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3.59 AVERAGE
3.59 AVERAGE
Slow to pick-up and did not enjoy the main M character
Book 43 Review - Bollywood Affair by Sonali Dev - Love with a twist
I was blown away by Bollywood Bride, so I picked the next one in the series right away in my ongoing cycle of one Indian and one American/Asian book reading (to keep things fresh). It took a while to finish as I was feeling burnt out during the last few months, so book reading became slow paced. Lots of reviews are still pending lol.
One thing which struck me the most is the plot centers around society dogma. I think this is the main theme for this series of books which is so interesting to read, because people generally tend to make this a gossip thing to talk about rather than being open about it. Child abuse, child marriage and child out of wedlock were the themes for this book. I loved the way these topics were dealt with, especially entwined with the love story between the main characters Milli and Samir. Mental Health was a bonus too because it made the story even more satisfying to read.
Samir, a gem of a character, complex but has his reasons, the things he had to go through at such a young age, and how he turned out - was so inspiring to read, got blown away by him just like Milli at the end lol.
Milli, a fighter lol, stubborn but has her reasons. Once she is all in, that's it, there's no take backs, she is complex too, but a different type than Samir, loved her character, could connect with her a lot.
All in all, a really good book, and had a very satisfying ending. And yes you guessed it right will pick up A Change of Heart soon lol.
Currently Reading - Winter Garden by Kristin Hannah and Two Wrongs make a Right by Chloe Liese
I was blown away by Bollywood Bride, so I picked the next one in the series right away in my ongoing cycle of one Indian and one American/Asian book reading (to keep things fresh). It took a while to finish as I was feeling burnt out during the last few months, so book reading became slow paced. Lots of reviews are still pending lol.
One thing which struck me the most is the plot centers around society dogma. I think this is the main theme for this series of books which is so interesting to read, because people generally tend to make this a gossip thing to talk about rather than being open about it. Child abuse, child marriage and child out of wedlock were the themes for this book. I loved the way these topics were dealt with, especially entwined with the love story between the main characters Milli and Samir. Mental Health was a bonus too because it made the story even more satisfying to read.
Samir, a gem of a character, complex but has his reasons, the things he had to go through at such a young age, and how he turned out - was so inspiring to read, got blown away by him just like Milli at the end lol.
Milli, a fighter lol, stubborn but has her reasons. Once she is all in, that's it, there's no take backs, she is complex too, but a different type than Samir, loved her character, could connect with her a lot.
All in all, a really good book, and had a very satisfying ending. And yes you guessed it right will pick up A Change of Heart soon lol.
Currently Reading - Winter Garden by Kristin Hannah and Two Wrongs make a Right by Chloe Liese
This may have been the publisher’s formatting choices but I felt like it changed POV unexpectedly and I’d get confused about whose perspective we were seeing.
I eventually got over the fact that the MMC kept talking about his penis by name, but it took a lot of effort.
I liked the references to Ypsilanti.
I eventually got over the fact that the MMC kept talking about his penis by name, but it took a lot of effort.
I liked the references to Ypsilanti.
I loved this book. I’ve read books set in India before but they were usually historical romances, where the characters traveled to India for the colonial reasons. This, however, was the first contemporary romance I’ve read which is set in India. I’ve wanted to read this book for a while now. The lovely ladies at Smart Bitches, Trashy Books gave this book a rare “A”.And then the book went on sale for Barnes and Noble and I snatched it up!
With all the discussion regarding diversity in books, and in particular, in romance novels, I really wanted to read this book now. Plus, I stopped to chat with Sonali Dev while I was at the RWA Literacy signing and she was so kind and gracious that I couldn’t wait to read her book!! Since I had never read a contemporary romance set in India, I was a little concerned I would be lost in a culture I was unfamiliar with. And I was. The culture was a bit confusing and the customs were different and I wasn’t sure what some of the words meant. This doesn’t sound like a positive review, does it? Don’t worry, it gets better.
So I stopped reading for a moment. And I looked up what “dal” and “rotis” were. Then I realized, this is no different than a historical novel. The first time I picked up a Regency book, I didn’t know what the rules of the ton were. Or why it would be bad for a countess to proceed to dinner before a duchess. These were things I learned from either reading a lot of Regency books or from looking it up. As for the language, it soon became easy to recognize ‘bhai’ for brother. I mean, if I can read a book with Scottish or worse, Cockney, accents written out, surely I can pick up on a few Hindu words and determine their meaning from contexts clues. Once I came to that conclusion, I return to the book and was soon immerse in another culture, another way of life.
Dev weaves a world both familiar and foreign. Mili, the heroine, moves from India to Michigan to go to school. She takes with her the values, morals and culture of her village and it is fascinating to see them juxtaposed with American college culture. Adding to that contrast is Mili’s roommate, Ridhi. Ridhi is born in America but her family is Indian. Rather than seeing an adaption of American culture, Ridhi’s family combined their Indian heritage with the American culture to create a vibrant, enthralling culture of their own. This is especially seen at Ridhi’s wedding, which is so effervescent and fun that it makes me want to watch tons of Bollywood movies.
What I liked best about this book, and about every romance novel, is that the book boils down to the relationship between the heroine and the hero. In the beginning of the book, Samir comes off as kind of a jerk. There are hints of kindness in him but for the most part, he is presented as the uncaring hero who does not want an emotional relationship with whomever he is dating. His devotion to his brother is clear but that is tempered by his determination to get his brother’s marriage to Mili dissolved, something which the reader knows will shake Mili’s entire sense of being.
Despite this, Samir quickly becomes a redeemable character. The relationship between Mili and Samir begins as a friendship, albeit one fraught with delicious sexual tension. Each character grows individually as they grow as a couple. Mili learns that there is more to her sense of self than just an abandoned wife. And Samir learns to confront the demons of his past, although not without a push from Mili. This book brought me back to the bones of what I love about romance novels: watching a relationship bloom between two characters, watching their love grow stronger, watching that love be shaken, and then all seems lost, watching they reunite and become even stronger as a couple.
Favorite Quotes:
“If you don’t believe in a happy ending, what are you living for?”
“One shot of pain jolted her eyes before ten shots of courage steadied her gaze.”
A Bollywood Affair Review
With all the discussion regarding diversity in books, and in particular, in romance novels, I really wanted to read this book now. Plus, I stopped to chat with Sonali Dev while I was at the RWA Literacy signing and she was so kind and gracious that I couldn’t wait to read her book!! Since I had never read a contemporary romance set in India, I was a little concerned I would be lost in a culture I was unfamiliar with. And I was. The culture was a bit confusing and the customs were different and I wasn’t sure what some of the words meant. This doesn’t sound like a positive review, does it? Don’t worry, it gets better.
So I stopped reading for a moment. And I looked up what “dal” and “rotis” were. Then I realized, this is no different than a historical novel. The first time I picked up a Regency book, I didn’t know what the rules of the ton were. Or why it would be bad for a countess to proceed to dinner before a duchess. These were things I learned from either reading a lot of Regency books or from looking it up. As for the language, it soon became easy to recognize ‘bhai’ for brother. I mean, if I can read a book with Scottish or worse, Cockney, accents written out, surely I can pick up on a few Hindu words and determine their meaning from contexts clues. Once I came to that conclusion, I return to the book and was soon immerse in another culture, another way of life.
Dev weaves a world both familiar and foreign. Mili, the heroine, moves from India to Michigan to go to school. She takes with her the values, morals and culture of her village and it is fascinating to see them juxtaposed with American college culture. Adding to that contrast is Mili’s roommate, Ridhi. Ridhi is born in America but her family is Indian. Rather than seeing an adaption of American culture, Ridhi’s family combined their Indian heritage with the American culture to create a vibrant, enthralling culture of their own. This is especially seen at Ridhi’s wedding, which is so effervescent and fun that it makes me want to watch tons of Bollywood movies.
What I liked best about this book, and about every romance novel, is that the book boils down to the relationship between the heroine and the hero. In the beginning of the book, Samir comes off as kind of a jerk. There are hints of kindness in him but for the most part, he is presented as the uncaring hero who does not want an emotional relationship with whomever he is dating. His devotion to his brother is clear but that is tempered by his determination to get his brother’s marriage to Mili dissolved, something which the reader knows will shake Mili’s entire sense of being.
Despite this, Samir quickly becomes a redeemable character. The relationship between Mili and Samir begins as a friendship, albeit one fraught with delicious sexual tension. Each character grows individually as they grow as a couple. Mili learns that there is more to her sense of self than just an abandoned wife. And Samir learns to confront the demons of his past, although not without a push from Mili. This book brought me back to the bones of what I love about romance novels: watching a relationship bloom between two characters, watching their love grow stronger, watching that love be shaken, and then all seems lost, watching they reunite and become even stronger as a couple.
Favorite Quotes:
“If you don’t believe in a happy ending, what are you living for?”
“One shot of pain jolted her eyes before ten shots of courage steadied her gaze.”
A Bollywood Affair Review
I’ve been making my way through south Asian romance because #representation and I feel so lucky to have all these options. Alas, they’ve been hit or miss, mostly miss lately it feels like, so I wasn’t so sure what I’d get going into this one. And I absolutely loved it. The story really immersed me and I felt so strongly for the characters - I wanted Mili to have joy and everything she ever wanted and I wanted Sam to find healing. I laughed, I cried. It was truly a delight that moved me.
emotional
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
There were a couple of things in here that really bothered me and of course, like in most romances, the heroine is relatively helpless and tiny and quirky in specific eye-rolling ways; but I really like the way this author writes friendships and family. It kept me reading- and the scenes with the whole family at the end were both funny and touching. As far as romances go, I thought this was light and fun.
Spoiler
(looking at you, traumatic loss of virginity scene)Hate the playboy man cured by an innocent/naive/bubbly girl.
Tried to stick with it because of the semi-unique premise, but lost patience when I saw how much was left
Tried to stick with it because of the semi-unique premise, but lost patience when I saw how much was left
