Book review: Lonely People Meet by Sayantan Ghosh

I flew 7000 miles to buy Lonely People Meet by Sayantan Ghosh, and I want everyone to read it. 

But my feelings are getting in the way. I want this review to feel like this book made me feel, and yet the words won’t come. It’s that extra-special kind of writer’s block where you have so much to say but none of the words seem to fit. I’m sure the Germans have a word for it. 

That’s the worst of my perfectionist editorial tendencies getting in my own fucking way. My fear of failure that my words aren’t eloquent enough or polished enough. But I suppose my words are at least real, which is more than I can say for 54% of the content on LinkedIn. 

I needed to read this book, needed to be seen in its pages, needed to lose myself in the analog frequency of a paperback. 

Imagination was my chosen word for 2025, but loneliness was a truer theme than I am brave enough to admit. 

Even in a country of more than 1 billion people, I felt lonely on my trip to India. Because of this book, I allowed myself feel that emotion. I’m not good with emotions, but that was the point of the trip after all: to just…feel. 

Feel the grief of my long-dead marriage, the loss of my beloved Chip and Peanut, the nonprofit I poured my heart into, and that part of me that can never return to pre-pandemic normal. 

I met a lot of people, but somehow not enough, and so that loneliness persisted in moments when neither this book nor any of the other 36 I bought while in India could distract me. 

Maybe it was my grief that prevented me from reaching out like I should have. Maybe it was my self-esteem, still damaged from years of isolation and failure. Whatever it was, I knew that this book—if not written for me—still spoke to me. Especially as I traveled. 

The sisterhood of the traveling book 

I began the sisterhood of the traveling book in Mumbai. After I searched high and low for the book across the city, Nirav Mehta hooked me up with a copy at Crossword Juhu, for which I am eternally grateful. 

I then read the book across India as I traveled. First in Madurai, and then Bangalore. 

As I sat under the canopy of the lotus pavilion at the ITC Gardenia, turning the final pages, I was desperately trying not to cry in the middle of a five-star hotel. Yet my face revealed the truth: these characters broke my fucking heart. 

I managed to recover enough to meet Sayantan at Bangalore Lit Fest a couple days later. I wish we’d gotten to chat longer. And of course I totally forgot to take a photo with him. Some fangirl I am! 

Oh well, I guess I have to go back. Next time, maybe we can meet in Kolkata—a city I missed visiting on this trip. 

This is the story of a girl—and a boy

Now that I have confessed all the feels the book made me feel, you might be wondering about the story. 

I’m sorry. I can’t tell you that. There’s a really big twist, and I don’t want to spoil it. 

But here’s what I will tell you.

Lonely People Meet begins as a love story between Karno and Devaki. But one morning, Karno wakes up only to discover everything he thought he knew about Devaki was a lie.

Editor’s note: A fucking lie! I am still mad about all the writer fuckery in this book! Lies, damn lies! 

As Karno stumbles from his Delhi flat in a haze, he begins a journey of self-discovery that will force him to confront his own behavior and the very nature of what it means to be human. 

Lonely People Meet is a book about choices. As the architect in the Matrix said, “The problem is choice.” 

In a world where corporations scrape our data and manipulate our algorithms to control our most basic needs—what to eat, how to dress, what books to buy—Lonely People Meet offers us a future where who we love may be the only choice we can still control. 

I don’t agree with Karno’s choices. I understand them, but I don’t approve. Many people will empathize with his choices. Maybe you are one of them. But please ask yourself: at what cost does Karno make his choice?

I empathize with Devaki far more. I understand what it feels like to want to reset everything. But there are easier ways to do that than the choice she makes. Might I suggest flying 7000 miles to buy a book?

Ultimately, their choices remain their choices, and if we can’t make our own choices, then what the hell is the purpose of life?

How do I buy the book?

If you are in India, the book is available in the usual places. 

However, Lonely People Meet is not currently available outside India. Sorry. Why do you think I flew 7000 miles to buy this book? I can’t get it here. 

But if you are a US or UK publisher (or both!), please accept my humble pitch as proof that yes there’s an audience, and yes it’s that good. 

Tor.com, I am looking at you with big puppy dog eyes.

My pitch for Lonely People Meet

For fans of Becky Chambers and Martha Wells who also love James Baldwin and great cinema. 

Lonely People Meet combines the bookish vibes of an Emily Henry meet-cute, the themes of Murderbot Diaries, and the characters who dream of PDK’s electric sheep —all set in Delhi’s historic bylanes and writer-friendly bars. 

That’s the story of Lonely People Meet.