23rd March, 2026 in Restless Books

Between This World and the Next by Praveen Herat

“There are only good or bad choices and good and bad paths to follow, and you are only as good as the last choice you make. There was never an end that you could say you attained—there was only the struggle, every hour, every day, of making a life as good as it could be. And, in that struggle, the person you should trust least and hold most to account is yourself.” This quote from the novel, Between This World and the Next, by Praveen Herat, reveals the overwhelming sense of moral grayness that shapes the lives of the protagonists, Fearless and Song. As both seek to make amends, they must confront those in power who lead wicked lives without remorse, particularly given Song’s heartbreaking circumstances. The novel offers a poignant portrayal of the physical and deeply emotional harm caused by international sex trafficking, but through Song’s resilience, it ultimately affirms that strength is found in self-preservation and that rejecting unjust guilt is essential to survival.