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Hallowed Ties
Lily has dreams and ambitions but society and the men in her life have different plans for her. From the ambitious and girl full of dreams, Lily navigates tragedy, heartbreak and moves continents in search of peace and fulfilment. She had moved on, forgetting the life she had left behind. However, fate takes her back to where it all started — a place she was forced to leave. She finds harmony in the past and discovers the true meaning of happiness in the places she ignored.
256 pages, Paperback
First published August 11, 2021
4 people want to read
About the author
Sudatta Mukherjee
1 book21 followersBorn in the 90s Calcutta, Sudatta Mukherjee has been a sports journalist for almost a decade. She has worked with Zee Entertainment Private Ltd and US' Penske Media Corporation’s JV in India, CricketCountry.com, and The Hindu group’s Sportstar magazine in the past. In 2010, she was interviewed by India Today as one of the young bloggers from Kolkata. Sudatta is a co-founder and director of an Aerospace and Defense organization, based out of the U.S. and India. She still works independently as a sports journalist. She lives in Chennai with her tabby cat.
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Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews
October 12, 2021
Do you ever read a book and feel that the person in the story is you?
I felt. Very close to Lily. The woman with ambitions. The woman who seeks freedom. The woman who wants to love. Who loves, a lot. But does not know how to fight the two worlds she is living in. Lily does not know how to find a way out when she is torn between two entirely different things.
Hallowed Ties by Sudatta Mukherjee is a coming-of-age story of Lily who grows up with dreams in her eyes. She loves Calcutta but believes that her escape from patriarchal norms would only be to seek education. She moves to London and then life further takes her around Cambridge and Melbourne.
In between moving, Lily finds herself grappling to hold on to connections. There's a void. There's emptiness. Grief. Love takes its time to finally reach Lily and make her open her heart to let it go. Acceptance comes by. Life becomes easier.
Hallowed Ties revolves as much around Lily as it does around people close to her. Be it her super supportive father, her traditional mother, her loving siblings, and then loves of her life. The story flows smoothly and one cannot stop but move along the way, observing Lily's predicament, heartbreak, disappointments, and grief.
Sudatta has beautifully fleshed out the characters and given them a chance to speak for themselves. I found a home in Lily. She is full of flaws, indecisive and probably, hard to understand. But all she desires is some space. And that's perfectly okay! Not just Lily, each character has its shortcomings which are not fully justifiable. That makes them real.
The quaint old Calcutta comes alive in the narrative that meanders through several alleys. The world-building of Hallowed Ties took me by surprise and kept me hooked to the book. I was thoroughly invested in the story that opens up, a layer after another.
While the story shares about the limited freedom granted to women, it also sheds light on living with grief. That grief never disappears.
One simply learns to co-exist with grief.
And this is the truth. One that Lily realises eventually.
Read this book for its story, excellent storytelling, relatable characters, and a variety of perspectives.
I felt. Very close to Lily. The woman with ambitions. The woman who seeks freedom. The woman who wants to love. Who loves, a lot. But does not know how to fight the two worlds she is living in. Lily does not know how to find a way out when she is torn between two entirely different things.
Hallowed Ties by Sudatta Mukherjee is a coming-of-age story of Lily who grows up with dreams in her eyes. She loves Calcutta but believes that her escape from patriarchal norms would only be to seek education. She moves to London and then life further takes her around Cambridge and Melbourne.
In between moving, Lily finds herself grappling to hold on to connections. There's a void. There's emptiness. Grief. Love takes its time to finally reach Lily and make her open her heart to let it go. Acceptance comes by. Life becomes easier.
Hallowed Ties revolves as much around Lily as it does around people close to her. Be it her super supportive father, her traditional mother, her loving siblings, and then loves of her life. The story flows smoothly and one cannot stop but move along the way, observing Lily's predicament, heartbreak, disappointments, and grief.
Sudatta has beautifully fleshed out the characters and given them a chance to speak for themselves. I found a home in Lily. She is full of flaws, indecisive and probably, hard to understand. But all she desires is some space. And that's perfectly okay! Not just Lily, each character has its shortcomings which are not fully justifiable. That makes them real.
The quaint old Calcutta comes alive in the narrative that meanders through several alleys. The world-building of Hallowed Ties took me by surprise and kept me hooked to the book. I was thoroughly invested in the story that opens up, a layer after another.
While the story shares about the limited freedom granted to women, it also sheds light on living with grief. That grief never disappears.
One simply learns to co-exist with grief.
And this is the truth. One that Lily realises eventually.
Read this book for its story, excellent storytelling, relatable characters, and a variety of perspectives.
January 18, 2022
I am not romanticising when I call this tale of grief beautiful. Beautiful is the way the story pans out - as if one has lived the tale as one of the Mukherjees or an observer. Hallowed Ties is Lily’s story. Lily is someone most of us can identify with. She doesn’t desire the world, she just desires her world to function how she prefers. Ambitious and breaking patriarchal norms, Lily, the youngest in the family has a clash with her favourite family member, and things change forever. Lily is any ambitious young woman in her 30s or 40s today, and most is us might find ourselves looking out from her tragedies and heartbreaks.
September 22, 2021
As the name says, Hallowed Ties is all about Lily who grapples with every connection she makes with the people in her life, including herself. This is a coming-of-age story of a woman trying and failing to live up to the expectations set up and built for her. When she decides to make her own big decision, her family rejects it. She’s torn between two worlds — literally, because she matures in the West with her roots in India. Emotionally too, because she’s struggling to come to terms with the conflict that her internal and external selves are facing.
Lily is the central character around whom the story revolves and unfurls itself. We see Lily right from the time she’s a child until she’s old enough to have her own. Lily doesn’t rebel or throw tantrums as a teenager. She’s loved — pampered too. Her dreams and ambitions are encouraged. Her father is her undaunted support. The story begins in Calcutta, travels across London, Cambridge and Melbourne and finally ends in Sydney. With every movement and every place, Lily deals with a new version of herself — heartbreaks, death, displacement and a sudden urge to live her life differently.
The book opens with a lot of chaos and action. The house is teeming with people and discussions. That setting also demonstrates Lily’s state of mind and serves as a great opener. As a reader, I was curious to know where this was taking me.
Lily, like every person, is a byproduct of what she sees, feels and experiences. She changes with every new experience, but she doesn’t allow herself to feel everything fully. So, she seemed confused, fickle minded and in denial of her reality. In some parts she labels herself as selfish. I disagree with that. She did what she could to deal with the situation in the way that made sense to her at that point. Lily doesn’t have any friendships or close relationships with anyone— and I couldn’t understand why.
Lily’s father is supportive of her choices, but his character is fuzzy. He’s stubborn, difficult to get through, but confused in the values he perpetuates. Her mother tries to survive within the patriarchal limits of the house, and that’s evident throughout the book, even in Lily’s language towards her mother. Her siblings are pliable. When their parents tell them to leave Lily out of something, they follow it. When Lily decides to hide something from her parents, they agree with Lily. It’s quite difficult to grasp where their allegiance lies. Lily’s relationship with her sister Jhinuk too, feels superficial — probably because Jhinuk was busy with her child, or because Lily was aloof because of her grief. I couldn’t believe that her father would hurt Lily the most. But he too is not held accountable for his actions. Every issue in the family was swept under the rug. This made the story real and believable.
I like Sudatta’s world-building and plotting. She has breathed life into every character. They each have a specific role, and their presence (dialogue and interaction) accelerates the story forward. Lily is also lucky because she gets a family in Australia like her family in India. The circle expands, and Lily is never alone. In Australia she hardly has the time to sit with her grief or trauma to explore the depths of it. As a reader, I was rooting for Lily to get some alone time and process the events in her life before making big life decisions.
Sudatta’s language flows freely. Sometimes, the writer falls back on clichéd dialogues or language that make you cringe, especially when Luke is described sexually, or when he does certain things. In Australia, the logistical explanations with multiple people and places made it hard for me to follow the storyline. For example, whenever the story moved between Cronulla and Byron Bay, everything was explained in minute detail when it was not necessary. Some dialogues by Australian speakers sounded more Indian than Australian, and I wondered why the writer made that choice.
Both the genders in the story had clear roles and duties. The women were huddled in the kitchen. The men retired to the living room to read newspapers and have tea or whisky. Lily’s family had no qualms (except for when they saw a single bed for two people) about her living with a male roommate in Cambridge. While it reiterated their openness, that was surprising for me. I hoped to see some role reversals at home too. The male characters don’t help the women in the household chores. Was this crucial to the story? It probably was — for it affirms the fact that their openness doesn’t mean complete freedom. There were always limits.
Grief doesn’t leave you ever. It diminishes, but it doesn’t disappear. When Lily decides to ‘get over’ William to give Luke a shot — the setting in which the decision takes place is shown rather dramatically. I didn’t agree with the writer’s treatment of grief. Lily is still mired in the patriarchal realms of life, for even when she names her children, she uses the father’s surname and not any part of her own. It gave me the sense that Lily is still trying to work with every layer she’s been presented with.
Although the story ended well, it left me with a void I couldn’t understand. This story has the potential to turn into a full-fledged novel — way longer than it is right now. It has many layers, and every layer must be explored.
Lily is the central character around whom the story revolves and unfurls itself. We see Lily right from the time she’s a child until she’s old enough to have her own. Lily doesn’t rebel or throw tantrums as a teenager. She’s loved — pampered too. Her dreams and ambitions are encouraged. Her father is her undaunted support. The story begins in Calcutta, travels across London, Cambridge and Melbourne and finally ends in Sydney. With every movement and every place, Lily deals with a new version of herself — heartbreaks, death, displacement and a sudden urge to live her life differently.
The book opens with a lot of chaos and action. The house is teeming with people and discussions. That setting also demonstrates Lily’s state of mind and serves as a great opener. As a reader, I was curious to know where this was taking me.
Lily, like every person, is a byproduct of what she sees, feels and experiences. She changes with every new experience, but she doesn’t allow herself to feel everything fully. So, she seemed confused, fickle minded and in denial of her reality. In some parts she labels herself as selfish. I disagree with that. She did what she could to deal with the situation in the way that made sense to her at that point. Lily doesn’t have any friendships or close relationships with anyone— and I couldn’t understand why.
Lily’s father is supportive of her choices, but his character is fuzzy. He’s stubborn, difficult to get through, but confused in the values he perpetuates. Her mother tries to survive within the patriarchal limits of the house, and that’s evident throughout the book, even in Lily’s language towards her mother. Her siblings are pliable. When their parents tell them to leave Lily out of something, they follow it. When Lily decides to hide something from her parents, they agree with Lily. It’s quite difficult to grasp where their allegiance lies. Lily’s relationship with her sister Jhinuk too, feels superficial — probably because Jhinuk was busy with her child, or because Lily was aloof because of her grief. I couldn’t believe that her father would hurt Lily the most. But he too is not held accountable for his actions. Every issue in the family was swept under the rug. This made the story real and believable.
I like Sudatta’s world-building and plotting. She has breathed life into every character. They each have a specific role, and their presence (dialogue and interaction) accelerates the story forward. Lily is also lucky because she gets a family in Australia like her family in India. The circle expands, and Lily is never alone. In Australia she hardly has the time to sit with her grief or trauma to explore the depths of it. As a reader, I was rooting for Lily to get some alone time and process the events in her life before making big life decisions.
Sudatta’s language flows freely. Sometimes, the writer falls back on clichéd dialogues or language that make you cringe, especially when Luke is described sexually, or when he does certain things. In Australia, the logistical explanations with multiple people and places made it hard for me to follow the storyline. For example, whenever the story moved between Cronulla and Byron Bay, everything was explained in minute detail when it was not necessary. Some dialogues by Australian speakers sounded more Indian than Australian, and I wondered why the writer made that choice.
Both the genders in the story had clear roles and duties. The women were huddled in the kitchen. The men retired to the living room to read newspapers and have tea or whisky. Lily’s family had no qualms (except for when they saw a single bed for two people) about her living with a male roommate in Cambridge. While it reiterated their openness, that was surprising for me. I hoped to see some role reversals at home too. The male characters don’t help the women in the household chores. Was this crucial to the story? It probably was — for it affirms the fact that their openness doesn’t mean complete freedom. There were always limits.
Grief doesn’t leave you ever. It diminishes, but it doesn’t disappear. When Lily decides to ‘get over’ William to give Luke a shot — the setting in which the decision takes place is shown rather dramatically. I didn’t agree with the writer’s treatment of grief. Lily is still mired in the patriarchal realms of life, for even when she names her children, she uses the father’s surname and not any part of her own. It gave me the sense that Lily is still trying to work with every layer she’s been presented with.
Although the story ended well, it left me with a void I couldn’t understand. This story has the potential to turn into a full-fledged novel — way longer than it is right now. It has many layers, and every layer must be explored.
November 9, 2021
I read Hallowed Ties almost 4-5 months before it was published. I remember telling Sudatta, this is very Jhumpa Lahiri-ish and I still stand by that word of mine. You ask me why? Because it’s so layered and multi-faceted in its own way that it makes you think about Lily, the protagonist, and what she is going through in her life. You feel for her; you feel her pain, sadness, and everything in between. Somewhere you also feel Lily is very selfish when you see it from outside, but when you delve into the story more you realise Lily isn’t selfish but a very selfless person and only a few in the world will understand this. Somewhere I also resonated with what Lily wants in her life. This story crosses multiple time zones, countries, and generations. You feel there is too much happening, but it isn’t. It’s just a normal Indian household going through their own battles of staying together.
Sudatta’s writing has always amazed me, since I have read her work for last 10+ years. This being a debut novel also surprises me she can really pull something brave like this after being a sports reporter for almost one-third of her life. This also makes you realise what magic she weaves with her words where she was writing about sports, for a better part of her career to writing long form fiction like a novel. It’s a big occasion and a happy one!
Without delving more about the story and being ultra-biased towards Su, grab a copy of her independently published novel as a paperback or via Kindle and read. There is something for everyone, but mostly, it’s a love letter to life.
Sudatta’s writing has always amazed me, since I have read her work for last 10+ years. This being a debut novel also surprises me she can really pull something brave like this after being a sports reporter for almost one-third of her life. This also makes you realise what magic she weaves with her words where she was writing about sports, for a better part of her career to writing long form fiction like a novel. It’s a big occasion and a happy one!
Without delving more about the story and being ultra-biased towards Su, grab a copy of her independently published novel as a paperback or via Kindle and read. There is something for everyone, but mostly, it’s a love letter to life.
December 3, 2021
How often does this happen that you don’t follow your dream and desires because it’s against societal norms?
How do find peace when you are torn between logic and emotions?
‘Hallowed Ties’ by Sudatta Mukherjee is a promising debut novel about love, sadness, and destiny.
The story revolves around Lily. Lily who is ambitious, dreamer and fighting to break the chains of patriarchy. Lily who is often misunderstood. Lily who is just like most of us. Lily who feels empty inside. Lily who travels from Calcutta to London to Melbourne to Cambridge only to return to her roots. Lily who eventually learns to fill the void in her heart by happiness and love.
“Feel it. That thing that you don’t want to feel. Feel it and be free.”
This book covers a variety of emotions a person can experience in their life.
The book that taught me that Life isn’t supposed to be perfect. It’s supposed to be real. It’s about capturing small moments in life to create the ultimate blissful painting.
Also, the author has made 28 coffee references and 76 Calcutta references in the entire novel. So if you love coffee or Calcutta, go pick up this book right now.
The book has remarkable story telling. I loved the rich vocabulary used by the author. One of my fav lines from the book is “the past still clung on to her like a ghost refusing to go away”.
If you are struggling with grief, reading this book will may help you with your healing process. This emotional yet relatable story will help you understand the power of acceptance.
Follow @thebooktheque (on Insta ) for more book reviews. ✨
How do find peace when you are torn between logic and emotions?
‘Hallowed Ties’ by Sudatta Mukherjee is a promising debut novel about love, sadness, and destiny.
The story revolves around Lily. Lily who is ambitious, dreamer and fighting to break the chains of patriarchy. Lily who is often misunderstood. Lily who is just like most of us. Lily who feels empty inside. Lily who travels from Calcutta to London to Melbourne to Cambridge only to return to her roots. Lily who eventually learns to fill the void in her heart by happiness and love.
“Feel it. That thing that you don’t want to feel. Feel it and be free.”
This book covers a variety of emotions a person can experience in their life.
The book that taught me that Life isn’t supposed to be perfect. It’s supposed to be real. It’s about capturing small moments in life to create the ultimate blissful painting.
Also, the author has made 28 coffee references and 76 Calcutta references in the entire novel. So if you love coffee or Calcutta, go pick up this book right now.
The book has remarkable story telling. I loved the rich vocabulary used by the author. One of my fav lines from the book is “the past still clung on to her like a ghost refusing to go away”.
If you are struggling with grief, reading this book will may help you with your healing process. This emotional yet relatable story will help you understand the power of acceptance.
Follow @thebooktheque (on Insta ) for more book reviews. ✨
September 29, 2021
Loved it. A pretty interesting journey to follow. Lily - a very complex personality from the perspective of the others but very simple from her own perspective - who just wants to live her life on her own terms and be happy. Such personalities often come as selfish and not everyone has the patience to understand them. Understanding them requires a great deal of patience, energy, and effort. The underlying reasons for which they are misunderstood can be anything - from depression to disorders like bipolar, borderline, or narcissism. Only someone like Luke - Lily's partner in the latter part of her journey - can understand her. But again there is always a high chance of that person getting burnt in the process - which does happen. Happy that Lilly eventually managed to resolve her issues.
Lovely writing, well-written characters, lots of nostalgic accounts of real-life events from the past two decades. Enjoyed all the geographical and cultural references to Culcutta, London, Melbourne, and Sydney.
Great weekend read to go with your coffee. Extra half point for acknowledging the fact that coffee tastes better in Melbourne than in London.
Lovely writing, well-written characters, lots of nostalgic accounts of real-life events from the past two decades. Enjoyed all the geographical and cultural references to Culcutta, London, Melbourne, and Sydney.
Great weekend read to go with your coffee. Extra half point for acknowledging the fact that coffee tastes better in Melbourne than in London.
Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews