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dinipandareads's review against another edition
emotional
funny
hopeful
lighthearted
reflective
fast-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
4.5
TL;DR: I ended up loving The Singles Table! From the moment Zara's beautiful vibrant personality is introduced and they get their meet cute (she shoots him in the ass with a paintball gun as he's being an insufferable prick!), I was fully sold on their romance. We get more meddling aunties, badass mums with sweet biker boyfriends, an eccentric artist father who... paints intimate portraits and so much great banter. This is by far my favourite in this series and I would recommend it if you love the grumpy/sunshine trope because Zara and Jay were the perfect pairing.
I went from the first to the third book in this series (only cos I didn't have a copy of the second) and I'm so glad I did. I didn't remember if Zara was mentioned in the first book. Still, it didn't matter because I remembered the aunties very well, especially Taara Auntie who makes the most offensive fusion concoctions that she continues to poison everyone with, lol. I loved all the Indian cultural references in here—from the food, dancing, music and of course, all the wedding festivities. But I also loved the other side characters we're introduced to like Jay's business partner, Zara's very horny bestie Parvati, and her awesome colleagues at the law firm. I mean, I would go with the tiger firm for sure!
From the moment we met Zara and Jay, I knew I would love them both individually and together! Well, I was hoping that Jay wouldn't be a total prick the whole time and I'm glad that he wasn't. Theirs was a hilarious meet-cute as Zara and her wild ways come crashing through the bachelor/bachelorette party and take Jay by surprise by not only shooting him in the ass with a paintball gun but also winning the game for their team. I adored Zara's sunshine attitude and although she is a bit of a hot mess and is always full steam ahead and getting into trouble that's easily avoidable, she had such great energy! Her relationship with her father was sweet and I loved how much she supported him—that exhibition was hilarious though and her panic had me cackling because same. 😂 Of the both of them though, I'm surprised by how much I loved Jay! The more we get to know him and see his walls crumble around Zara, we see he's a total sweetheart. I'm a sucker for grumpy MMCs who are scared to be vulnerable and are hurting deep down but have big hearts and would lay down their lives for their loved ones. Jay was all that and more. Holy swoontastic, if you love a man who falls first and falls hard, you'll love Jay. Some of the things that came out of this man's mouth had my legs jelly with the swooning and their sexual chemistry and banter was off the charts! I loved their sexual journey together as much as their emotional one—it was so playful, fun and very sexy. 🥵 There were some OTT moments but it didn't feel cringe or too much and I found myself laughing out loud often!
They both have abandonment issues that they need to work through and as much as the third act kind of irritated me (I mean, when am I not irritated by a third act, lol) I also saw that it was good for them as they worked out their issues. Jay in particular needed that push to get the help he needed and Zara to realise that she was just being a silly goose. 🤭
Overall, this was a great pick-me-up laugh-out-loud read and I now need to go and find the second book in this series so I can read it ASAP!
I went from the first to the third book in this series (only cos I didn't have a copy of the second) and I'm so glad I did. I didn't remember if Zara was mentioned in the first book. Still, it didn't matter because I remembered the aunties very well, especially Taara Auntie who makes the most offensive fusion concoctions that she continues to poison everyone with, lol. I loved all the Indian cultural references in here—from the food, dancing, music and of course, all the wedding festivities. But I also loved the other side characters we're introduced to like Jay's business partner, Zara's very horny bestie Parvati, and her awesome colleagues at the law firm. I mean, I would go with the tiger firm for sure!
From the moment we met Zara and Jay, I knew I would love them both individually and together! Well, I was hoping that Jay wouldn't be a total prick the whole time and I'm glad that he wasn't. Theirs was a hilarious meet-cute as Zara and her wild ways come crashing through the bachelor/bachelorette party and take Jay by surprise by not only shooting him in the ass with a paintball gun but also winning the game for their team. I adored Zara's sunshine attitude and although she is a bit of a hot mess and is always full steam ahead and getting into trouble that's easily avoidable, she had such great energy! Her relationship with her father was sweet and I loved how much she supported him—that exhibition was hilarious though and her panic had me cackling because same. 😂 Of the both of them though, I'm surprised by how much I loved Jay! The more we get to know him and see his walls crumble around Zara, we see he's a total sweetheart. I'm a sucker for grumpy MMCs who are scared to be vulnerable and are hurting deep down but have big hearts and would lay down their lives for their loved ones. Jay was all that and more. Holy swoontastic, if you love a man who falls first and falls hard, you'll love Jay. Some of the things that came out of this man's mouth had my legs jelly with the swooning and their sexual chemistry and banter was off the charts! I loved their sexual journey together as much as their emotional one—it was so playful, fun and very sexy. 🥵 There were some OTT moments but it didn't feel cringe or too much and I found myself laughing out loud often!
They both have abandonment issues that they need to work through and as much as the third act kind of irritated me (I mean, when am I not irritated by a third act, lol) I also saw that it was good for them as they worked out their issues. Jay in particular needed that push to get the help he needed and Zara to realise that she was just being a silly goose. 🤭
Overall, this was a great pick-me-up laugh-out-loud read and I now need to go and find the second book in this series so I can read it ASAP!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content
Moderate: Abandonment
Minor: Grief, Injury/Injury detail, Car accident, and War
agiecummings's review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
sad
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
4.5
This book was so cute. I think I liked it almost as much as book #2 in the series, The Dating Plan, which I absolutely adored. Overall, this love story is so sweet, but the 3rd person POV really threw me off - it was my first one in a while and I forgot how impersonal that can feel when reading.
But let’s get to the actual couple. I really liked Jay and Zara. I liked how complimentary their characteristics were - in an opposites attract type of way. I also loved that he fell in spite of himself in love with her and that was so satisfying. I also loved that she was supposed to find him a match and then they ended up in love. It was like a hint of fake dating, but not quite.
I will say the PTSD for Jay seems like something that either should have been more of a storyline in the “real” version (aka not the fictional story version) of their love story. It’s a serious condition, and we almost went to the point of “brushing it under the rug” - not quite, but close. And that felt a bit inauthentic.
It’s very sweet, but not my #1 in the series. But, if you liked the other two, you won’t be disappointed by this one.
But let’s get to the actual couple. I really liked Jay and Zara. I liked how complimentary their characteristics were - in an opposites attract type of way. I also loved that he fell in spite of himself in love with her and that was so satisfying. I also loved that she was supposed to find him a match and then they ended up in love. It was like a hint of fake dating, but not quite.
It’s very sweet, but not my #1 in the series. But, if you liked the other two, you won’t be disappointed by this one.
Content Warnings
Moderate: War, Violence, Injury/Injury detail, and Car accident
merlesstorys's review against another edition
emotional
funny
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
4.0
Content Warnings
Moderate: Drug use, Panic attacks/disorders, War, Blood, Death, Violence, Alcohol, Animal death, Car accident, Grief, Cancer, Injury/Injury detail, Medical content, and Sexual content
kdailyreads's review
adventurous
emotional
funny
hopeful
inspiring
lighthearted
reflective
relaxing
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? It's complicated
4.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content, Death, Panic attacks/disorders, Injury/Injury detail, War, and Medical content
Moderate: Abandonment, Cancer, Bullying, Alcohol, Terminal illness, and Car accident
Minor: Animal death, Pregnancy, Blood, Vomit, and Drug use
booksandcoffeewithlexi's review against another edition
emotional
funny
hopeful
lighthearted
relaxing
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? No
4.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content and Cursing
Moderate: Alcohol and Panic attacks/disorders
Minor: War, Cancer, and Injury/Injury detail
blackveilbeccy's review against another edition
emotional
funny
hopeful
inspiring
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
This wasn’t as strong as the first two. Ex-military alpha male falls in love with manic pixie dream girl in an opposites attract romance. At the beginning, neither main character really appealed to me but by the end I really loved the male love interest. The female lead straddled the line between quirky and annoying. As usual, the diverse ensemble cast was great. The depiction of mental illness was sensitive and well-handled. The “spicy” scenes were cringe - aside from the fact I generally don’t like them, there’s only so many times you can talk about “lush” curves or the “crescents” of the female lead’s cleavage and I just couldn’t even after 3 books of that kind of phrasing.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual content, Panic attacks/disorders, Mental illness, Medical trauma, Death, Car accident, Medical content, Injury/Injury detail, War, Violence, and Gun violence
Moderate: Abandonment, Body horror, Cursing, Death of parent, Drug abuse, Grief, Toxic relationship, Blood, and Drug use
Minor: Suicidal thoughts, Stalking, Sexual harassment, Infidelity, and Vomit
PTSD, toxic family situations, military
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