Late Bloomers

A Novel

By: Deepa Varadarajan

Narrated by: Vikas Adam, Deepa Samuel, Shahjehan Khan, Mehr Dudeja

Length: 12 hrs and 14 mins

Publisher's summary

An Indian American family is turned upside down when the parents split up thirty-six years into their arranged marriage​ in this “heartwarming journey of self-discovery” (Southern Living).

“Touching . . . both funny and moving—a family drama the entire family can enjoy.”—Reader’s Digest

A REAL SIMPLE BEST BOOK OF THE YEAR

"I have a soft spot for underdogs. And late bloomers. You’ve told me a lot of things about yourself, so let me tell you something about me."

After thirty-six years of a dutiful but unhappy arranged marriage, recently divorced Suresh and Lata Raman find themselves starting new paths in life. Suresh is trying to navigate the world of online dating on a website that caters to Indians and is striking out at every turn—until he meets a mysterious, devastatingly attractive younger woman who seems to be smitten with him. Lata is enjoying her newfound independence, but she's caught off guard when a professor in his early sixties starts to flirt with her.

Meanwhile, Suresh and Lata's daughter, Priya, thinks her father's online pursuits are distasteful even as she embarks upon a clandestine affair of her own. And their son, Nikesh, pretends at a seemingly perfect marriage with his law-firm colleague and their young son, but hides the truth of what his relationship really entails. Over the course of three weeks in August, the whole family will uncover one another's secrets, confront the limits of love and loyalty, and explore life's second chances.

Charming, funny, and moving, Late Bloomers introduces a delightful new voice in fiction with the story of four individuals trying to understand how to be happy in their own lives—and as a family.

©2023 Deepa Varadarajan (P)2023 Random House Audio

Critic reviews

"Bloomers, at times laugh-out-loud funny and at times quietly heartbreaking, is an intricate novel about people who rediscover themselves. Or perhaps, by being honest with themselves and with each other, discover themselves for the very first time.”—Shelf Awareness

“Late Bloomers is about love won and lost and rearranged and rediscovered . . . Varadarajan writes about the everyday life of the Raman family with so much humor and affection that she makes the ordinary feel extraordinary. I adore this family and I adore this book.”—Whitney Otto, author of How to Make an American Quilt

“[A] heartwarming journey of self-discovery that finds each member of a family setting out on their own new paths.”—Southern Living

Wonderful story, great plot, talented writing

This was a thoroughly enjoyable read, the plot moved along quickly, the characters were well fleshed out, and the story held my interest from beginning to end.

I liked the writing, the situations were realistic, and after a while I felt close to many of the characters, cared about what happened to them. The ways in which their lives moved was realistic and at times kind of funny. The things they feel and go through are things everyone feels, and goes through - conflict, jealousy, embarrassment, regular complicated human dynamics.

A note about the narration: While several narrators did a very good job, there were one or two who were unbearable. Specifically the voice of Lata was read in an exaggeratedly hesitant, stammering, over-dramatic, self-doubting, melodramatic way, portraying her as a one-dimensional slow-talking hyper angst-filled woman. The narrator is probably very talented and perhaps was instructed to read that character in the voice of an over eager eight-year-old auditioning for a third grade play. The father’s voice was hard to listen to as well, it was one ceaseless overreaction after another, also over-acted, explosive, overdramatic, over emotive. A few other voices were annoying and overdone, but overall I appreciated the story and the other characters’ narration.

Absolutely wonderful

Thoroughly enjoyed this book, exploring dysfunctional (Indian) families - relatable, funny and insightful. A great listen.

Enjoy

I very much enjoyed listening to this story. It is at times funny and also thought provoking

Great debut novel!!!

With a storyline that made for an enjoyable and relaxing listen, this book was exactly what I was looking for. It is a story about the complexities of family told with humor and hope. I’m looking forward to more novels by Deepa Varadarajan!

Loved it!

Loved listening to every second of this book. The characters were witty, yet complicated and well developed. I really enjoyed listening to the different voices of each character.

Wonderful!

Loved loved this book! One of the funniest, warmest and most poignant works I’ve read in a long time. I laughed out loud and occasionally shed a tear. Bravo! I can’t wait to read more works from this author.

Stunning performance and light hearted but real story

I made sure to listen to this everytime I got some time , even if it was just for 5 minutes. The story is warm and makes you want to keep listening. However,the characters seem to be wrapped around their own minds can pass as selfish. The performance is the best. So worth it!

Humorous, Witty, Meaningful Read

Excellent narration filled with wit, tension, and chaotic clashes. I looked forward to moments when I could listen to the next part.

Warm, funny and delightful

Great characters and narration. I especially enjoyed Suresh's narrator, he was simply fantastic! I will check out other books by this author.

Great new novel

I heard about this book through an interview with the author on NPR. It sounded good and came right as I was looking for a new book. It was a great listen - with different voices for the characters, the words that pulled you in, the way you cared how things would turn out. I really enjoyed it and would recommend it.