In the opening scene of Mootoo's story, one gets such detailed descriptions, that streets, statues and buildings seem to emit such a presence as to build the very atmosphere of the book, and one does wonder, with an opener like this, will there be anything left? But there is much to be discovered: a father afraid of his desires and identity – fearing his eldest daughter may experience sexual confusion or exposure to a sexual identity as he had and although he has had encounters, and continues to do so – does not want for her. She would not be diminished because of it- Viveka. She had no map of her future, but she knew who she was. With social themes that resonate with me as a Caribbean reader, Mootoo takes the reader on the journey of living a secret and repressing one's identity to conform for societal and familial acceptance. Discerning but non-judgmental, she eases us deep into the fascinating lives of her characters and creates a juicy, sexy, beautiful book, full of the vigorous stuff of life alongside a yearning for transcendence. Mootoo writes with an unusual combination of clear-eyed affection and expansive humanity about society and its hierarchies, peeling back layers of prejudice and exposing the complex interaction of race, gender, class, and sexuality.

Father and daughter conceal painful secrets about their sexual identities, and it is Viveka's struggle to discover the truth about herself that threatens to unmask her father and shake the foundations of her family and her delicately calibrated society. The story circles around a well-to-do Trinidadian family, in particular, Valmiki, a renowned doctor and loving if confused father, and his youngest daughter, Viveka, lively, intelligent, and intent on escaping the gilded cage that protects but also smothers her. In Valmiki's Daughter, Giller Prize finalist and bestselling novelist Shani Mootoo returns to some of the themes she first explored in her breakout book, Cereus Blooms at Night.

Valmiki's Daughter by Shani Mootoo