is a journalist whose work and search for home lands him in places here and far, peaceful and wartorn areas. He kept finding himself on the verge of putting his roots in, only for him to take a thousand steps back. Whether it was with fun and stable girl next door Annie or with rebellious Gurupriya. When he finally lived the life of a rebel along with his friends in jungles and rural places, I could feel that he could empathise a lot about the other people, both from civilised society to war torn places, but he kept running in order to find his place. And finally he does. With Aarani. And then...
Honestly, this book feels like a rollercoaster went over me. So much feelings and thoughts and introspections in the span of a mere two hundred something pages, that it took me today whole day to finish. The way Neel gradually understands that "home" might not be what he is chasing everywhere - it has always been something innate to him, a memory, a feeling, a reminiscence of his old home in Kashmir before getting uprooted, really resounded my own beliefs about a 'home'. I have heard so much about displaced people and I cannot imagine how groundless they feel all throughout their lives.
.
The plot is quite dynamic and interesting with fine lyrical yet relatable prose. The way the inner world of Neel ranges from being a writer and a story explorer to a lover and a man searching for his soulmate ! There were certain parts that absolutely broke my heart and there were certain parts that made me happy about his suffering. All throughout his story there was one common string that held me afloat - his realm of home with his father and ailing mother. Maybe in life, this is the only kind of somewhat constant home that we can ever have.
.
This book brought forth a lot of emotions inside me. When Neel laments about the transient nature of this life, I want to jump up and offer him some kind words, for change is the only constant in life. How unusual the true nature of life is! We grow unsatisfied in our parents' home, long for something more, but once we build our own, we realise that something is missing - the very loved ones we kept for granted in our lives. And the very ones with whom life will present us our most precious moments and will teach us the epic lessons of letting go.. Ahh, life is so diabolical!
.
This book opened up a lot of Pandora's boxes in my mind. I would definitely be having an introspective kind of night today.
January 8, 2026
https://blog.medhaapps.com/2026/01/bo...
Neel and his parents moved to Delhi after the 1990s exodus in Kashmir, but from then on Neel could never feel at home, neither in Delhi nor in the United States during his brief stint at Yale University. A writer and a journalist, ironically Neel found comfort and belonging in conflict zones when he stayed there to report the ground realities. The dangerous Dandakaranya forest gave him a greater sense of home than the snuggly bed in his Delhi apartment.
From covering the kidnapping and release of a district collector by the rebels, staying with the Naxals in Dandakaranya, making the circumambulation of the Arunachalam hill while staying in the Tiruvannamalai ashram of Sri Ramana Maharshi, Neel literally travels the length and breadth of the country, while forever searching for the meaning of home.
The author narrates the reality of conflict zones, especially about those who turn rebels towards the administration, the factors that lead to their decisions, their sense of mission and how their families silently suffer for years. The author also describes the communication channels used by them to evade the constant surveillance the state has for them.
More than judgement or taking sides, the author takes a humane look at the life of such rebel groups. The author has critical observations of life around us and every statement made has deep emotional connection. This is not your typical novel around a set of characters and their life, rather the author’s commentary on social issues and human behavior. Neel’s journey feels like the author’s autobiographical account adding authenticity.
The main drawback of the story is the slow narration in the starting pages as the author keeps moving between Delhi, Yale and Kashmir and only after the initial 50 pages or so, the reader will get a hang of the writer’s narration style. Even characters related to Neel that the author narrates keep shifting from Annie to Adaa to Aarani to Gurupriya to M; this shift initially can confuse the reader. Neel’s attempt at finding home in a person is a reason why he finds it difficult to settle down with any of the women he came across.
A riveting tale of displacement and belonging, Our Friends in Good Houses is a must read for fans of literary fiction and those who like to read characters with depth.
Neel and his parents moved to Delhi after the 1990s exodus in Kashmir, but from then on Neel could never feel at home, neither in Delhi nor in the United States during his brief stint at Yale University. A writer and a journalist, ironically Neel found comfort and belonging in conflict zones when he stayed there to report the ground realities. The dangerous Dandakaranya forest gave him a greater sense of home than the snuggly bed in his Delhi apartment.
From covering the kidnapping and release of a district collector by the rebels, staying with the Naxals in Dandakaranya, making the circumambulation of the Arunachalam hill while staying in the Tiruvannamalai ashram of Sri Ramana Maharshi, Neel literally travels the length and breadth of the country, while forever searching for the meaning of home.
The author narrates the reality of conflict zones, especially about those who turn rebels towards the administration, the factors that lead to their decisions, their sense of mission and how their families silently suffer for years. The author also describes the communication channels used by them to evade the constant surveillance the state has for them.
More than judgement or taking sides, the author takes a humane look at the life of such rebel groups. The author has critical observations of life around us and every statement made has deep emotional connection. This is not your typical novel around a set of characters and their life, rather the author’s commentary on social issues and human behavior. Neel’s journey feels like the author’s autobiographical account adding authenticity.
The main drawback of the story is the slow narration in the starting pages as the author keeps moving between Delhi, Yale and Kashmir and only after the initial 50 pages or so, the reader will get a hang of the writer’s narration style. Even characters related to Neel that the author narrates keep shifting from Annie to Adaa to Aarani to Gurupriya to M; this shift initially can confuse the reader. Neel’s attempt at finding home in a person is a reason why he finds it difficult to settle down with any of the women he came across.
A riveting tale of displacement and belonging, Our Friends in Good Houses is a must read for fans of literary fiction and those who like to read characters with depth.
December 20, 2025
4.5/5 ⭐
"But he has no language at his command to convey these thoughts. He cannot find a proper idiom to tell her that even in his childhood house something felt amiss; something ached like a phantom limb. The house had many rooms; yet, his struggle was to create a space where he could feel at home. He tried to create an illusion of it sometimes, by placing bedsheets over chairs and tables, and decorating them with flowers and whatever else he could find.
Still: home remained distant."
Certainly, this is one of the most raw and intense books I read this year.
Neel, the main protagonist in this book is someone who was once uprooted and that's the trauma he carries within himself all his life. Even his decisions are affected by this sentiment of impermanence, and he suffers from this decisional paralysis specially in times of need (like he felt with Annie and then with Aarani).
He's a journalist drawn to conflicted areas, war zones where his sense of dislocation heightens because he gets to witness yet another moment of impermanence, grief, belonging and dislocation but also at the same time he feels this camaraderie with the comrades as if he was one of them and indeed.
He's a man who's always in search of home, looking into every possible place but within himself.
It's an introspective novel which raises the question 'what exactly is home?'
And it is for us readers to go on this topsy turvey journey with Neel, to accompany him till he finds his home.
Honestly, I had to put down the book so many times, not because it's not good, but because it's that good, it's raw emotionally, written beautifully in a way that you'd find yourself asking the same questions as Neel.
I think the authors succeed in their efforts when the readers are immersed in their writings and take on the main characters as their alter-egos which remains with them for a very long time. Neel is one such character for me.
I loved this book, i felt everything it wanted me to feel. Also if you haven't picked it up yet, please do. This one you shouldn't miss out.
"But he has no language at his command to convey these thoughts. He cannot find a proper idiom to tell her that even in his childhood house something felt amiss; something ached like a phantom limb. The house had many rooms; yet, his struggle was to create a space where he could feel at home. He tried to create an illusion of it sometimes, by placing bedsheets over chairs and tables, and decorating them with flowers and whatever else he could find.
Still: home remained distant."
Certainly, this is one of the most raw and intense books I read this year.
Neel, the main protagonist in this book is someone who was once uprooted and that's the trauma he carries within himself all his life. Even his decisions are affected by this sentiment of impermanence, and he suffers from this decisional paralysis specially in times of need (like he felt with Annie and then with Aarani).
He's a journalist drawn to conflicted areas, war zones where his sense of dislocation heightens because he gets to witness yet another moment of impermanence, grief, belonging and dislocation but also at the same time he feels this camaraderie with the comrades as if he was one of them and indeed.
He's a man who's always in search of home, looking into every possible place but within himself.
It's an introspective novel which raises the question 'what exactly is home?'
And it is for us readers to go on this topsy turvey journey with Neel, to accompany him till he finds his home.
Honestly, I had to put down the book so many times, not because it's not good, but because it's that good, it's raw emotionally, written beautifully in a way that you'd find yourself asking the same questions as Neel.
I think the authors succeed in their efforts when the readers are immersed in their writings and take on the main characters as their alter-egos which remains with them for a very long time. Neel is one such character for me.
I loved this book, i felt everything it wanted me to feel. Also if you haven't picked it up yet, please do. This one you shouldn't miss out.
November 26, 2025
Rahul Pandita’s new novel is a brilliant, if occasionally uneven, exploration of trauma, exile, and identity. At its heart is Niels, a conflict journalist and Kashmiri Pandit who is deeply scarred by the violent exodus of his community. This personal history fuels his profound connection to people fighting for their homeland, a theme the novel powerfully explores through its gripping focus on underground characters, such as the Maoists in central India. Pandita excels at humanizing these often-overlooked individuals and their communities, and his portrayal is so compelling it tempts one to seek out his other work on the subject.
Yet, for all its meticulous storytelling, certain aspects of Niels’s character seem underdeveloped. He is a man perpetually adrift—between loves, cities, and hinterlands—and some of his actions are difficult to grasp. As a Kashmiri Pandit, his wish to see daffodils on his grave feels culturally dissonant, and the numerous trans-cultural references, such as his desire to see David Foster Wallace’s papers, feel distracting. This extends to the philosophical concept of 'ungrund,' or 'ontological dissatisfaction,' which the novel inserts into the narrative; at times, this seems forced, even unnecessary to the story. Pandita successfully gives a sense of 'ungrund' through events and actions the story's actionrather than just naming it, which stands as one of the novel's significant achievements.
The novel’s greatest strengths emerge in its more intimate moments. When speaking of love, parents, or the lives of Adivasis, the prose is exquisitely written and deeply moving. Niels’s emotional world feels most convincing in his reflections on his father; by contrast, his romantic attachments often remain in the realm of lust and dissatisfaction. In the novel, romantic love surfaces as something dangerous and pathological—fleeting and unstable.
Pandita has written a great novel, and I hope he does not wait another decade to write his third.
Yet, for all its meticulous storytelling, certain aspects of Niels’s character seem underdeveloped. He is a man perpetually adrift—between loves, cities, and hinterlands—and some of his actions are difficult to grasp. As a Kashmiri Pandit, his wish to see daffodils on his grave feels culturally dissonant, and the numerous trans-cultural references, such as his desire to see David Foster Wallace’s papers, feel distracting. This extends to the philosophical concept of 'ungrund,' or 'ontological dissatisfaction,' which the novel inserts into the narrative; at times, this seems forced, even unnecessary to the story. Pandita successfully gives a sense of 'ungrund' through events and actions the story's actionrather than just naming it, which stands as one of the novel's significant achievements.
The novel’s greatest strengths emerge in its more intimate moments. When speaking of love, parents, or the lives of Adivasis, the prose is exquisitely written and deeply moving. Niels’s emotional world feels most convincing in his reflections on his father; by contrast, his romantic attachments often remain in the realm of lust and dissatisfaction. In the novel, romantic love surfaces as something dangerous and pathological—fleeting and unstable.
Pandita has written a great novel, and I hope he does not wait another decade to write his third.
December 25, 2025
I finished Our Friends in Good Houses with that familiar, heavy pause the one where you close the book but the story refuses to leave you. This didn’t feel like reading a novel as much as inhabiting a restless mind.
Neel stayed with me. A journalist who feels most at home in war zones, and most lost everywhere else, he is constantly in motion across countries, cities, relationships, rented rooms. And yet, the stillness he craves never arrives. What moved me deeply was how Rahul Pandita captures this quiet exile: the way Neel builds temporary lives out of objects coffee percolators, rugs, posters, penknives as if arranging a room could somehow arrange the self.
This is Rahul Pandita without the scaffolding of reportage. No urgency to explain, no need to prove. Just a deeply inward, vulnerable voice. He writes loneliness without spectacle, trauma without performance. Delhi is not romantic here; it’s bruised and unrelenting. America offers distance, not refuge. Everywhere Neel goes, he carries the same ache the longing for a home that may not exist in geography at all.
What I loved most is the novel’s refusal to resolve neatly. There are no grand answers, only difficult, honest questions. Can fleeting relationships offer shelter? Can temporary dwellings ever become anchorage? Or is home something internal, quietly assembled from memory, loss, and acceptance?
Our Friends in Good Houses is tender, provocative, and deeply unsettling in the best way. It made me think about how many of us are living in “good houses” while still feeling profoundly unhomed.
Neel stayed with me. A journalist who feels most at home in war zones, and most lost everywhere else, he is constantly in motion across countries, cities, relationships, rented rooms. And yet, the stillness he craves never arrives. What moved me deeply was how Rahul Pandita captures this quiet exile: the way Neel builds temporary lives out of objects coffee percolators, rugs, posters, penknives as if arranging a room could somehow arrange the self.
This is Rahul Pandita without the scaffolding of reportage. No urgency to explain, no need to prove. Just a deeply inward, vulnerable voice. He writes loneliness without spectacle, trauma without performance. Delhi is not romantic here; it’s bruised and unrelenting. America offers distance, not refuge. Everywhere Neel goes, he carries the same ache the longing for a home that may not exist in geography at all.
What I loved most is the novel’s refusal to resolve neatly. There are no grand answers, only difficult, honest questions. Can fleeting relationships offer shelter? Can temporary dwellings ever become anchorage? Or is home something internal, quietly assembled from memory, loss, and acceptance?
Our Friends in Good Houses is tender, provocative, and deeply unsettling in the best way. It made me think about how many of us are living in “good houses” while still feeling profoundly unhomed.
January 11, 2026
This book was not what I expected it to be. But it’s something that a lot of people in their 30s might relate to. What is life without an anchor? What do you do when you don’t have the traditional marriage-and-kids-and-lets-buy-furniture-on-the-weekend routine? Is it okay to be clueless and a drifter even in your 30s? Why is it that when you fall in love for the 105th time in your 30s you are still just as stupid as you were in your teens? I’m digressing but these are the kind of thoughts I had when I was reading about Neel and his constant feeling of detachment and never really feeling at home.
At times I felt like the book was frivolous and I wanted to be dismissive (because hello you’re a well paid writer with incredible experiences yet you’re constantly in a blue mood. People have it far worse) but something really hit home and I continued reading. I think it was partly because it inspired the deep rumination on my own life and partly because it is really, really well written.
I also enjoyed reading an Indian writer because I could relate to every bit of Neel’s life and it’s nice to read and not get lost in cultural references, for once.
I wouldn’t recommend this to my sister who is in her 20s and still has an idyllic-I-will-change-the-world-with-my-academic-papers zest for life but I will recommend it to my 30-something best friend who is just as confused (even with the husband and kid and furniture buying routine) about what is really the purpose of life?
At times I felt like the book was frivolous and I wanted to be dismissive (because hello you’re a well paid writer with incredible experiences yet you’re constantly in a blue mood. People have it far worse) but something really hit home and I continued reading. I think it was partly because it inspired the deep rumination on my own life and partly because it is really, really well written.
I also enjoyed reading an Indian writer because I could relate to every bit of Neel’s life and it’s nice to read and not get lost in cultural references, for once.
I wouldn’t recommend this to my sister who is in her 20s and still has an idyllic-I-will-change-the-world-with-my-academic-papers zest for life but I will recommend it to my 30-something best friend who is just as confused (even with the husband and kid and furniture buying routine) about what is really the purpose of life?
October 28, 2025
There is so much to write, but if I could...I would have been a writer, but I am a Sayles Man, I say a lot, but try to be meaningful.
Rahul Pandita is not just the only journalist whom I find sane in the polarized world.(equally hated by left and right but he also a phenomenal writer.
This book was long-awaited fiction by him, the first ( I have read all his books). A rare individual with public profile I want to meet so much so that universe conspired me to meet him and I passed by him on central avenue powai as he was walking and me being me didn't know if I should approach him to say hello.
I have been sending DMs to him for a while now I think six years hoping he would read them some day.
I want to sit with him and pick his brains on LWE, on his exile on that feeling of Ungrund.
The book is ordered last week and finished in two nights (I want to read books faster than that). This books hits you like thunderbolt an electric shock leaving churning thousand emotions hitting every cell, nerve, neuron leaving you sucked.
I hate this feeling so I avoid movies which churn your form Inside, I also avoid fictions but then this was Rahul Pandita.
This books has given so much to me to explore in literature that I will come back to it again may be when I will not be I rush... I think a kindle would be better it has so many references.
Rahul Pandita is not just the only journalist whom I find sane in the polarized world.(equally hated by left and right but he also a phenomenal writer.
This book was long-awaited fiction by him, the first ( I have read all his books). A rare individual with public profile I want to meet so much so that universe conspired me to meet him and I passed by him on central avenue powai as he was walking and me being me didn't know if I should approach him to say hello.
I have been sending DMs to him for a while now I think six years hoping he would read them some day.
I want to sit with him and pick his brains on LWE, on his exile on that feeling of Ungrund.
The book is ordered last week and finished in two nights (I want to read books faster than that). This books hits you like thunderbolt an electric shock leaving churning thousand emotions hitting every cell, nerve, neuron leaving you sucked.
I hate this feeling so I avoid movies which churn your form Inside, I also avoid fictions but then this was Rahul Pandita.
This books has given so much to me to explore in literature that I will come back to it again may be when I will not be I rush... I think a kindle would be better it has so many references.
November 6, 2025
The author navigates the narrative with remarkable gentleness, delving into profound themes of human connection—among revolutionaries, in romantic love, and in the fragile impermanence of home—with equal grace. His prose is articulate, delicate, poetic, and contemplative, carrying a quiet sweetness and idealism that linger long after the last page.
It’s hard not to draw parallels between Neel, the protagonist, and the author himself. Having followed his work since Our Moon, which I found deeply moving, I admit my reading of this novel comes with a touch of positive bias. Yet even so, the authenticity of his voice and the emotional intelligence of his storytelling stand firmly on their own.
If anything, I found myself wishing he had allowed space for a few more digressions—particularly about the books he references throughout the story. Brief reflections or personal insights into those works would have added another intimate layer to an already thoughtful narrative. One senses that there is much more he wanted to share, but perhaps restraint was his chosen discipline in crafting such a measured and elegant novel.
It’s hard not to draw parallels between Neel, the protagonist, and the author himself. Having followed his work since Our Moon, which I found deeply moving, I admit my reading of this novel comes with a touch of positive bias. Yet even so, the authenticity of his voice and the emotional intelligence of his storytelling stand firmly on their own.
If anything, I found myself wishing he had allowed space for a few more digressions—particularly about the books he references throughout the story. Brief reflections or personal insights into those works would have added another intimate layer to an already thoughtful narrative. One senses that there is much more he wanted to share, but perhaps restraint was his chosen discipline in crafting such a measured and elegant novel.
December 15, 2025
Some books you read and move on with another book, but book "Our Friends In Good Houses "questions the basic "What Is Home"?
Isn't home is the place where you feel safe, have belongingness, identity and comfort or due to violence/bloodshed you have to exile to another place leaving behind shaky voices, empty chairs or locked doors as the cover of the book also depicts the same...
The book is deeply moving story about Neel ,a journalist who searches for a real home after leaving kashmir in the 1990's moving through places like Delhi and America with short stays and quick relationships.
The author writes honestly, with feelings diving deep into Neil's inner pain. The novel shows how he handles loss,feeling lost and wanting something in a shaky world. Neil's story reflects anyone who's felt alone ,that home is more occupying yourself than a place..
"Our Friends In Good Houses" novel is like a double edged sword it take you into the world and into the heart directly..the novel is a introspective Indian literature, its short and gentle, it stays with you if you've ever felt rootless...make you even think why the world is not too worm or cozy...
Isn't home is the place where you feel safe, have belongingness, identity and comfort or due to violence/bloodshed you have to exile to another place leaving behind shaky voices, empty chairs or locked doors as the cover of the book also depicts the same...
The book is deeply moving story about Neel ,a journalist who searches for a real home after leaving kashmir in the 1990's moving through places like Delhi and America with short stays and quick relationships.
The author writes honestly, with feelings diving deep into Neil's inner pain. The novel shows how he handles loss,feeling lost and wanting something in a shaky world. Neil's story reflects anyone who's felt alone ,that home is more occupying yourself than a place..
"Our Friends In Good Houses" novel is like a double edged sword it take you into the world and into the heart directly..the novel is a introspective Indian literature, its short and gentle, it stays with you if you've ever felt rootless...make you even think why the world is not too worm or cozy...
December 15, 2025
So, you know that feeling of being totally lost? Like,where is home,even?
Rahul Pandita's first novel,Our Friends in Good Houses is about that.
It’s a super-deep,kind of haunting story about just trying to belong.
The main guy is Neel,a war journalist.He's always chasing trouble,running toward war zones because,weirdly,that gory chaos gives him a moment of peace from the noise in his own head.
He feels disconnected like a total outsider.
Neel basically travels everywhere,from the US to Delhi & deep into the jungles in India,trying to find his footing.
He has these short,fleeting relationships & he's constantly forced to deal with his past,especially the women he's loved- this is the part that's just hauntingly beautiful.
It’s all about a search for stability and companionship.
𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗯𝗼𝗼𝗸 𝗶𝘀 𝗯𝗮𝘀𝗶𝗰𝗮𝗹𝗹𝘆 𝘀𝗮𝘆𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗵𝗮𝗿𝗱𝗲𝘀𝘁 𝗽𝗹𝗮𝗰𝗲 𝘁𝗼 𝗳𝗶𝗻𝗱 "𝗵𝗼𝗺𝗲" 𝗶𝘀 𝗮𝗰𝘁𝘂𝗮𝗹𝗹𝘆 𝗶𝗻𝘀𝗶𝗱𝗲 𝘆𝗼𝘂𝗿𝘀𝗲𝗹𝗳.𝗜𝘁'𝘀 𝗮 𝗽𝗼𝘄𝗲𝗿𝗳𝘂𝗹 𝗹𝗼𝗼𝗸 𝗮𝘁 𝗶𝗱𝗲𝗻𝘁𝗶𝘁𝘆,𝗺𝗲𝗺𝗼𝗿𝘆 & 𝗳𝗲𝗲𝗹𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗱𝗶𝘀𝗽𝗹𝗮𝗰𝗲𝗱.
𝗦𝗶𝗻𝗰𝗲 𝗣𝗮𝗻𝗱𝗶𝘁𝗮 𝘄𝗮𝘀 𝗮 𝘄𝗮𝗿 𝗷𝗼𝘂𝗿𝗻𝗮𝗹𝗶𝘀𝘁 𝗵𝗶𝗺𝘀𝗲𝗹𝗳, 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝘄𝗵𝗼𝗹𝗲 𝘀𝘁𝗼𝗿𝘆 𝗳𝗲𝗲𝗹𝘀 𝘀𝘂𝗽𝗲𝗿 𝗿𝗲𝗮𝗹 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗶𝗻𝘁𝗲𝗻𝘀𝗲.
𝗜𝗳 𝘆𝗼𝘂'𝘃𝗲 𝗲𝘃𝗲𝗿 𝗳𝗲𝗹𝘁 𝗿𝗼𝗼𝘁𝗹𝗲𝘀𝘀 𝗼𝗿 𝗹𝗶𝗸𝗲 𝘆𝗼𝘂'𝗿𝗲 𝘀𝗲𝗮𝗿𝗰𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝘀𝗼𝗺𝗲𝘁𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗴, 𝘁𝗵𝗶𝘀 𝗼𝗻𝗲 𝗶𝘀 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝘆𝗼𝘂.
Rahul Pandita's first novel,Our Friends in Good Houses is about that.
It’s a super-deep,kind of haunting story about just trying to belong.
The main guy is Neel,a war journalist.He's always chasing trouble,running toward war zones because,weirdly,that gory chaos gives him a moment of peace from the noise in his own head.
He feels disconnected like a total outsider.
Neel basically travels everywhere,from the US to Delhi & deep into the jungles in India,trying to find his footing.
He has these short,fleeting relationships & he's constantly forced to deal with his past,especially the women he's loved- this is the part that's just hauntingly beautiful.
It’s all about a search for stability and companionship.
𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗯𝗼𝗼𝗸 𝗶𝘀 𝗯𝗮𝘀𝗶𝗰𝗮𝗹𝗹𝘆 𝘀𝗮𝘆𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗵𝗮𝗿𝗱𝗲𝘀𝘁 𝗽𝗹𝗮𝗰𝗲 𝘁𝗼 𝗳𝗶𝗻𝗱 "𝗵𝗼𝗺𝗲" 𝗶𝘀 𝗮𝗰𝘁𝘂𝗮𝗹𝗹𝘆 𝗶𝗻𝘀𝗶𝗱𝗲 𝘆𝗼𝘂𝗿𝘀𝗲𝗹𝗳.𝗜𝘁'𝘀 𝗮 𝗽𝗼𝘄𝗲𝗿𝗳𝘂𝗹 𝗹𝗼𝗼𝗸 𝗮𝘁 𝗶𝗱𝗲𝗻𝘁𝗶𝘁𝘆,𝗺𝗲𝗺𝗼𝗿𝘆 & 𝗳𝗲𝗲𝗹𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗱𝗶𝘀𝗽𝗹𝗮𝗰𝗲𝗱.
𝗦𝗶𝗻𝗰𝗲 𝗣𝗮𝗻𝗱𝗶𝘁𝗮 𝘄𝗮𝘀 𝗮 𝘄𝗮𝗿 𝗷𝗼𝘂𝗿𝗻𝗮𝗹𝗶𝘀𝘁 𝗵𝗶𝗺𝘀𝗲𝗹𝗳, 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝘄𝗵𝗼𝗹𝗲 𝘀𝘁𝗼𝗿𝘆 𝗳𝗲𝗲𝗹𝘀 𝘀𝘂𝗽𝗲𝗿 𝗿𝗲𝗮𝗹 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗶𝗻𝘁𝗲𝗻𝘀𝗲.
𝗜𝗳 𝘆𝗼𝘂'𝘃𝗲 𝗲𝘃𝗲𝗿 𝗳𝗲𝗹𝘁 𝗿𝗼𝗼𝘁𝗹𝗲𝘀𝘀 𝗼𝗿 𝗹𝗶𝗸𝗲 𝘆𝗼𝘂'𝗿𝗲 𝘀𝗲𝗮𝗿𝗰𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝘀𝗼𝗺𝗲𝘁𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗴, 𝘁𝗵𝗶𝘀 𝗼𝗻𝗲 𝗶𝘀 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝘆𝗼𝘂.
December 15, 2025
I went into Our Friends In Good Houses expecting a quiet, introspective novel, and I came out feeling deeply unsettled in the best possible way. Neel’s constant movement through war zones, cities, relationships, and temporary homes mirrors a restlessness that feels painfully real. As I read, I kept sensing his need for belonging, not just to a place, but to himself.
What struck me most was how loneliness seeps into every page. Even in moments of intimacy or professional purpose, Neel feels detached, as if he is always passing through life rather than living inside it. Rahul Pandita’s writing is spare yet powerful, capturing emotional dislocation without over explaining it. The objects Neel collects, the rooms he inhabits briefly, and the relationships that flicker and fade all feel symbolic of a deeper search for anchorage.
This book made me pause and reflect on what home truly means. Is it a place, a person, or an inner calm we spend our lives chasing? Thoughtful, vulnerable, and quietly haunting, this novel stayed with me long after I turned the last page.
What struck me most was how loneliness seeps into every page. Even in moments of intimacy or professional purpose, Neel feels detached, as if he is always passing through life rather than living inside it. Rahul Pandita’s writing is spare yet powerful, capturing emotional dislocation without over explaining it. The objects Neel collects, the rooms he inhabits briefly, and the relationships that flicker and fade all feel symbolic of a deeper search for anchorage.
This book made me pause and reflect on what home truly means. Is it a place, a person, or an inner calm we spend our lives chasing? Thoughtful, vulnerable, and quietly haunting, this novel stayed with me long after I turned the last page.
December 15, 2025
🍀Book- Our Friends In Good Houses
🍀Author - Rahul Pandita
🍀 Review - The story follows Neel, a man lost between cities like America, Delhi, and war-torn India. He struggles with lost love, real home and painful memories.
The book talks about loneliness, detachment and walking through the past memories. The book jumps through time smoothly and feels very real. Its strength is the honest look at rootlessness and conflict. It avoids easy heroes or bad guys. The writing is simple, poetic, and mixes personal pain with big issues like war and moving.
🍀Strengths-
- The honesty with which the author writes about the pain of loosing one’s place and getting relocated connects with the reader immediately.
- The writing has got emotional depth which gnaws your heart and stays with you forever.
- The transition through the times is very smooth and the story maintains its flow.
🍀Audience-If you like deep and quiet stories, if you love going down the memory lane and if you want a story that stays with you then pick this one.
🍀Author - Rahul Pandita
🍀 Review - The story follows Neel, a man lost between cities like America, Delhi, and war-torn India. He struggles with lost love, real home and painful memories.
The book talks about loneliness, detachment and walking through the past memories. The book jumps through time smoothly and feels very real. Its strength is the honest look at rootlessness and conflict. It avoids easy heroes or bad guys. The writing is simple, poetic, and mixes personal pain with big issues like war and moving.
🍀Strengths-
- The honesty with which the author writes about the pain of loosing one’s place and getting relocated connects with the reader immediately.
- The writing has got emotional depth which gnaws your heart and stays with you forever.
- The transition through the times is very smooth and the story maintains its flow.
🍀Audience-If you like deep and quiet stories, if you love going down the memory lane and if you want a story that stays with you then pick this one.
December 16, 2025
Some stories don’t rush to impress you. They stay quiet at first, then slip under your skin when you least expect it.
This book does exactly that.
We follow Neel a man drifting through cities, conflicts, memories, and the weight of everything he’s tried to outrun. His life moves from America to Delhi and finally into the Maoist torn heart of India, where every step forces him to face what he’s been burying: love that didn’t last, places that never felt like home, and a loneliness that sits in the bones.
What struck me most is how effortlessly Pandita blends the personal with the political. The story doesn’t paint heroes or villains it shows how war, displacement, and longing blur every line. It’s tender, unsettling, and full of moments that make you pause and breathe a little slower.
If you’ve ever felt uprooted, misunderstood, or caught between the past and the present, this book will feel uncomfortably close but in the best possible way.
✨ A heavy, haunting, and deeply human read.
The kind of novel that doesn’t just tell a story but leaves a mark.
This book does exactly that.
We follow Neel a man drifting through cities, conflicts, memories, and the weight of everything he’s tried to outrun. His life moves from America to Delhi and finally into the Maoist torn heart of India, where every step forces him to face what he’s been burying: love that didn’t last, places that never felt like home, and a loneliness that sits in the bones.
What struck me most is how effortlessly Pandita blends the personal with the political. The story doesn’t paint heroes or villains it shows how war, displacement, and longing blur every line. It’s tender, unsettling, and full of moments that make you pause and breathe a little slower.
If you’ve ever felt uprooted, misunderstood, or caught between the past and the present, this book will feel uncomfortably close but in the best possible way.
✨ A heavy, haunting, and deeply human read.
The kind of novel that doesn’t just tell a story but leaves a mark.
January 5, 2026
Rahul Pandita's debut novel Our Friends in Good Houses is a cozy yet heartfelt vibe-check on love, loss, longing, and that endless hunt for "home" turning his own uprooted life into something we all kinda feel.
Meet Neel, our wandering war journalist bouncing from war zones to chill spots in America and urban dystopia of Delhi, chasing feels amid the mess.
Pandita slides into fiction like a pro, sprinkling real-life migration magic everywhere. It's got this sweet, sneaky love story mixed with "where do I even belong?" vibes, plus cute details like rugs and coffee pots, posters and penknives that scream "temporary nest.This novel ventures inside the mind of a character , to explore what happens when a man longs for moorings .
"The writing? Super chill and immersive, like late-night chats with a wise friend—gritty journo edge meets soft, dreamy melancholy that sneaks up on you. No heavy drama, just that lingering "aww, roots?" feeling. Home's not a place, it's you owning your story.
Meet Neel, our wandering war journalist bouncing from war zones to chill spots in America and urban dystopia of Delhi, chasing feels amid the mess.
Pandita slides into fiction like a pro, sprinkling real-life migration magic everywhere. It's got this sweet, sneaky love story mixed with "where do I even belong?" vibes, plus cute details like rugs and coffee pots, posters and penknives that scream "temporary nest.This novel ventures inside the mind of a character , to explore what happens when a man longs for moorings .
"The writing? Super chill and immersive, like late-night chats with a wise friend—gritty journo edge meets soft, dreamy melancholy that sneaks up on you. No heavy drama, just that lingering "aww, roots?" feeling. Home's not a place, it's you owning your story.
January 9, 2026
'Our Friends in Good Houses' by Rahul Pandita is a book that felt just like the cover. I picked up the book for the cover, which felt calm, thoughtful and reassuring. And I must say, I wasn't disappointed at all. The story is unputdownable. The protagonist of the story- Neel, is a simple and relatable character. He is flawed in the most human ways. The book made me feel emotions which I didn't know existed.
Neel's journey keeps bringing him back to the chaos of war zones, which is ironic. Home is meant to be a place where you feel safe. But Neel keeps coming back to the chaos. In the story, the protagonist travels places, in search of a place of belonging.
The book was deeply emotional. It's just the kind of book that quietly pulls you into the story and stays with you. Themes of the book include detachment, loneliness and search for home. It's recommended if you're looking for something which feels close to your heart, political and personal, and something which eases something in you.
Neel's journey keeps bringing him back to the chaos of war zones, which is ironic. Home is meant to be a place where you feel safe. But Neel keeps coming back to the chaos. In the story, the protagonist travels places, in search of a place of belonging.
The book was deeply emotional. It's just the kind of book that quietly pulls you into the story and stays with you. Themes of the book include detachment, loneliness and search for home. It's recommended if you're looking for something which feels close to your heart, political and personal, and something which eases something in you.
December 19, 2025
What is home when you’re always moving?
This was something I pondered alot in my childhood as we used to move cities frequently and this book beautifully explains about this.
Neel is a restless young journalist who feels out of place in his own skin. Haunted by a past he can’t shake and exiled from the present, he chases conflict zones like a moth to a flame, hoping the chaos will drown his alienation. After hopping from the U.S. to Delhi, he finds himself deep in India’s Maoist‑filled jungles, a place of danger and rebellion where memories of lost loves clash with the gritty reality of people fighting for their homeland.
The novel blends exile, memory, and history, showing the author’s talent for turning real‑world reporting into art. It’s a bold, emotionally rich start to a promising literary voice.
The author writes with a reporter’s precision and a poet’s soul. His prose swings from lyrical to grounded, painting dusty Delhi streets and quiet cafés alike. The narrative feels alive, pulling you into Neel’s fragile search for belonging while whispering about identity and the sanctuary we crave.
In short, it is a beautiful, human tale that stays with you. Overall, a great pick if you are looking for relatable, calming and thought provoking read.
This was something I pondered alot in my childhood as we used to move cities frequently and this book beautifully explains about this.
Neel is a restless young journalist who feels out of place in his own skin. Haunted by a past he can’t shake and exiled from the present, he chases conflict zones like a moth to a flame, hoping the chaos will drown his alienation. After hopping from the U.S. to Delhi, he finds himself deep in India’s Maoist‑filled jungles, a place of danger and rebellion where memories of lost loves clash with the gritty reality of people fighting for their homeland.
The novel blends exile, memory, and history, showing the author’s talent for turning real‑world reporting into art. It’s a bold, emotionally rich start to a promising literary voice.
The author writes with a reporter’s precision and a poet’s soul. His prose swings from lyrical to grounded, painting dusty Delhi streets and quiet cafés alike. The narrative feels alive, pulling you into Neel’s fragile search for belonging while whispering about identity and the sanctuary we crave.
In short, it is a beautiful, human tale that stays with you. Overall, a great pick if you are looking for relatable, calming and thought provoking read.
December 5, 2025
Finished it last evening.
The author uses epitomes of a lonely heart a way that is poetic yet sad at the same time by means of his lead character, Neel, which seems heavily inspired by the life and chronicles of the author himself.
It takes to a journey from the Naxal movement Hinterlands to the 2000s US.
A story that oscillates between Telegrams to Text messages and Instagram.
But one thing that remains constant is the Lead Characters ache to find a metaphorical home, in people and in places.
The ending though sets the foundation on a satisfactory note, but I as a reader didn't find the closure like I wanted to.
But I guess you don't find happy endings everywhere, sometimes you just have to visualise how the story would go from here, after the lead has finally found the way to his closure.
The author uses epitomes of a lonely heart a way that is poetic yet sad at the same time by means of his lead character, Neel, which seems heavily inspired by the life and chronicles of the author himself.
It takes to a journey from the Naxal movement Hinterlands to the 2000s US.
A story that oscillates between Telegrams to Text messages and Instagram.
But one thing that remains constant is the Lead Characters ache to find a metaphorical home, in people and in places.
The ending though sets the foundation on a satisfactory note, but I as a reader didn't find the closure like I wanted to.
But I guess you don't find happy endings everywhere, sometimes you just have to visualise how the story would go from here, after the lead has finally found the way to his closure.
January 1, 2026
Our Friends in Good Houses is a novel about restlessness, about the ache of wanting to belong and not knowing where that belonging can be found. It captures the feeling of being in motion for so long that stillness begins to feel unfamiliar.
What stands out most is the emotional honesty. The book doesn’t romanticise displacement or loneliness; it shows how exhausting it can be to keep searching, to keep hoping that the next place, the next connection, the next version of life will finally feel like home.
The narrative is reflective and introspective, asks difficult questions about memory, identity, and the spaces we inhabit both physical and emotional.
This is a book for readers who enjoy literary fiction that looks inward.
Our Friends in Good Houses doesn’t tell you where home is. It simply reminds you how human it is to keep looking.
What stands out most is the emotional honesty. The book doesn’t romanticise displacement or loneliness; it shows how exhausting it can be to keep searching, to keep hoping that the next place, the next connection, the next version of life will finally feel like home.
The narrative is reflective and introspective, asks difficult questions about memory, identity, and the spaces we inhabit both physical and emotional.
This is a book for readers who enjoy literary fiction that looks inward.
Our Friends in Good Houses doesn’t tell you where home is. It simply reminds you how human it is to keep looking.
November 30, 2025
A moving novel, "Our Friends in Good Houses" by Rahul Pandita follows Neel, a journalist drawn to conflict zones, as he searches for stability and belonging. The narrative contrasts Neel’s tumultuous external journey through war and displacement with his inner quest for peace. Pandita explores themes of loss and identity, suggesting that home is about self-acceptance rather than geography. The novel reflects on universal feelings of disconnection, portraying the fragile beauty of finding belonging amidst uncertainty through poignant details and the author's personal insights as a war journalist.
December 30, 2025
This book presents a loss of hope, home, and belonging, explored in an introspective manner as the characters attempt to rediscover them. It portrays the complexities of human life through situations woven around a narrative of lost homes and fading hopes. The fictional storyline deeply engages sensory memories, feelings of belonging, and meaningful conversations. At its core, the story is about the search for a home away from home, shaped by a profound sense of loss of identity, of home, and of exile.
Overall, it is a deeply sensible and moving story of Neel, who is exiled from his home and embarks on a journey to find a new one
Overall, it is a deeply sensible and moving story of Neel, who is exiled from his home and embarks on a journey to find a new one
December 13, 2025
A fictional novel with intense storyline with emotional attribution, traveling abroad and dislocation and many more.
Here we meet the protagonist NEEL who is a journalist and he has to confront situations which make him feel out of place . This is not just finding a home when someone feels frightened and out of place but it's finding solace finding joy and In search of so traveling from abroad to Delhi
This is the author's debut novel which shows the double journey of the story . It has a lot of vulnerability, provocation and astute and so much more
Recommended
Here we meet the protagonist NEEL who is a journalist and he has to confront situations which make him feel out of place . This is not just finding a home when someone feels frightened and out of place but it's finding solace finding joy and In search of so traveling from abroad to Delhi
This is the author's debut novel which shows the double journey of the story . It has a lot of vulnerability, provocation and astute and so much more
Recommended
December 16, 2025
Rahul Pandita’s Our Friends in Good Houses is a tender, introspective novel about the ache of displacement and the lifelong search for belonging. Through Neel, a journalist haunted by memories, movements and losses, Pandita builds a narrative that feels both intimate and universal. The novel drifts between India, conflict zones, and America, but its real geography is emotional tracing how home can exist as a memory, a wound, or a quiet place within ourselves.
Pandita’s strength lies in his ability to translate the loneliness of exile into clean, meditative prose. His storytelling is reflective rather than plot-heavy, but every page carries a lived-in truth, shaped by his own years in conflict reporting. The philosophical undertones especially the idea of “Ungrund,” or being unrooted stay with you long after the last line.
Pandita’s strength lies in his ability to translate the loneliness of exile into clean, meditative prose. His storytelling is reflective rather than plot-heavy, but every page carries a lived-in truth, shaped by his own years in conflict reporting. The philosophical undertones especially the idea of “Ungrund,” or being unrooted stay with you long after the last line.
December 30, 2025
A haunting and poetic exploration of what it means to belong and what it feels like to lose that belonging. The novel follows Neel, a journalist whose life has been shaped by displacement and war zones.
The book reflects on loss, yearning, love and fragile connection in a restless world
Reader finds himself questioning? Is it a place or a person or something deeply special to you that grounds you?
The book reflects on loss, yearning, love and fragile connection in a restless world
Reader finds himself questioning? Is it a place or a person or something deeply special to you that grounds you?
December 20, 2025
well written and moves you in a lot of excerpts but hard to see a cohesive story line. while loss is the undercurrent of this book, it's in so many dissipated instances that you are never part of it
December 26, 2025
Our Friends in Good Houses—Rahul Pandita
The cover and title made me read it. Seeing the title, I was looking forward to a feel-good story, but it made me think wisely about what home is. Home is a place that makes us feel safe. But for Neel, even his home felt displaced.
Neel, a journalist who covers war, leaves his home back in the 1990s. He tries to fit into the place, but he never gets the feeling of fitting in. His short stays in the States and his relationships show the inner pain Neel carries throughout the book. Anyone who has been alone will deeply resonate with it.
The story is a complex read, yet you feel you know how Neel navigates his pain. The author has wonderfully crafted the story. Being a war journalist, his writing feels deeply rooted. One of the rawest books I have ever read. It was painful, and even after finishing the narration, it settles in the mind forever. If you love reading complex stories, go ahead.
The cover and title made me read it. Seeing the title, I was looking forward to a feel-good story, but it made me think wisely about what home is. Home is a place that makes us feel safe. But for Neel, even his home felt displaced.
Neel, a journalist who covers war, leaves his home back in the 1990s. He tries to fit into the place, but he never gets the feeling of fitting in. His short stays in the States and his relationships show the inner pain Neel carries throughout the book. Anyone who has been alone will deeply resonate with it.
The story is a complex read, yet you feel you know how Neel navigates his pain. The author has wonderfully crafted the story. Being a war journalist, his writing feels deeply rooted. One of the rawest books I have ever read. It was painful, and even after finishing the narration, it settles in the mind forever. If you love reading complex stories, go ahead.
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