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3.59 AVERAGE
3.59 AVERAGE
adventurous
emotional
funny
hopeful
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
Content Warnings
Moderate: Child abuse, Physical abuse, Sexual content, Blood, Medical content, Medical trauma, Pregnancy, Alcohol, Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Ableism, Cancer, Cursing, Death, Fatphobia, Racism, Vomit, Grief, Car accident, Death of parent, Colonisation, Classism
Was going to give it three stars, but then it went on for three more hours, so...
I know this sounds kinda weird, but it really reminded me of a Christian romance novel.
I know this sounds kinda weird, but it really reminded me of a Christian romance novel.
2.5. Too much "he grabbed her arm and held on". Definitely peaked my interest in other work from this author.
If you know what you're getting into (romance, descriptions of lush curls falling just so over a face, full lips, big innocent eyes, silent tears, the pleasure and pain of tormented love....and of course strong protective muscles) you will enjoy this book. I had a lot fun reading it strictly for enjoyment. I took it at face value. Nothing more, nothing less.
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
This is a book that by all rights, I should not have enjoyed as much as I did. There would be moments where a cliche of romance would come along, or a character would be irritating (mostly Samir), but perhaps I shouldn't be too surprised that I loved it so much as I love Sonali Dev's work as an author. One of her gifts is that she is capable of writing about deeply sorrowful issues with such gravitas and respect at the same time as writing beautiful romances.
Mili is just wonderful as a character, painted so clearly and such an interesting, sweet and sometimes contradictory character. Samir is...sigh. Okay. While I definitely rooted for their romance, and did tear up a bit for them, Samir would walk the line between being extremely sympathetic and charming and then he'd be downright unlikeable sometimes. But for the most part, she really managed to make the tired setup of "sweet girl who believes in love vs. fuckboy who is allergic to feelings" work, which was served well by how intricate the plot became, and how Samir pretended to be someone else and in search of something else for so long. And even the cliché of "suddenly he's able to write around her again! whoa!" managed to work, or at least not be so cliché that it was a deal-breaker, lol.
I loved her side characters as I always do - one of her great strengths lies in writing familial relationships, no matter how loveable or fraught they may be, and that is no different here.
This was a really well-done debut novel, incredibly sensitive and filled with observations about culture and society and pain and how that shapes us, as well as being a sweet romance of two people who have deserved to live happily finding that happiness within each other.
Mili is just wonderful as a character, painted so clearly and such an interesting, sweet and sometimes contradictory character. Samir is...sigh. Okay. While I definitely rooted for their romance, and did tear up a bit for them, Samir would walk the line between being extremely sympathetic and charming and then he'd be downright unlikeable sometimes. But for the most part, she really managed to make the tired setup of "sweet girl who believes in love vs. fuckboy who is allergic to feelings" work, which was served well by how intricate the plot became,
I loved her side characters as I always do - one of her great strengths lies in writing familial relationships, no matter how loveable or fraught they may be, and that is no different here.
This was a really well-done debut novel, incredibly sensitive and filled with observations about culture and society and pain and how that shapes us, as well as being a sweet romance of two people who have deserved to live happily finding that happiness within each other.
funny
lighthearted
sad
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Content Warnings
Moderate: Child abuse, Physical abuse, Abandonment
Minor: Suicide attempt
medium-paced
It was SOOO pleasant to read something outside of the normal conventions of romance. I ADORED learning about India and Indian culture and I think that Dev did a bang-up job blending the American setting with the India setting. I also ADORED Mili-- everything about her. She kind of has a crap life: no parents, no money, married when she was 4 years old-- you know, that kind of thing, but her spirit is just indomitable. I also loved that the hero, Samir, was a famous movie director and therefore a big name in India, but not really famous in America. It gave him the ability to be super charming and sort of an egomaniac with that sort of movie-star personality without the author really having to use his stardom as part of the conflict between the two characters. The fact that he immediately realizes what a fantastic person Mili is was also very refreshing. He doesn't even try to convince himself that she isn't really someone he would like-- she shines for him from the very beginning. Really, there is nothing NOT to like about this romance. It is sweet, but not fluffy, there is depth but it isn't angst-y. I'll definitely read Dev's other books because we need more originality like this in the romance genre.