The Unlikely Adventures of the Shergill Sisters: A Novel

The author of the Reese Witherspoon Book Club selection Erotic Stories for Punjabi Widows follows her acclaimed America debut with this life-affirming, witty family drama—an Indian This Is Where I Leave You—about three Punjabi sisters embarking on a pilgrimage to their homeland to lay their mother to rest.

The British-born Punjabi Shergill sisters—Rajni, Jezmeen, and Shirina—were never close and barely got along growing up, and now as adults, have grown even further apart. Rajni, a school principal is a stickler for order. Jezmeen, a thirty-year-old struggling actress, fears her big break may never come. Shirina, the peacemaking "good" sister married into wealth and enjoys a picture-perfect life.

On her deathbed, their mother voices one last wish: that her daughters will make a pilgrimage together to the Golden Temple in Amritsar to carry out her final rites. After a trip to India with her mother long ago, Rajni vowed never to return. But she’s always been a dutiful daughter, and cannot, even now, refuse her mother’s request. Jezmeen has just been publicly fired from her television job, so the trip to India is a welcome break to help her pick up the pieces of her broken career. Shirina’s in-laws are pushing her to make a pivotal decision about her married life; time away will help her decide whether to meekly obey, or to bravely stand up for herself for the first time.

Arriving in India, these sisters will make unexpected discoveries about themselves, their mother, and their lives—and learn the real story behind the trip Rajni took with their Mother long ago—a momentous journey that resulted in Mum never being able to return to India again.

The Unlikely Adventures of the Shergill Sisters is a female take on the Indian travel narrative. "I was curious about how different the trip would be if it were undertaken by women, who are vulnerable to different dangers in a male-dominated society," Balli Kaur Jaswal writes. "I also wanted to explore the tensions between tradition and modernity in immigrant communities, and particularly how those tensions play out among women like these sisters, who are the first generation to be raised outside of India."

Powerful, emotionally evocative, and wonderfully atmospheric, The Unlikely Adventures of the Shergill Sisters is a charming and thoughtful story that illuminates the bonds of family, sisterhood, and heritage that tether us despite our differences. Funny and heartbreaking, it is a reminder of the truly important things we must treasure in our lives.

The author of the Reese Witherspoon Book Club selection Erotic Stories for Punjabi Widows follows her acclaimed American debut with this witty, life-affirming family drama—an Indian This Is Where I Leave You—about three Punjabi sisters embarking on a pilgrimage to their homeland to lay their mother to rest

The British-born Shergill sisters—Rajni, Jezmeen, and Shirina—barely got along growing up, and as adults have grown even further apart. But on her deathbed, their mother voices one last wish: that her daughters will make a pilgrimage together to the Golden Temple in Amritsar to carry out her final rites. After a trip to India with her mother as a teenager, school principal Rajni vowed never to return. But she’s always been a dutiful daughter, and cannot, even now, refuse her mother’s request. Struggling actress Jezmeen leaps at the chance to drop out of sight—unbeknownst to her sisters, she’s escaping the wrong kind of internet fame. Baby of the family Shirina’s wealthy in-laws are pushing her to make a pivotal decision; time away will help her decide whether she will obey, or stand up for herself.

By turns funny, heartfelt, pointed, and wonderfully insightful, The Unlikely Adventures of the Shergill Sisters illuminates the bonds of family, sisterhood, and heritage that give us wings—and roots—despite our differences.

“Jaswal tackles serious themes (arranged vs forced marriage, traditional vs modern culture) with a light and funny touch. A page-turner your commute will thank you for.” - Glamour (UK)

Praise for Erotic Stories for Punjabi Widows: “Warm and hilariously funny.” - Good Housekeeping, UK

“Charming. . . . This is a sparkling read.” - Publishers Weekly

“I loved this novel—it’s so big-hearted and earthy and funny. Best of all, it turns many preconceptions upside down, and opens up a world that so many of us have only glimpsed. A rattlingly good story.” - Deborah Moggach, author of The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel

“An absolute delight…sad, joyful, and exciting all at the same time.” - Bookpage (starred review)

“A playful yet profound novel [that] moves easily from heartfelt to humorous…what may seem to be a singular story about first-generation London-bred Punjabi women evolves into a story universal to us all.” - USA Today