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This novel of trauma, bliss, friendship, and love is set in Vietnam with three women who happen to meet one another at a restaurant and develop a loving relationship. They bond over their “baggage” regarding problematic relationships with men, including topics such as physical abuse, karma, drugs in a drink, a gay lover, a married lover, verbal abuse, and other problems resulting in all three women being single. Their friendship develops, and they decide to go on a vacation together where they find the soothing effects of the natural world, having adventures, and relating to each other and the world through a connection to all that is spiritual. On vacation, the women each fall in love with different men and follow their bliss into further love and connectedness, letting go of their baggage so they may embrace relationships again.
The author’s exploration of the traumas the women have experienced gives an appropriate look into the sometimes fraught relationships that can happen in connecting with the ones we believe love us and whom we love. The book reveals the value of friendship, the enduring nature of such friendships, and how to overcome the baggage one brings into new relationships. Khemlani successfully shows how by working out such baggage with each other, the women are freed to develop new relationships with the men they meet. The dialogue comes across as stilted sometimes, which distracts from the overall narrative. However, this is ultimately a story of endurance, connection, spirituality, and the love which can be found between friends and partners.