For the Love of Apricots by Madhulika Liddle – Book Review

For the Love of Apricots by Madhulika Liddle

As I finished reading “For the Love of Apricots” by Madhulika Liddle, I found myself pondering the story, ruminating on it, and replaying parts in my head. I had been hooked to the book from the start and couldn’t put it down until I had turned the last page. It has been a long time since I picked up a romance novel (there was a time when I couldn’t get enough of Nicholas Sparks’ books and the like) and thoroughly enjoyed it, and I realised that was precisely what made it so special.

Set in the serene, hilly town of Mukteshwar, the story revolves around two compelling protagonists: Nandini Mathur and Vikas Joshi. Nandini, an independent and resilient woman in her forties, has built a meaningful life for herself, running a successful women’s cooperative that specialises in pickles. Her life is content, if a little predictable, until Vikas, a newcomer with an apricot orchard and a mysterious past, arrives in town.

The blurb gives an idea of the storyline.

Forty-year-old divorcee Nandini is something of an oddity in the Himalayan small town of Mukteshwar where she has come to settle with her absent-minded birdwatcher father. Fiercely independent, strong-willed—she’s a woman you can’t take for a ride, which is how she has turned a homegrown pickle-making business into a successful women’s co-operative.

When she encounters the newcomer Vikas Joshi, who has recently acquired an apricot orchard, sparks begin to fly as a series of mishaps bring them together. It doesn’t look like this shy, gentle widower and the feisty pickle producer are made for each other. But destiny deems otherwise, with a little help from the villagers—and a mysterious jar of apricot jam.

Played out against the backdrop of the Kumaon Hills, across wooded mountains and apricot orchards, For the Love of Apricots is a quietly romantic, humourous story about a seemingly headstrong yet vulnerable heroine and a lonely man who realise, before it’s too late, that love deserves a second chance.

Warm and light-hearted, yet sensitive and with an understanding of human nature at its core, this is a book to celebrate love in all its unpredictable ways.

There are many things about For the Love of Apricots that I absolutely loved. The book’s cover is a beauty that does full justice to its content. It’s colourful, warm, and inviting.

Madhulika Liddle masterfully brings the hills to life, painting a vivid picture of Mukteshwar, the lush, verdant greenery, the crisp, fresh mountain air, and the unhurried pace of life that makes the town feel like a dreamscape. The sense of camaraderie among the locals is heartwarming. Yet, the author doesn’t romanticise hill life entirely. There are challenges too, from erratic power cuts to connectivity issues, but the residents embrace it nonetheless.

The character of Nandini is beautifully developed. Mature, independent, and deeply resilient, she is someone who quietly nurtures the people in her life, not by voicing grand declarations but through thoughtful actions. She isn’t the kind to wear her emotions on her sleeve, but her love is evident in the way she cares and tirelessly works to empower local women through her pickle-making cooperative. Her journey is one of quiet strength that she had no other way to find but by herself after her mom passed away. It’s no surprise that women like Shalu and Chanda respect her deeply, even scheming ways to help her in their own endearing ways.

Vikas, on the other hand, arrives in Mukteshwar as an outsider, an awkward city dweller attempting to carve out a new life in the mountains. His transition isn’t seamless; he slowly adapts to the rhythms of small-town life. While he is more expressive than Nandini, there is a softness to his character, a patience that makes the unfolding of the dynamics of their relationship all the more compelling.

Nandini’s father, Mr. Mathur, is there, mostly on the sidelines, adding another dimension to the story, although I feel it could have been explored further. His eccentric love for birds, his sense of humor, and his ramblings help the flow of the narration.

The story itself is simple and linear, without intricate subplots or dramatic twists, a feel-good tale where everything ties together beautifully in the end. At times, it may seem almost too good to be true, when the villagers try to play cupid and things fall in place as they are meant to but that is precisely its charm. Beneath the book’s romantic theme, Liddle also explores a deeper theme, how the fear of failure in relationships can hold a person back. This exploration makes it not just a mushy, romantic read but a thoughtful exploration of love, healing, and second chances.

Another aspect that stood out for me was the portrayal of romance between older characters, those who have already experienced love in some form. There’s a depth and quiet wisdom to their emotions, an understanding that doesn’t need to be spelled out. The chemistry between Nandini and Vikas feels organic, built on shared moments and gradual realisations rather than grand gestures.

Liddle’s evocative descriptions of the hills and the sheer sensory delight of food woven into its pages evoke a sense of comfort and nostalgia. The golden kernels of apricots suspended in jam, the sharp scent of raw mustard oil, the spices and sun-soaked vegetables fermenting in glass jars, the rhododendrons, oaks, and deodars framing moments of solitude in the hills. All these and more, make for an intoxicating reading experience.

For the Love of Apricots by Madhulika Liddle made me smile and chuckle a lot, and it also made me long for the mountains. And I am also thinking I must try my hands at pickle making. Ahem!

If you are looking for a light-hearted, feel-good book in between heavy reads, this is a great choice.

For the Love of Apricots – a novel
Author: Madhulika Liddle
ISBN: 978-93-5447-980-9
Publisher: Speaking Tiger

About the Author

Madhulika Liddle

Madhulika Liddle is a novelist and award-winning short story writer. Although best known as the author of the Muzaffar Jang series, featuring a seventeenth-century Mughal detective, Madhulika also writes short stories in various genres. Her story, ‘A Morning Swim’, won the Overall Prize in the Commonwealth Broadcasting Association’s Short Story Competition in 2003. In 2016, she became the first Indian to be longlisted for the prestigious Sunday Times EFG Short Story Award for her story ‘Poppies in the Snow’. In addition, Madhulika blogs about classical cinema, travel, food, and history.

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About the Author

Jyoti Babel ( 6 Posts)

Jyoti is a Content Developer and a lover of books, an Engineer by education who finally found her calling in words. Taking long walks, practising yoga, listening to music, meeting a good friend over a cup of tea, baking the perfect cake – all these little things make her happy in their own way. Jyoti enjoys writing on a wide range of topics but her favourites are food, books, travel, and culture.
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