Sleeping on Jupiter by Anuradha Roy

A Booker nominated novel with central plot as sexual abuse of children and homosexuality, began interestingly, but was not gripping as it went by - the ending of the book is dark and leaves you with your imagination to interpret in your own way, not sure it that is why after chapter 5, they go directly to Chapter 18. 

The main character is Nomi, a child victim of civil strife in an unspecified northeastern state in India, is orphaned, rescued, and then abused by a god man, “Guruji,” in an ashram. She escapes and is adopted into a Norwegian family, who returns to contemporary India to make a documentary about temple festivals, and Nomi is able to make peace with her past., then there is the young temple priest, Badal, secretly in unrequited love with Raghu, an errand boy in a tea stall in the seaside temple town of Jarmuli in India’s hilly and coastal northeast. The story also includes three elder women—Latika, Vidya, and Gouri—who befriend Nomi on the train. Nomi’s assistant, Suraj, a frustrated filmmaker with seemingly progressive views and a hidden violent temperament. There are several other supporting characters as well, who give us a flavour of life in India eg. Johnny Toppo with his songs, all the characters do come here at one point or the other. How they meet - several unconnected people and lives intersect for a few days is what the novel is all about.

“Jarmuli radiated outward to Asia, the world, the solar system, the universe — it was every child’s incantation in school, and even now, when [Badal] wanted to be out of the reach of his aunt and uncle, he dreamed of living on Jupiter and sleeping under its many moons.”

As I have enjoyed the other two of the four books written by her, didn't really enjoy this one may be because, I had such high hopes for it or because this is not a feel good novel - as it addresses tough subjects such as war, violence, abuse, and child molestation.