Review: Goodbye Freddie Mercury

Goodbye Freddie Mercury by Nadia Akbar
My rating: 3.5 of 5 stars



Goodbye Freddie Mercury is sort of coming to senses kind of book. The story narrates the life and thoughts of a section of people living in Lahore with a backdrop setting of the general elections and a new leader emerging. Lahore comes to life in the book and the author has a nostalgic and affectionate way of writing about the life in Lahore and it's various streets and cultural nuances. Thats a delight to read and you feel that city is what rules the story among all the cast and characters. And that is what really keeps the book moving for me. There is a RJ Bugsy who gets involved in politics against his wishes , his friends Omer & Aliya who are on top of the social circles of Lahore and define most of his relationships , the who's who of Urban Lahore politics and military section and then there is the girl Nida who gets involved in this chaos of living this life without a direction or care and it is never a happy ending for all.

 I liked the characters and the conversations. It was almost surreal at times ,making you pause and think back of your youth or look into the futility of all this, but the overall story left me wanting for more , a closure maybe. In the end , all relationships seemed to have no beginning or end,even those that are central to this storyline. The blurb promises some anguish, but there is none or some but masked in alcohol and smoke. The book is entertaining , the lives and the narration of the book almost like one of your own relative's tale and there is a lot of heart and hurt in the book.I enjoyed the wonderful music mentioned in the story and felt the hope to break free of the society one day and be above all this. But only few are able to do it and they are what become legends to be written about and be inspired from, like this book.

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