Loved this book!! This book definitely made me laugh and cry. I couldn't wait to find out what happened to Rose. When everything was finally revealed, it wasn't what I expected. So many emotions. I loved Rilla. She never got over the loss of Rose and never even knew what happened to her. Rilla was even forbidden to talk about her sister. The GIF (Great Indian Family) was crazy. I loved them and hated them at the same time. Their good outweighed the bad. They definitely added humor to every situation. The Toddlers were another story. I would have attached a FREE to Good Home sign on them and then dropped them off somewhere. (Just kidding, maybe not. They were very annoying and not well behaved.) I LOVE cats, but Lord Basingstoke was just too much. The poor kitty had to have butter rubbed on his feet just so he ate something. I loved the relationship Rilla had with Jharna. Poor Federico and his glue bottles filled with shampoo and lube. Rilla's relationship with her mother was horrible. Her mom was constantly insulting her and I wasn't even sure she actually liked her daughter. Simon was just perfect. He didn't even bat an eye when Rilla was arrested on their wedding day.

Definitely recommend the book. I loved the characters, story and writing style. There were definitely funny moments, but their was also a sadness to the book. I look forward to reading more books by the author.

I received a complimentary copy of this book from HarperCollins UK, HarperFiction through NetGalley. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

An enjoyable story that is equal parts funny and serious. Some aspects will have you laughing out loud whilst others will have you nodding your head in agreement because the family dynamic just completely resonates with you. I love a good mystery, so I was enthralled straight away with wanting to find Rose as much as Rilla! The Trouble with Rose is a brilliant tale of family and self discovery!

Thank you to NetGalley for a preview copy in return for a honest review.

This was a book that started well, the opening chapters were very entertaining. However I personally then found that the middle section of the book dragged for me - I ended up taking a break from this to read something different.

However I was interested to find out what happened so returned to book yesterday and finished it today. I was pleased to solve the mystery in the story but personally didn't find this 'the most hilarious and heartwarming new read for 2019'.

What a rollercoaster read ‘The Trouble with Rose’ is! I realised once I started reading this story that it’s not my normal kind of read but I’ve been wanting to branch out so I carried on reading and I’m so happy I did. Beyond trilled that this is the book to take me out of my comfort zone.

We meet Rilla who is in the middle of doing her MA, she’s dealing with her overbearing family (otherwise known as the GIF!) and if that wasn’t enough she is about to get married to Simon but ends up getting arrested! What drama within the first few chapters alone. Does she make it down the aisle? She is also dealing with the question that’s constantly on her mind ‘Where is Rose?’

Amita takes us on a journey of Rilla’s life in the present day and some events that have happened in the past to lead us to also wonder ‘Where is Rose?’ I found myself absolutely engrossed into the story as I wanted to find out more about Rilla and of course Rose.

‘The Trouble with Rose’ is such a page turner! I found this full of drama, suspense with a few laugh out loud moments. Amita’s writing is so detailed I could imagine how the characters look in my mind as well as their surroundings. I can’t believe this is her debut novel and I am very excited to see what Amita comes up with next! 😊 You really need to read this heart felt poignant story. I give ‘The Trouble with Rose’ 5*/5*!

Didn't quite do it for me: too much romcom style flippancy. But the characters are lovely, the premise intriguing and the family charming.

Thank you to Netgalley and the author for the chance to read! I loved it and would definitely recommend.

I found this very funny at first, a lot of things that the main character Rilla was experiencing, especially family related, resonated with me.

The book switched half way through and it became a lot more serious. The story had me turning the pages, I needed to know what had happened to Rose.

Wonderful reading. Rilla feels her life is spiralling out of control, and has done ever since her sister Rose disappeared when they were children. Full of humour and sadness can Rilla sort her life out and find the happiness she yearns for?

Rilla is breaking into a sweat and panicking right before her wedding. Only her sister, Rose, could see her through it but the trouble with Rose is… she isn’t around, and Rilla can’t move on till she finds out why. Amita Murray weaves together comedy and emotional suspense into a fantastic book! Rilla’s GIF offers a hilarious (and totally relatable) backdrop to her journey. The characters, human and feline, are written incredibly well. Their interactions, when not navigating complex emotions, are laugh-out-loud funny with just the right amount of crazy.

I love a good book with a great dollop of culture, my own culture, in it.
And this debut, filled with the fun of being a British Indian, complete with the obligatory GIF (Great Indian Family) was fantastic!
I love that there were elements of the story I could relate to, nodding my head, smiling manically or giggling to myself, with my son sat beside me wondering whether his mother was finally losing it...
That being said, there was a lot that wasn't ordinary about the story too.
We follow Rilla, a young woman on the eve of her wedding, who ends up bailing, in the most unorthodox of ways, by getting arrested (on purpose).
She's stuck in a loop in life, trying to get her MA, but unable to really focus, always feeling like she is second best in everyone's eyes.
Because of Rose.
A person who hasn't been in her life for over half of it, but who has overshadowed her every move,
Rose - her sister, who suddenly went missing from her life.
Rose - who no one will talk about.
Rose - did she run away? Did she get taken away? Did she die?
All these questions, but no answers.
I really enjoyed everything about the book, and look forward to more from this great talent!

Many thanks to NetGalley and Harper Collins UK for an ARC of this book, in exchange for an honest review.

I have read so many great reviews about The Trouble with Rose and was so looking forward to reading it. Unfortunately I was not able to finish this book - I found it very confusing from the start. I didn't gel with Rilla, the main character and I found the storyline very complex and puzzling. Unfortunately, it was the first book in a very long time that I did not enjoy and therefore did not finish.

Rilla is about to get married to Simon but shortly before the wedding ceremony she's arrested for shoplifting. Yes. Her own and Simon's family manage to get her out of prison but Rilla isn't happy, she can't settle, she's consumed with guilt about her sister Rose who has disappeared 16 years ago. Talking about Rose is forbidden in Rilla's family but she can't find peace until she knows what has happened. She needs to find her sister.

Personally I had huge problems with the main character. She came across as very spoiled and childish and all the time wanting something, whingy and unhappy. Rilla's actions weren't sweet for me, and she was mostly passive - aggressive and simply I couldn't warm to her. Indecisive and behaving as if the whole world should revolve around her, with demanding attitude and not too likeable - and this hugely busted this story for me. I know, you don't have to like the main character to enjoy the book but this time, as this story was very main character driven, it simply didn't work. She's convinced that it's her fault that Rose disappeared, as she was mean and rude to her sister - but to be honest, she was like this to every living person in her proximity. It wasn't funny anymore, it wasn't charming, it was simply not nice. Although the way Rilla suffered because of all those secrets, of being kept in darkness was brilliantly described, and we could easily see that she felt isolated, she started to have panic attacks, she was struggling in every aspect of her life, and it wasn't easy to watch - I wanted her to succeed in solving the Rose's mystery, and I was also intrigued what has happened to her.
On the other hand, I adored her family - this huge group of eclectic and eccentric characters, they could have been annoying and interfering but you wouldn't have to fear anything with them at your side. Loud and sarcastic and reserving the right to know everything about every other member of the family, always well meaning, I know they would drive me crazy, but as they weren't my family I could totally enjoy them.

"The Trouble with Rose" was a book that intertwined humour with poignant moments and with different and unique storyline. I think that the search for Rose was not simply a search for Rose, that there was much more to it, it was actually Rilla also trying to work out what it is she wants to do with her life, if she's able to love. As a result, we get a warm story about dysfunctioning family, lies and secrets and as an extra bonus there are tons of information about Indian culture and community - but it was refreshing and interesting. It was humorous, it was chaotic, and it had some brilliant moments - I, for example, adored the mentally messed up Lord Basingstoke, the cat, for whom Simon was trying to figure out parabolas. Maybe it wasn't the right read for me, maybe I didn't get the main character but I appreciated this novel, and I'll be looking for more from Amita Murray.

Thanks Netgalley and the Publisher. I thoroughly enjoyed this book, made me laugh as it was so refreshingly different to everything I have been reading at the moment. Highly recommend

Let me first explain how I rate the books I read. A large proportion of my rating comes from how I FEEL about a book; whether it kept my interest, did I enjoy reading it, did it evoke an emotion from me.

Details such as world building, writing style, pacing, complex characters, plot etc contribute too and the story was done well with a lot of these points. However those elements are secondary when it comes to my ratings.

Unfortunately I didn't enjoy this book. I really disliked the main character. She was rude and mean to pretty much everyone in her life with a 'poor me' attitude which was very irritating. While her situation was horrendous, for me that's no excuse to treat the people around her the way she did and ultimately spoiled my reading experience.

There was a really solid ending which helped but overall this wasn't a book for me.

I'm very happy I was able to read this book as it was a great reading experience.
The book is engaging and entertaining, at time hilarious, always full of emotions.
I loved Rilla, a very well written and fleshed out characters. I loved her evolution and it was both heart breaking and heartwarming following her adventures.
The cast of characters is interesting, all are well written and interesting.
I look forward to reading other books by this author.
Highly recommended!
Many thanks to HarperCollins and Netgalley for this ARC. I voluntarily read and reviewed this book, all opinions are mine.

This is the brilliant debut by Amita Murray set in London featuring 25 year old Rilla. It begins with her wedding to Simon, and something is clearly not right with Rilla as she becomes the runaway bride who is arrested by the police for shoplifting. As an Asian woman, Rilla comes with a huge extended family, packed with quirky and eccentric characters, such as her Uncle Jat, Auntie Pinky, Auntie Promilla and so on. This is no small thing as everyone feels they have a say on everything in Rilla's life, and have no intention of holding back on anything. She is a spiky personality which in itself is an understatement, she has reached the point where she is bubbling close to a mental breakdown. She lives in Lewisham, South London, sharing a flat with her Mexican gay flatmate, Federico, and is conducting a MA thesis on which she has made and is making copious notes, but she is floundering when it comes to writing anything up, so much so that she is receiving warnings about being thrown out.

In her head, she is consumed with guilt and thoughts about her sister, Rose, only Rose left the family as a child, and Rilla is convinced she was the cause, she was mean and spiteful to her older sister, jealous and resentful of her beauty and how everyone loved her. There is an unbridgeable silence when it comes to Rose in the family, with no mention of her, it being a forbidden and taboo topic. As Rilla becomes ever more isolated, the more she veers into dangerous waters, suffering panic attacks, unwilling to meet with Simon and discuss their relationship, and whilst she is struggling with her MA on cultural responses to love and other matters, she cannot see what else she can do in life. In fact, the more Rilla studies the concept of love, the more aware she becomes of her failings, her inability to love anyone, and her increasing conviction that she knows nothing whatsoever of love. She reaches the end of her tether as she finally understands she is going to have to confront her past and find out out what happened to Rose if she is to stand any chance of resolving the forces that her tearing her apart.

As Rilla begins the search for Rose, it is ultimately a search for herself and her own sense of identity. She is aided by her young phone obsessed cousin, Jharna, who just happens to be a expert at hacking to get the information that Rilla wants. Murray writes a beautifully poignant story of family dysfunction and trauma, of Indian culture and community, of what it is to be a version of a British Asian woman today, and Rilla's absolute need to find out the truth of what happened to her sister. The characterisation is fabulous and endearing, from Federico to Professor Grundy. I loved Lord Basingstoke, the mentally messed up cat that Auntie Promilla foists on Rilla. This is a wonderfully humorous, witty, comic and entertaining story that I found hugely compelling. Many thanks to HarperCollins for an ARC.