You can tell yourself whatever story you want to about yourself. p182

Three (or more) things I loved:

1. I love a good unlikable character, especially one that I connect with. I had ghosted him last summer, and we had not spoken in nearly a year. I was something between a wife and an ex-wife, between who I had been and who I would be next. p12

2. I adore that this main character, who shares the author's name, eschews femininity as it relates to expected gender roles and behaviors. It's refreshing to read about a woman who is so direct about her imperatives.

3. For such a serious book, it has very funny moments! Sarcasm is this author's secret weapon. The last directive on our tour was a reminder that Moksha was an alcohol- and drug-free zone. There had been some Russians recently, and, well . . . p74

4. Anjana/ Ranjana was glowering at me in this way I remembered baby Naina looking at me, with alien obstinacy, a gaze not of pure discovery but of fury that the world was so befuddling. I was relieved to find myself moved. I was a woman who could hold a baby, halt a baby’s tears. p115 These moments of meaning the character collects, which allow her to grow, are sometimes deeply profound. the randomness it one of the best aspects of this narrative.

5. This book made me feel so many things. It wasn't like a Rollercoaster or a whirlwind, but something more elegant than that... I'm just saying, if you get mad while reading this book, just hang in there with it. It will surprise you more than once!

Three (or less) things I didn't love:

This section isn't only for criticisms. It's merely for items that I felt something for other than "love" or some interpretation thereof.

1. This will be an uncomfortable read for some readers who are inexperienced with racial or cultural discomfort.

2. The plot is a little soft but not so much that it's convoluted. It inches forward while also gyrating around its trajectory. The story is interesting, but it feels like it changes its mind often. *edit My description of this plot's shape was correct, but not my assessment of its strength. It's freaking brilliant. But it might catch you toward the end!

3. Did she just use "ironically" wrong? What is ironic about white teenage girls smoking cigarettes? I mean, I just don't get this, any ideas fellow readers?

4. This book is just packed with unscientific crap about women's periods, like syncing and chocolate cravings. She laid the groundwork for this, considering the characters' shared and mounting antiwestern sentiments. *edit The author ends up calling this out herself through the main character's arc.

5. The mother worship in the second half of this book is nauseating. I wonder how these characters would treat a woman who was infertile, childless, and past childbearing age? Possibly as invisibly as the fmc considered herself in the book's first half? *edit The author ends up balancing this out by the end of the book: “Motherhood isn’t, like, noble,” she said. “It’s really undignified. And I’m so anxious, all the time. I see death everywhere. Ways Luc could die, or Gor could die, or I could die...." p

Rating: 🏔🏔🏔🏔🏔 /5 homes in the thin air
Recommend? Yes!
Finished: Nov 1 '24
Format: Digital arc, NetGalley
Read this book if you like:
🏙 contemporary fiction
👨‍👩‍👧‍👦 family stories, family drama
👭🏽 women's friendships
💇‍♀️ women's coming of age
👶🏻 women's choice to become mothers
🫄 conception and infertility

Thank you to the author Sanjena Sathian, publishers Penguin Books, and NetGalley for an advance digital copy of GODDESS COMPLEX. All views are mine.

Thank you to Penguin Random House and NetGalley for the ARC!

Available March 2025.

Whew. This was a truly wild journey through the world of pregnancies, cults, drugs, and traumatic brain injuries. When 39 year old Sanjana comes home from a year long stint in Bombay researching an old religous figure, she is forced to confront everything she ran away from - a failed PhD, strained family relations, a failed marriage, and above all, her own fertility. She starts to get messages from...herself? And thus begins an unravelling and reckoning with what it means to be a modern woman. This book is both hilarious and equally disturbing, resonating with the double consciousness of what it means to be a modern woman. I could not put it down! Highly highly recommend.

Goddess Complex by Sanjena Sathian was such a compelling and well thought out read. I was engrossed in the story right from the start and found the writing to be so beautiful yet so raw and honest. It felt like very personal storytelling and I think this will be a must read for a lot of readers.

I was lucky enough to win an e-ARC of GODDESS COMPLEX by Sanjena Sathian in a Shelf Awareness giveaway. Thank you for the early look, and have a safe and happy Halloween season!

In this captivating and introspective narrative, Sanjana Satyananda’s journey is a literal and metaphorical quest for resolution and identity. The book beautifully balances themes of personal growth, regret, and the societal expectations surrounding motherhood, marriage, and the conventional life path.

The protagonist, Sanjana, is brilliantly flawed and deeply relatable. A year after leaving her actor husband, Killian, she finds herself at a crossroads. Living in the shadow of her "perfect" sister while juggling the pressures of her crumbling anthropology dissertation, she embodies the struggle of those who feel left behind by their peers who have seemingly followed the prescribed life script of family, career, and stability. The tension between Sanjana’s academic aspirations and her unresolved marital issues adds a layer of complexity to her character, making her internal struggles all the more poignant.

The mystery of Killian’s disappearance drives the plot forward, blending elements of suspense with existential reflection. As Sanjana embarks on a search to find him, she’s haunted by strange and unsettling phone calls from women seeking her advice on pregnancy—a surreal touch that adds to the book's psychological depth. The novel explores the consequences of life’s major decisions, particularly those involving parenthood, and what it means to choose one path over another.

What truly stands out is the clever and hauntingly vivid depiction of the “road not taken.” Through strange and symbolic encounters, Sanjana confronts the life she might have led, one filled with the joys and burdens of motherhood, which challenges her to re-examine her values and desires. This speculative aspect of the novel adds a layer of intrigue and serves as a striking metaphor for the uncertainty we all face when wondering "what if."

Overall, this is a thoughtful and compelling exploration of identity, choice, and the often-unspoken pressures women face regarding fertility and the expectation of motherhood. The book will resonate with readers who enjoy a blend of psychological drama, mystery, and deeply personal storytelling, leaving them questioning the roads they’ve traveled and the ones they left behind.

The publisher provided ARC via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.