Goddess of the River is a beautifully written, emotionally charged retelling that reimagines the story of Ganga with a fresh, feminist perspective. Vaishnavi Patel gives voice and depth to a figure often sidelined in mythology (as she states in the end note). This story turns Ganga into a fully complex character wrestling with her duty, and the pain the accompanies it. The writing was lyrical but still accessible, and the emotional weight of certain scenes really stayed with me (chapters 7 and 8 particularly).