He once made us believe in heartbreak; now, in his debut novel, Rithvik Singh makes us believe in love again — the kind that aches, heals, and refuses to say goodbye.
With the cadence of poetry and the scope of prose, Singh (find him on Instagram @ wordsofrithvik) invites readers into the intimate world of Aashna, a young woman striving to reclaim voice and hope amid inherited silence and violence.
Aashna’s only refuge in her early years is her beloved grandmother, Naani — whose sudden death leaves her bereft, guilt-ridden and exposed to her father’s abuse and her mother’s muted endurance. At boarding school, a friendship with Shanvika begins as lifeline and becomes betrayal; a romance with Kanishq mimics her father’s rage rather than rescuing her; and it is only through Atharv — gentle, respectful, nurturing of her writing, and a keeper of the lost family locket — that she begins to understand what love means when it restores rather than destroys. That locket becomes her symbol of hope, survival and self-rediscovery.
This novel sits quietly apart from genre labels: it is a story of breaking long-held cycles, choosing tenderness and missing the easy exit of bitterness. With evocative prose, Aashna’s journey reflects the echoes of three generations of women bearing trauma, the cost of silence in patriarchy, the tenderness of true connection and the fierce act of leaving what hurts.
I Cannot Say Goodbye to You is for anyone who ever believed they were unworthy of love — and for those who still believe hope might finally outweigh fear.
About The Author
Rithvik Singh is the bestselling author of I Don’t Love You Anymore, Thank You for Leaving, Warmth and How to Stop Overthinking Forever. With a degree in English literature from Hansraj College, University of Delhi, and an unceasing love for writing, he writes to give hope to those looking for it.
Followed by over 5,80,000 readers on Instagram (@wordsofrithvik), Rithvik’s words never fail to feel like home. Several celebrities have shared his work, including Britney Spears and Huda Kattan, and he has been invited as a speaker to many prestigious institutions across India.
Rithvik won the Atta Galatta-Bangalore Literature Festival Book Prize (Popular Choice) and the Amazon Popular Choice (Fiction) Award for I Don’t Love You Anymore in 2024.The book was also shortlisted for the 2024 Kalinga Literary Festival Book Awards (English Poetry). Rithvik lives with his family in Udaipur, but his heart belongs to Delhi. On days when he’s missing deadlines, he can be seen struggling (snuggling) with his cat, Cameron, who finds his laptop cosier than any other place in the world for a nap.
