Published in 2018, Girls Burn Brighter is the debut novel of Indian-American writer Shobha Rao. Set in both India and America, it follows the story of two friends, Poornima and Savitha. Although they are driven apart by circumstances beyond their control, the girls never stop thinking of each another, determined to be reunited. Both Poornima and Savitha come from the same town in India, Indravalli. They first meet when Poornima’s father hires Savitha to work for him, helping him to work one of their sari looms. Poornima, in the process of preparing for her arranged marriage, could use someone to talk to. She finds a confidante in Savitha, and the two develop a friendship. In the midst of her preparations, Poornima’s groom backs out of the wedding plans. Poornima must then find another man to marry. Poornima and Savitha continue to grow closer, their friendship becoming a central part of both of their lives. Poornima admires Savitha’s upbeat attitude, in spite of the fact that she is even poorer than Poornima herself. The girls fantasize about their futures together, and how they will overcome their wretched circumstances and live the good life. However, Poornima’s father rapes Savitha, causing her to flee from Indravalli. After Savitha’s departure, it is arranged that Poornima will marry Kishore; she is married off into a family who believes her dowry to be insufficient, but they grudgingly accept her. Although she feels slightly repulsed by her new husband, Poornima does her best to perform her wifely duties. Over time, Kishore grows increasingly violent, forcing her to perform sexual acts against her will. In addition to this, her mother-in-law clearly despises her, making no effort to disguise how she feels. After two years of marriage, Kishore and his family are furious with Poornima for failing to become pregnant. As punishment, they burn her face with hot oil. Missing Savitha terribly, Poornima wonders where her friend could have ended up. She finds herself contemplating ways to track down Savitha. Poornima decides to leave her husband and troubles behind to go in search of Savitha. She ventures to the train station where she converses with a man who tells her that he has seen Savitha. He offers to tell her more about it, and Poornima follows him as he takes her to a man named Guru who runs a brothel. She learns that Savitha used to work at the brothel. She is unaware that, while Savitha worked there, she was subject to repeated rape and became addicted to drugs, compelling her to continue working there. Finally, before she was sold to a man in Seattle, Savitha had one of her hands amputated in order to make her more appealing to a potential buyer. Poornima starts to work as an accountant for Guru. She saves as much money as possible, working towards getting a passport and learning English. She plans to travel to America to find Savitha. Poornima finds that working at the brothel is not all she thought it would be. In order to earn Guru’s trust, she has sex with him and helps him to transport girls who are being sold internationally. Although she is disturbed by this work, she is determined to prove her worth and retain her employment at the brothel, thinking it the only way she might see her friend again. Meanwhile, in the United States, Savitha works cleaning apartments and submitting to degrading sexual acts. She was under the impression that she was going to America to work as a maid, but upon arrival realized that she was once again part of a sex trafficking ring. She develops a close bond with Mohan, the man who helped deliver her to Seattle. Savitha does not speak English, but knows that she has no choice but to escape her current situation if she is going to survive much longer. She decides that she will try to go as far away as possible, to the other side of the country, a place she has never been. Although she has very little money in her possession, Savitha begins her trip, relying on the kindness of strangers she meets, even though she cannot communicate with them. While at a gas station, two men abduct Savitha and rape her in a clearing, leaving her stranded. Poornima makes her way to Seattle and begins her search for Savitha. She meets Mohan and together, they set out to find the girl. With little money and no knowledge of the language, they do not believe that Savitha will have gotten far. Mohan remembers telling Savitha about a place called Spearfish Canyon and thinks Savitha may have been able to get there. Without any other leads to go on, the two head in the direction of the canyon.

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Shobha Rao

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