Other Names for Love

Other Names for Love is a brilliant debut novel by Pakistani writer Taymour Soomro depicting the detached relationship between a father and son over several decades. At the start of the novel, Rafik, an influential aspiring politician, takes his sensitive son Fahad out to their family lands for the summer. Fahad would rather be in London shopping and going to the theatre with his mother, but Rafik wants to mould Fahad to fit his idea of masculinity. Both characters are dealing with their own struggles: Fahad is grappling with his sexuality, while Rafik's claim to the lands and the political influence that comes with them is threatened by the arrival of his cousin from London. The first half of of the novel deals with the events of this summer, before we meet Fahad and Rafik again many years later in a world that has dramatically changed in ways which Rafik has not fully understood.

There is such restraint in the writing of this novel - the prose is sparing and a lot goes unstated, while the dialogue is often characterised by miscommunication and distance between the characters - even when we first meet Rafik and Fahad travelling together in a railway compartment, we soon learn that Rafik barely knows his son. At the same time, Soomro's writing completely immerses us in a setting which will be unfamiliar to many. The dual perspectives in this novel are skilfully handled throughout, and this becomes a deeply moving story of love, loss and estrangement. The novel frequently put me in mind of E.M. Forster. especially Howards End, in its depictions of human relations and questions of inheritance, secrets and memory.

This is a highly impressive novel worthy of serious critical attention. Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for sending me an ARC to review.

I really liked this book and I still don't really know what to say about it - it was that good. Well written, with a cast of well developed characters and a completely riveting storyline. It is such a powerful and thought provoking book that I will think about for a long time.

It's good to see a queer story from Pakistan is published. Other Names for Love is a book filled with emotions, It is a beautiful story that needs to be read and shared.