The Reading Bud

Book Blog by Heena Rathore-Pardeshi

Book Review: Unearthed: The Lies We Carry & The Truths They Bury by Chanchal Garg

Book Details:

Author: Chanchal Garg
Release Date: 2nd June 2025
Series:
Genre: Autobiography
Format: E-book 
Pages: 282 pages
Publisher:
Blurb:
In this searing memoir, Chanchal Garg reveals the spiritual and sexual abuse that shattered her sense of self and forced her to question a life defined by duty and sacrifice. Raised as a devoted Indian daughter, she was taught never to question authority-until a transformative moment during a yoga class, while pregnant with her daughter, awakened a truth she could no longer ignore.
That realization set her on a solitary journey, as she lost her faith, community, and the life she had always known. Without the support she had once relied on, she had to learn to trust herself, reclaim her bicultural identity, and redefine what it meant to be both Indian and American-on her own terms

Unearthed is a powerful call to every woman who has ever felt silenced-an invitation to trust your inner voice, reclaim your story, and return to yourself.

Review

Rating: 5 out of 5.

Unearthed by Chanchal Garg is a book that doesn not just tell a story but bares a soul. This beautiful memoir is raw and luminous in equal measure. It traces author Garg’s painful yet empowering journey through spiritual and sexual abuse, her loss of faith, and the reclamation of her identity as both Indian and American. The book’s greatest strength lies in its honesty as Garg doesn’t hide behind polished prose or distance herself from the pain. Instead, she invites the reader into her unraveling and rebuilding, offering a voice that feels courageous, vulnerable, and deeply relatable.

Garg’s writing is tender but unflinching. Each chapter feels like a confession whispered into the dark. She shares moments of doubt, grief, awakening, and slow healing stitched together with lyrical precision. What moved me most was her ability to explore trauma without letting it consume the narrative. Unearthed isn’t a story of victimhood; it’s a story of reclamation. Through her awakening during a yoga class, while carrying new life within her, Garg begins to question the doctrines and power structures that once defined her, and in doing so, she creates space for other women to do the same. The narrative feels spiritual, but not in a religious sense, it’s about returning to oneself, trusting that quiet inner knowing that so many of us are taught to suppress.

The memoir also shines in how it navigates bicultural identity. Garg’s experience of being both Indian and American resonates profoundly. Her journey is personal, but her insights are universal. By the end, you’re not just reading about her healing; you’re reminded of your own capacity to listen inwardly and rebuild. Unearthed doesn’t promise easy closure but offers something rarer: authenticity, compassion, and permission to begin again.

Unearthed is a beautifully written, soul-stirring memoir about pain, awakening, and self-trust. Perfect for readers who loved Educated by Tara Westover or When Women Were Dragons by Kelly Barnhill, and for anyone seeking a reminder that healing is not linear, but always possible.


You can also read this review at:

Goodreads


Amazon


I love reading your comments, so please go ahead…

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

I’m Heena

Welcome to The Reading Bud, my cosy corner of the internet dedicated to all things books and authors. Here, I invite you to join me on a journey of discovering under-represented books, independent and small press authors, and all things book with a touch of love and loud purrs. Let’s get Reading!

Book of the Month

Read this captivating story on the adventures and hardships of Frank Knightlite, a man who strives to illuminate darkness with his lantern in search of answers to life’s questions.
You can get it here.
October 2025
M T W T F S S
 12345
6789101112
13141516171819
20212223242526
2728293031  

Reading is like breathing to me.

Recent Posts

  • Book Review: The Lost City Of The Monkey God: A True Story by Douglas Preston

    Author: Douglas Preston  Release Date: 3rd January 2017 Series: – Genre: Non-Fiction, Adventure, Anthropology, Archeology, History, True Events Edition: Ebook Pages: 337 Publisher: Grand Central Publishing Rating: ★★★★ Blurb: A five-hundred-year-old legend. An ancient curse. A stunning medical mystery. And a pioneering journey into…

  • Book Review: Climatized by Sally Fernandez

    Author: Sally Fernandez Release Date: 4th October 2016 Series: Max Ford (Book #1) Genre: Mystery, Suspense, Thriller, Detective Fiction, Conspiracy Edition: Paperback Pages: 224 Publisher: Dunham Books Rating: ★★★ Blurb: Maxine Ford, having resigned as deputy director of the States intelligence Agency, soon needed…

  • Book Review: The Obsidian Chamber by Douglas Preston and Lincoln Child

    Author: Douglas Preston & Lincoln Child Release Date: 18th October 2016 Series: Pendergast Series (Book #16) Genre: Mystery, Suspense Edition: E-book Pages: 560 Publisher: Grand Central Publishing Rating: ★★★★ Blurb: A TRAGIC DISAPPEARANCE After a harrowing, otherworldly confrontation on the shores of Exmouth, Massachussetts, Special…

  • Travelogue Review: Kerala Hugged by Ankur Mutreja

    Author: Ankur Mutreja  Release Date: 2016 Series: – Genre: Travelogue, travel, Indian Literature Edition: E-book Pages: 59 Publisher: Random House India Rating: ★★ Blurb: In a borderless world, all would be travelers indeed. India is a small borderless world in itself, and Kerala…

  • Book Review: Yama’s Lieutenant by Anuja Chandramouli

    Author: Anuja Chandramouli Release Date: 8th June 2016 Series: – Genre: Fiction-Fantasy, Indian Mythology, Indian Literature Edition: Paperback Pages: 376 Publisher: Random House India Rating: ★★★★ Blurb: The inhabitants of the thousand hells of Yama have broken free from their prison and vowed to…