Reviews with content warning for Sexual harassment - Say You'll Be Mine

If you like romances that highlight fake relationships, fake dating, fake engagement, etc…YOU NEED TO READ THIS BOOK! I’m always fascinated by fake dating romances. Actual relationship dynamics are a challenge, especially when you’re getting to know one another, that trying to fake your relationship adds a whole other complicated dynamic to the picture. The entire book is a lovely and nuanced exploration of all manner of relationships - siblings, parental, friendships, professional, romantic.

What an absolute and utter delight Say You’ll Be Mine was to read! With pacing somewhere between medium and fast, it never sacrificed or skimped on the plot or character development. And these characters? You are rooting for them from the very start. Somewhere in the middle of the story I desperately wanted to grab them both, give them a little shake, and smash them together with the amount of chemistry and tension between them. KISS ALREADY YOU FOOLS! SYBM is a slow burn in terms of physical on page intimacy, but the emotional intimacy was gorgeous.

I loved Megna’s tenacity, wit, and humor. I loved how much she had to grapple with the complications of her friendship with Seth, former love interest and current writing “partner,” as she assumed the role of “best man” at his wedding. I loved Karthik’s initial reserve and stoicism, and especially his gradual warming towards Megna…even if he kept his feelings to himself. Karthik’s professional journey was also great to see, as he eventually realizes that the job he thought he wanted wasn’t going to provide the fulfillment he needed without any passion behind it. Megna and Karthik both played their true feelings cards close to the vest: afraid of getting hurt, of hurting their parents if the truth came out, of contending with their relationship becoming all too real.

This is a debut book and I was so impressed by the writing. I cannot wait to read more by Naina Kumar!

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ukponge's review against another edition

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emotional funny hopeful lighthearted relaxing fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.5

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meg_thebrave's review against another edition

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funny hopeful lighthearted medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.25

This is one of the sweetest romance stories I’ve ever read. It includes some excellent plot twists, satisfying character arcs for both main characters, and the cutest relationship. Reading this book felt like savoring a piece of candy in the best way possible.

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aqtbenz's review against another edition

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emotional funny reflective fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.25

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katrinaward's review against another edition

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emotional tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Diverse cast of characters? Yes

4.5

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dogbuttsandbooks's review against another edition

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slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

Our MCs, Meghna and Karthik are Indian Americans both struggling to find themselves pressure about their personal and professional lives from their families. They are introduced by their parents as potential matches for an arranged marriage. After meeting, they decide to be fake engaged so Karthik can impress the people who will decide if he gets a big promotion at work and so Meghna can have a date to her college ex turned best friend and writing partner’s wedding at which she’ll be the best man (you read that right). And so both of them can get a little breathing room from their meddling and oftentimes disapproving parents.

Meghna and Karthik are both really layered, sympathetic characters who kept me engaged while reading, but ultimately I felt like this book was less about the MCs’ romance and more about personal growth — which just wasn’t what I was in the mood for having just finished another fake dating to attend the wedding of an ex turned best friend who the FMC has never gotten over (spoiler alert, I liked the other one much better). Also I just needed these two to bang and get it out of their systems SO MUCH EARLIER. And also go to therapy. That being said, while I felt like both MCs were intentionally making their lives harder and putting up with a lot of toxic behaviors, and also sometimes being toxic themselves, I did appreciate the full circle character arcs.

I also enjoyed the struggle with trying to push against and also fit in familial expectations, but felt a bit like the author was trying to shoehorn heavy issues in with a chaotic fake engagement storyline.

I thought this was a well written debut that kept my interest and I enjoyed reading, but all in all, as is often my critique of fake engagement — the stakes did not feel high enough to warrant this faux relationship. And a note, if you don’t like MCs who aren’t good at communicating, this will not be your cup of tea.

If you’re looking for a Desi romance that doesn’t have a ton of spice, but has solid character development and one that will have you shouting “will you two just kiss already?!” Say You’ll Be Mine is the book for you.

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vj_thompson's review against another edition

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emotional hopeful lighthearted reflective medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.25

A beautiful debut novel of engagement of convenience. The beginning was slow as if the mimic the characters new relationship and situation. I loved the ending and the sweet moments between Meghna and Karthik. Such a beautiful beautiful book, just like its cover.

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overflowingshelf's review against another edition

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funny lighthearted medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes

4.0

CW: Misogyny; emotional abuse; references to sexual harassment and infidelity

Say You’ll Be Mine is such a delightful fake-dating contemporary with characters I absolutely loved. Seriously, this book is so stinking cute!

Fake dating in contemporary can be very hit or miss for me, but this one worked because Karthik and Meghna had fantastic chemistry. And secretly underneath it all, I think they both wanted to find love (though Karthik may disagree). Also, I loved that we also got an “only one-bed” moment in this book because those are so fun in contemporary romances, and it felt like a realistic setup in this.

While this book isn’t the spiciest, it felt so dang romantic! Part of why it worked so well for me was because Karthik and Meghna are genuinely good and caring people, and things clicked quickly with them. Who wouldn’t love someone who listens to what you say, has your back when you need it, and stands up for you to others? I loved watching their relationship go from essentially strangers who get engaged to friends to something more. And ugh, the pining and slow burn! These two fools were both so in love with each other, but both kept thinking the other was acting a certain way to put on a show for their fake relationship and I loved it! Like the whole bit with the engagement ring? I died! That tension is what I LOVE in a fake dating romance and Kumar executed it flawlessly as I kept yelling at them to admit how they feel and KISS ALREADY.

Now, their romance isn’t without its hiccups. However, I appreciate that Karthik and Meghna talk about what they want out of a relationship like adults. Sure the outcome sucks, but I liked they don’t pressure the other to feel the same way, no matter how much they wish they could. And while Karthik and Meghna have to go their separate ways for a bit, it’s for the better when they come back together. I really loved seeing both of them prioritize themselves during their break to pursue what truly makes them happy – and realizing the final piece of the puzzle was each other. It gave me all sorts of warm and gooey feelings!

I’m unsure if I would classify this as a grump/sunshine romance, but there are some similar vibes. It would be more like a creative, outgoing, sees-the-best-in-everyone vibe with Meghna, versus a more rigid, stern, buttoned-up vibe with Karthik. And I adored these two together so much! Despite their slightly opposite personalities, they cared deeply for their family and friends and would do anything to make those people happy.

Meghna was a delight. She loves her parents dearly even if she feels like she’ll never live up to her mother’s expectation of being an engine since her passion lies with writing. I loved how outgoing and personable she was – I felt like Meghna was the person I could easily become friends with and know she’d have my back no matter what. She’s a genuinely good person – almost too good to the point where she doesn’t realize she’s being taken advantage of by her best friend/ex-boyfriend that she’s still in love with, Seth (we’ll get to him later).

Compared to Meghna, Karthik is a bit cold and a little awkward in social settings. But once you’re in his head, you realize he just keeps a very tight lid on expressing his emotions. His family dynamics are very different from Meghna’s. He loves his mom dearly and will do anything for her because his dad is absolute trash. Poor Karthik is so worried that he’ll end up like his dad that it basically paralyzes his ability to have a romantic relationship, and all I wanted to do was hug this man and tell him, “You are NOTHING like your father.” Watching him soften up around Meghna and realize the extent of his feelings for Meghna made my heart melt.

Now there is a character I absolutely hated in this book, and I give serious kudos to Naina Kumar because I had such a strong, visceral reaction to this fictional character. And that character would be Seth. My god, how I hated this man! I don’t know what Meghna saw in him and I wish she noticed how terrible he was earlier. It was abundantly clear to me that he was using Meghna to further his own career, and taking credit for her work. There’s nothing more that I hate than men like that! I’m so glad Karthik noticed what a sleazeball Seth was as it gave Meghna the push she needed to see that he’s actually a terrible person. When Meghna finally confronted Seth about it, I was cheering her on from the sidelines because yes, girl! PUT HIM IN HIS PLACE.

I was shocked, SHOCKED I tell you, to discover that this was Kumar’s debut novel! I loved the writing style and the depth of all her characters, even the secondary ones. The pacing was spot-on, and the romance was swoon-worthy. While reading this, I had all the emotions and fell in love with Karthik and Meghna throughout their journey. I cannot wait to see what she writes next as this gave off the perfect rom-com movie vibes.

If Say You’ll Be Mine wasn’t on your radar, it definitely should be! This was so cute and romantic, and I had a blast while reading it, and I think you will too!

Thank you to Random House – Dell/Netgalley for the ARC. All thoughts, ideas, and opinions expressed in this review are my own.

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