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3.39 AVERAGE
3.39 AVERAGE
The most boring book I've ever read. It was also filled with dangerous & unchecked fat phobic, transphobic comments and colorism. Just a terrible read.
funny
lighthearted
relaxing
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
The Rules of Arrangement was written by Anisha Bhatia and wonderfully narrated by Shazia Nicholls. It’s a poignant, humorous, sweet, and thoughtful novel about a young Punjabi Indian woman’s journey to following her dreams in defiance of family expectations and Punjabi tradition. Introspective, insightful, and written from first-person POV, the heroine Zoya describes the interactions between her family and community members, centering around women and their societal value, which primarily depends upon their marital prospects/status and devotion to home and family. Zoya’s personal observations and accounts of attending family weddings, preparing for meeting with potential grooms and their families, and interacting with her handsome and grumpy boss are self-effacing, hilarious, romantic, infuriating, and sometimes heartbreaking. Bhatia’s characters are complex, relatable, and deftly developed. Her vivid and detailed descriptions offer a first-hand view of Punjabi life, culture, and traditions in Mumbai that draw you into each moment and scene, making you care about Zoya’s journey.
Although Zoya Sahni loves her job, has an excellent education, and a loving, if crazy-making, family, she struggles with being the perfect Indian girl. She is 26, unmarried, and the complete opposite of the fair, slim, and obedient prized Indian girl. In fact, she is overweight, dark-skinned, knows her own mind, and doesn’t hesitate to say what she thinks and how she feels. So, it comes as no surprise to Zoya that her matchmaking aunties decide it’s past time to arrange her marriage. However, their timing couldn’t be worse because Zoya also gets promoted and has the chance at her dream job in New York City. Does an Indian girl living in Mumbai have the courage to reach for her dreams, flaunting societal and familial expectations she’s been confined by her whole life?
Nicholl’s narration brilliantly brings The Rules of Arrangement from the written page to life for our listening pleasure. She perfectly captures each scene by adapting her voice for each character with subtle nuances for mood, personality, and quirks. Our heroine’s voice rings with love, snark, frustration, cynicism, humor, joy, and anger from moment to moment – flawlessly. Zoya’s reminisces of her childhood and spending time with her Matchmaker aunt Sheila Bua – a pivotal person in Zoya’s life – are filled with nostalgia, awe, love, and touches of sadness. As Zoya learns more about her boss Arnav-the Dragon-Bajaj, his gruff, stiff tones shift, and his voice changes to suit the Arnav she discovers behind the façade.
A beautifully written exploration of the tension between selfhood and family love, The Rules of Arrangement is a snarky, hilarious, sweet, romantic, and introspective novel made for an audiobook that I couldn’t imagine being narrated by anyone other than Nicholls.
ARC provided by the publisher via Netgalley.
Although Zoya Sahni loves her job, has an excellent education, and a loving, if crazy-making, family, she struggles with being the perfect Indian girl. She is 26, unmarried, and the complete opposite of the fair, slim, and obedient prized Indian girl. In fact, she is overweight, dark-skinned, knows her own mind, and doesn’t hesitate to say what she thinks and how she feels. So, it comes as no surprise to Zoya that her matchmaking aunties decide it’s past time to arrange her marriage. However, their timing couldn’t be worse because Zoya also gets promoted and has the chance at her dream job in New York City. Does an Indian girl living in Mumbai have the courage to reach for her dreams, flaunting societal and familial expectations she’s been confined by her whole life?
Nicholl’s narration brilliantly brings The Rules of Arrangement from the written page to life for our listening pleasure. She perfectly captures each scene by adapting her voice for each character with subtle nuances for mood, personality, and quirks. Our heroine’s voice rings with love, snark, frustration, cynicism, humor, joy, and anger from moment to moment – flawlessly. Zoya’s reminisces of her childhood and spending time with her Matchmaker aunt Sheila Bua – a pivotal person in Zoya’s life – are filled with nostalgia, awe, love, and touches of sadness. As Zoya learns more about her boss Arnav-the Dragon-Bajaj, his gruff, stiff tones shift, and his voice changes to suit the Arnav she discovers behind the façade.
A beautifully written exploration of the tension between selfhood and family love, The Rules of Arrangement is a snarky, hilarious, sweet, romantic, and introspective novel made for an audiobook that I couldn’t imagine being narrated by anyone other than Nicholls.
ARC provided by the publisher via Netgalley.
Zoya Sahni has a great job and a loving family, but she is not the things desired in the marriage world: dark-skinned rather than light, spunky instead of submissive, and overweight rather than skinny. Zoya is overjoyed when she receives a promotion at work, along with the news of being a possible candidate for a job in New York City. However, that very night, her family has arranged for her to meet a possible candidate for an arranged marriage. As she gets closer to her dream job in New York, she also meets the perfect ideal of a husband for an arranged marriage. When she is forced to choose between the two, what choice will she make?
I would almost classify this book more as a women's fiction than a romance novel. The real growth takes place in Zoya learning what she wants for herself and looking at her family in a different light. I do like Zoya's boss, Arnav, and wish we could have seen more of him. The narrator did a good job with the audiobook.
Many thanks to NetGalley for providing me an audio ARC of this book.
I would almost classify this book more as a women's fiction than a romance novel. The real growth takes place in Zoya learning what she wants for herself and looking at her family in a different light. I do like Zoya's boss, Arnav, and wish we could have seen more of him. The narrator did a good job with the audiobook.
Many thanks to NetGalley for providing me an audio ARC of this book.
A light-hearted coming of age/rom-com book that manages to not be corny. I really enjoyed the audio narration as well.
The publisher provided this ARC via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.
"Zoya Sahni has a great education, a fulfilling job and a loving family (for the most part). But she is not the perfect Indian girl. She’s overweight, spunky and dark-skinned in a world that prizes the slim, obedient and fair. At 26 she is hurtling toward her expiration date in Mumbai’s arranged marriage super-mart, but when her aunties’ matchmaking radars hones in on the Holy Grail of suitors—just as Zoya gets a dream job offer in New York City—the girl who once accepted her path as almost option-less must now make a choice of a lifetime."
Extremely disappointed and triggered by the fatphobia in this book. Honestly, I know I'll never read a book by this author ever again. I don't have much to say besides that the rep in this isn't positive. It' seems like it came directly from the 90s, where it still was okay to be a fatphobic a-hole.
"Zoya Sahni has a great education, a fulfilling job and a loving family (for the most part). But she is not the perfect Indian girl. She’s overweight, spunky and dark-skinned in a world that prizes the slim, obedient and fair. At 26 she is hurtling toward her expiration date in Mumbai’s arranged marriage super-mart, but when her aunties’ matchmaking radars hones in on the Holy Grail of suitors—just as Zoya gets a dream job offer in New York City—the girl who once accepted her path as almost option-less must now make a choice of a lifetime."
Extremely disappointed and triggered by the fatphobia in this book. Honestly, I know I'll never read a book by this author ever again. I don't have much to say besides that the rep in this isn't positive. It' seems like it came directly from the 90s, where it still was okay to be a fatphobic a-hole.
The Rules of Arrangement
When is a good time to bury your dreams? Before or after marriage? Zoya Sahni, a clever and educated young woman, struggles to balance all of the rules of an Indian arranged marriage. The cultural and familial expectations conflict with Zoya’s own identity and career goals and she must decide which path to take.
Set in Mumbai, the author writes with great imagery, allowing the reader to learn and appreciate the language, cuisine, and cultural garb. While Mumbai is depicted in a beautiful and exotic light, especially to a foreign reader, the author also reveals with bold honesty the cultural insensitivities of body shaming and colorism. As an American reader inexperienced with Indian culture, it was eye opening to see that we Americans share many of the same pressures and ignorance.
The pace of the novel was well timed and the story lines of the secondary characters completed the novel . I received this ARC via audiobook and enjoyed the narration and would be eager to read a part two!
When is a good time to bury your dreams? Before or after marriage? Zoya Sahni, a clever and educated young woman, struggles to balance all of the rules of an Indian arranged marriage. The cultural and familial expectations conflict with Zoya’s own identity and career goals and she must decide which path to take.
Set in Mumbai, the author writes with great imagery, allowing the reader to learn and appreciate the language, cuisine, and cultural garb. While Mumbai is depicted in a beautiful and exotic light, especially to a foreign reader, the author also reveals with bold honesty the cultural insensitivities of body shaming and colorism. As an American reader inexperienced with Indian culture, it was eye opening to see that we Americans share many of the same pressures and ignorance.
The pace of the novel was well timed and the story lines of the secondary characters completed the novel . I received this ARC via audiobook and enjoyed the narration and would be eager to read a part two!
emotional
funny
hopeful
lighthearted
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
Zoya is doing great in life but is not the perfect Indian girl. She’s overweight, spunky and dark-skinned and at 26 isn't married. To appease her family she agrees to an arranged marriage, but what will she do about her own dreams and desires.
I really wanted to like this book, it wasn't bad but sadly I was left disappointed. This book highlights many of the awful parts of the Indian culture such as misogyny, fatphobia and so many toxic attitudes and microaggressions. It was hard to read since there was no real voice of reason throughout the book.
The romance was sweet but I wasn't really into it and wasn't surprised at all. Zoya is what got me through the book and kept me interested. I was dedicated to seeing her drop tradition and do what makes her happy. It was a super-fast read, but I did not enjoy the journey.
Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for providing me with an ARC in exchange for an honest review.
I really wanted to like this book, it wasn't bad but sadly I was left disappointed. This book highlights many of the awful parts of the Indian culture such as misogyny, fatphobia and so many toxic attitudes and microaggressions. It was hard to read since there was no real voice of reason throughout the book.
The romance was sweet but I wasn't really into it and wasn't surprised at all. Zoya is what got me through the book and kept me interested. I was dedicated to seeing her drop tradition and do what makes her happy. It was a super-fast read, but I did not enjoy the journey.
Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for providing me with an ARC in exchange for an honest review.
Zoya works for a marketing firm in Bombay, but according to her family, will soon be too old for a good match and there will only be the leftovers available. Her Aunt tries to arrange meet ups but Zoya is not enthusiastic. Although there is some romance involved, I loved the humorous situations that made me laugh out loud. When she does become engaged, Zoya is also offered the opportunity for a great job on New York, her dream, after being recommended by her boss, Arav, who appears to have more than a professional interest in Zoya. The extended Indian family provides much opportunity for a variety of themes, including bucking tradition and cultural mores to make your own choices. I recommend for readers who like books set in India, family stories and women’s fiction. Thanks to NetGalley for this enjoyable and entertaining book.