I enjoyed this. It was interesting to see these characters at each other’s throats but never really being sure when it was going to happen. Lots of excess and adventure that also kept things fresh.

A roadtrip in a book.

A great novel about the story of India and society told through the eyes of a woman and two public school boys. Such an interesting way of writing this story and what a treat it was.

this started off as a really solid novel, particularly in its commentary about class & privilege, but the plot kind of fell apart for me as the story progressed. i liked the ripley-esque tone to the narration, though.

Captivating. A brilliantly written book about three travellers going overland from London to Kathmandu in a dilapidated Land Rover in 1970. In addition to bringing the sights sounds and smells of the journey it captures the differences in the attitudes of the time. The class system, the racism, the homophobia, women's place in society, upper class entitlement and the juxtaposition of the ‘freedom’ felt on the journey. Told in narration from Joyce’s point of view you feel you are a part of the journey, a fourth, if silent, member of the team.
I read this in one sitting and was engrossed from the start.
A definite contender for the ‘if you read just one book this year’ title.

A beautiful coming of age story set in the 1970s.

The story of 3 friends who are traveling to India via the overland route. It was a very character driven story which I loved and got good insight into all 3 characters.

A perfect summer read and I love books set in the 70s! Really well written and researched.

An absolute page turner following a naive young trio of Londoners who embark on an overland adventure to Kathmandu in a battered old Land Rover. Joyce, recently divorced, answers a classified ad on a whim, and recounts her version of the story 50 years later, when she meets Anton, the extremely bright, historian and linguistic student and his carefree, charismatic friend from boarding school, Freddie, the heir to an Earldom. Although their vastly differing social and class backgrounds are immediately apparent, all three are eager to more forward for their own reasons. As the journey unfolds, their motivations for escaping the past are revealed and Joyce finds purpose in looking after her “boys” though she wishfully overestimates her influence and place in the life of Freddie. A vivid account of the sometimes perilous road trip along the hippie trail, encounters with the “freaks” and the despairing descent of Freddie into a drug culture which increasingly divides him from Anton and Joyce. With time for reflection, Joyce wonders if there could have been more done to help Freddie and regrets the way Anton left. The light and breezy writing reflects the joy and wonderment for a time in the lives of each traveller's journey of discovery, yet there is the realistic portrayal into the depth of the dark and uglier side of places, events and personality traits. A brilliant holiday read!

Thank you NetGalley and Head of Zeus for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.



Reflection on what could Ave been done
Regret
Perhaps hoping for more of a relationship future

Overland is a story about the Overland, which should have been the trip of a lifetime from London to Kathmandu in the 1970s, the time of hippies and free spirits. Joyce recounts the trip from her perspective, from when she answered an ad in the newspaper to become the travel mate to two boarding school guys eager for an adventure.

This is a story about three young people from different backgrounds who set off to explore the world and lend up learning so much more about themselves. They grow together, and they grow apart until a terrible twist of fate happens.

The writing took some getting used to, because of the lack of quotes. But this ends up being one of the winning factors for this book: Each of the characters has such a specific and unique voice that it is easily distinguishable.

Joyce, as our narrator, might be the most interesting character of all. She does not come from privilege, yet she carries the most prejudices. She believes herself to be unlike the hippies, or the freaks, despite the fact she is traveling the hippie trail with the hippies & freaks. Her growing obsession with ‘her boys’, the privileged life she so clearly envies, the need to make herself 'indispensable' to them and her closed mind made this such an interesting read.

This is the perfect literary fiction read for summer: a story of adventure, self discovery, travel, friendships and obsessions with background echo of British imperialism and privilege.

Thank you so much to Apollo and NetGallery for providing me this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I saw that one of my mutuals on Goodreads was reading this book, and became intrigued by the cover and the blurb. When I saw it was available on Netgalley, I immediately requested it.
Unfortunately, I have some mixed feelings about this book. It could be described as a "coming of age" story. I didn't feel any affection for the narrator of this story - considering she was travelling across the world in the 70s, I found her to be extremely uptight and judgemental of everyone around her. At times she was insufferable.
Having said that, the ending of the book was very good, and wasn't something that I saw coming. Without giving spoilers, this struck me as incredibly heartbreaking, and, if the narrator had shown a bit more emotion rather than being completely stoic and only concerned with her own situation, I might have rated this book higher.
Instead, I have given it a middle-of-the-road, 3 stars

A song of the seventies when the overland route to India was doable and lots of people did. Disillusioned by their circumstances this is the story of three of them.

Joyce is running from a bad marriage and her life set out in Suburbia; Fred wants to get away from family obligations to take over the family pile, get married and have babies and labradors; and Anton is after adventure before university. The Overland is a well worn route - hippies, adventurers, the curious and the escapees are all on the trip of a lifetime in a hodge podge of transport. Fred, Anton and Joyce have Vera, an ancient Land Rover, not much money and a loose bond that could spin apart at any time.

The characters vie with the journey in this novel that feels almost like a travelogue at times. It certainly has a ring of authenticity to it which is hardly surprising given the nature of the author and her sources. There are also some surprises along the way as the three travel through countries that no longer have such lax entry requirements. This is the era of free love, endless drugs and a horror of war.

I really enjoyed the whole journey and highly recommend it.

Thankyou to Netgalley and Head of Zeus for the advance review copy.

A great summer read.

Overland tells the story of three individuals on a road trip from London to Kathmandu in the 1970s. Responding to an advertisement in the local paper, Joyce, a 24-year-old divorcee who is also our narrator, embarks on a wild journey of self-discovery as she sets off with Freddie and Anton, two close friends from privileged backgrounds. Their journey is more than physical, though, as with this pilgrimage, all of the characters undergo their own unique spiritual and personal journeys.

This is a novel about friendship, adventure, finding oneself, and the haunting effects of the past. For such a small book, it does a great job at acknowledging a hinterland of themes, including mental health, domestic violence, drug use, class, race, and imperialism. But perhaps my favourite thing about this novel was the atmosphere, which felt nostalgic and for lack of a better word, hazy. Reading this book felt like watching a montage of 70s Super 8 film. The author, Yasmin Cordery Khan, does a fantastic job of creating a real sense of time and place that has a dreamlike quality, as if being actually recalled through memory.

The only two things that stop me rating this more highly is firstly, the omission of quotation marks. It serves the stream of consciousness narration well, but at times I found it a little difficult to tell who was speaking and when, which then impacted the flow. Secondly, I failed to connect more deeply to any of the three central characters. Had I been more emotionally invested in them, I imagine I would have been more deeply affected by the outcome of the novel and rated the overall reading experience more highly.

Still, this was a very enjoyable read and one I’d recommend to those who enjoy narratives about friendships, travel adventures, and finding oneself.

Thank you kindly to @netgalley and @headofzeus for allowing me to read this advanced copy in exchange for my honest thoughts!

Having undertaken an overland trip to Kathmandu myself in 1975, I was particularly to read of other traveller’s experiences.

The book certainly brought back memories from 50 years ago. Many of the places resonated, though our mode of transport and overnight accommodations differed. To have experienced this unforgettable trip when the international borders were open and relatively hassle free is history in the making. At that time it was nicknamed ‘The Hashish Trail’, typically undertaken by people who wanted to escape the stress of the West and lead a calmer life. Although a work of fiction, Joyce’s constant companions, school friends Fred and Anton, survived the best part of the trip as a unit, despite their very different personalities, until tragedy struck on the Agra Road and continued to a heartbreaking conclusion.

This is an unforgettable read, told with skill and knowledge by the author of days gone by.

My thanks to NetGalley and the publishers Head of Zeus for this ARC in return for my review.

Overland is a captivating story set in the 1970s. It follows three people on a road trip from London to Kathmandu. Joyce, a 24-year-old divorcee, eager to escape her suburban life, joins “her boys”Freddie and Anton. Traveling in a dilapidated Land Rover, their adventure unfolds against the backdrop of the hippie movement, exploring themes of privilege, class differences, and self-discovery.
This one is perfect for those who love literary fiction and stories about adventure and self-discovery. It's a great summer read.

I really enjoyed this tail of excess and adventure! I felt as if I knew there was going to be a clash of characters at some point, but the excellent writing kept me guessing as to when it would happen.

It gave me a thirst to travel and a weariness of public school boys...

Overland by Yasmin Cordery Khan - review

4.25⭐️

First of all thank you so much to Netgalley and Head of Zeus for giving me the opportunity to read Overland in return for a honest review 🥰.

Well I kind of had to squeeze this read in, since it was due in a couple of days and I kind of forgot that it was still on my netgalley shelve 😅.
And now having read it I regret not reading it sooner.
This was an amazing read and soo well written. If you are a fan of literary fiction than I would definitely recommend this one 🤩.

Overland is a story about the Overland, which should have been the trip of a lifetime from London to Kathmandu. Just three people looking for adventure. No one could have predicted how this adventure ended, but now 50 years later Joyce is ready to tell her side of the story.

The story is set in the 1970s, the time of hippies and free spirits. Joyce answers an ad from a newspaper, of some guys looking for a travel mate to go to Kathmandu in August. Joyce is desperate to escape life and responds. Freddie, one of the guys, an aristocrate is very happy to show her the wild life. Together with Anton, Freddie’s best friend from boarding school, they leave in a Land Rover called Vera to embark on the Overland trail from London to Kathmandu. But are they able to escape their past, or ends it up catching up on them?

Wow just wow… this was such an emotional but also beautiful read. All the topics hit soo hard. The privilege, being young, differences in class, finding yourself and coming to terms with who you are, but also in the background echoes of British imperialism… This is just such a well written novel.

I loved seeing these youngsters explore and learn more about themselves. But also grow together, and grow apart.
This is such a beautiful journey that you are taken on and so hard to explain. But the relationships are written just amazingly. How they develop and the point of view of Joyce.

The novel is written from first person point of view, which I really enjoyed. It has been some time since I read first person point of view, but I really enjoyed it, and definitely would love reading it more often. It just helps you emerge yourself into the thoughts and lives of the main character, in this case Joyce. I just loved to learn new things with her and getting to know herself better.

This is the perfect read for summer if you love a good literary fiction written from first person perspective, in which you are emerged into a story of self discovery, travel, friendships but also a background echo of British imperialism and privilege.

Overland will be released the 4th of July.

Its the 1970s and Joyce, a young, slightly plain working class woman answers an advert in the newspaper to travel from London to Kathmandu.

Her  unlikely travel companions turn out to be two privileged lads from private school backgrounds. Laid back Freddie is a talented musician and gorgeous, he is also the son of  an earl and  set to inherit a vast estate. His school friend Anton is more studious, destined to be a top unibersity scholar with his love of Asian languages.

However, despite promising futures the characters are each using the adventure as an excuse to escape individual demons.

We follow the trio as they travel overland in a  dilapidated landrover. This is a fascinating insight to the culmination of the 1970s bohemian youth  hippie movement, with a fair sprinkling of sex and drugs!

It's 1970 and twentysomething Joyce answers an advert to join two privileged young men on an overland trip to Kathmandu in a beaten-up Land Rover. It read like engaging travelogue/memoir but there's a shocking turn of events late on. It's fluently written, although as a fan of conventional punctuation, I struggled with the lack of direct speech marks.
With thanks to the author, publisher and NetGalley for the opportunity to read an early copy in exchange for an independent review.

This is a book about three characters Joyce, Fred and Anton taking the hippie trail, told by Joyce.
It is a quick and engaging read, and authentic to its setting of places and time.
If you are like me, familiar with the trail, or interested in it, you may enioy this book more because the journey shapes the story immensely.
I must admit it took me about 27 pages (might be a different page in the final print copy or different versions/I am talking about their time in Turkey) to get used to Joyce’s voice, which I found a bit annoying earlier. Then, I got to like her POV more.
Overall, I recommend this book.

really enjoyed the narrative voice in this story. I didn't really like Joyce's judgmental and obsessive nature (although it absolutely serves the story overall), but I found the way she paints her surroundings and the behaviour of herself and the boys to be enthralling. The book felt nostalgic to me despite being set before my time.
Early in the novel there are a lot of hints to later events, some of which don't go anywhere, but I enjoyed the build of tension.
I found the formatting with the lack of speech marks a bit distracting, and some parts of the story moved a bit slowly for me. However, overall I liked this very unique story.

I thoroughly enjoyed this novel. It beautifully weaves together the story of three young people in a poetic manner and the author does a great job of describing the beautiful settings within this novel.

I would recommend to all

This is an interesting take on a classic travel experience that many undertook in the 1970s.

As a divorcee in her mid-20s, Joyce is desperate to escape from the suburban lifestyle which she has somehow become trapped in, and now risks being defined by. So, when an opportunity comes to travel overland to Nepal with two young men - the aristocratic Fred and his friend Anton - she seizes the chance to do something different, even though she carries certain prejudices about hippies, and this is very much part of the hippie trail traversed by many in that era.

A somewhat annoying protagonist, Joyce seems unaware of just how fixated she is on her "boys", especially Fred. But she is about to find out that Fred's poshness and privilege will not protect them from the fallout of his family connections...

This novel would have benefited from some editing, as parts of it seemed to drag on unnecessarily. But overall, it provides a faithful portrait of a time that was iconic, especially wrt the hippie lifestyle, and made for an interesting and at times suspense for read.