Pyre

Longlisted for the 2023 International Booker Prize.

Saroja and Kumaresan are young and in love. After meeting in a small southern Indian town, where Kumaresan works at a soda bottling shop, they quickly marry before returning to Kumaresan's family village to build a new life together. But they are harbouring a dangerous secret: Saroja is from a different caste than Kumaresan, and if the villagers find out, they will both be in grave peril.

Faced with venom from her mother-in-law, and questions from her new neighbours, Saroja tries to adjust to a lonely and uncomfortable life, while Kumaresan struggles to scrape together enough money for them to start over somewhere new. Will their love keep them safe in a hostile world?