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kberry513's review
3.0
I wanted to love it but didn't because I felt that every choice Raina made was obviously the wrong one but she still did it even while acknowledging it was wrong and regretted it. Maybe especially bc she was still making excuses for her douchey ex that was clearly playing her. That being said, I didn't hate it -she did at least acknowledge it was wrong...and I enjoyed the cultural storylines. Not sure if I would reread it though
foraging_pages's review against another edition
2.0
2.5 Stars
This was a lot less cutesy rom-com and a lot more reality-meets-random-mess than anticipated. The synopsis lied! And did not include many elements that should have been disclosed.
It was kind of a huge mess and I guess that was a metaphor for Raina’s life. The miscommunications and misunderstandings were abundant and annoying. I understand what the author was attempting to do but yikes. Some of the relationships were actually pretty realistic such as Shay and Julien’s. Bless them.
The only good parts were Asher (the cinnamon roll
This was a lot less cutesy rom-com and a lot more reality-meets-random-mess than anticipated. The synopsis lied! And did not include many elements that should have been disclosed.
It was kind of a huge mess and I guess that was a metaphor for Raina’s life. The miscommunications and misunderstandings were abundant and annoying. I understand what the author was attempting to do but yikes. Some of the relationships were actually pretty realistic such as Shay and Julien’s. Bless them.
The only good parts were Asher (the cinnamon roll
alyssaindira's review against another edition
4.0
**No spoilers were harmed in the making of this review**
"If you respect yourself, your own choices, isnt that what matters?"
Hey guys, so I finally finished the Matchmaker's List by Sonya Lalli. Whew...this book, this book was a whirlwind. At first it may not seem like it, it just seems like a modern, contemporary, cultural, romance-ish story of a girl struggling to find herself and where she belongs...but holy crap. The journey to finding her self and what makes her happy, is a rollercoaster of DRAMA. Okay, so first, the writing in this book is really easy to read. Not too descriptive, but just enough to be immersed in the story. It was easy and swift enough to be able to just skim through the pages and still absorb all the freaking drama. SOyeah, I enjoyed the writing. Uniquely, it also had chapters that alternated between past and present events. Which were intriguing and helped add more vibrancy and layers to the story. Additionally, although some of the chapters are chalked full with information andyoumight to think about it, do not. Just keep plowing on. Now...onto the story. Oh my goodness..the story. It starts with a good natured grandmother just wanting the best for her granddaughter. A good life. Which includes a husband. AN indian husband. SO her granddaugher could be a good little indian wife who cooks for her husband and raises his children and thats about it. But, Raina does not want that. She doesnt want to be only that. SHe wants more. SHe wants to carve her own path in life. She wants to not be defined by everyone else. She just wants to be herself. She just struggles on how to express that. So..her grandmother tries to set her up with many indian boys. The pressure is outstanding...because her family has already been through scandals, so raina tries to go along with it. but she just...cant. She just isnt 'indian'. I like how this book tackles the big topics of what it means to find yourself, lose yourself, and your way, and be shattered and do the shattering of another, but most of all...it highlights what one can do to put themselves back together, to pick up the pieces. EIther on their own, or with friends. It really highlights what things should be priorities in life. Healthy relationships, right love, and passion. Everyone is searching for their passion. It is arguable that one is not really living life, until they find something, or someone to live for. This book hit a bit hard for me, because one of the past relationships Raina is still dealing with later is similar to a situation I am in. I wont go into detail cause it might be spoiler, but I think Raina is strong, and brave, and courage, and beautiful. Despite all her mistakes on her path to finding herself, all the drama she caused (which makes for a VERY entertaining read), she just wants what most of us want...a place to feel at home and belong. So she kinda screwed up and messed up her life trying to find that? Dont we all at some point? But it does not matter how hard we fall...just how we rise back up. I really admire Raina, because technicallyy, she could of been me in another life. And I really appreciated her character. And I hope she finds happiness. I also liked the side characters, Zoey, Asher, Nani, Shay, Depo, they all deserve a shoutout. It was truly a deep, impactful yet entertaiing read about the rollercoaster that is the clash that is between traditional and modern cultural takes on...everything in life. I highly suggest this book if you are struggling to find where you fit into this crazy, messy world. And to remember who you want to be and who you strive to be. Okay, now I am done rambling. Remember, this is all my opinion. If you want your own, read the book. Till next time. Bye.
"If you respect yourself, your own choices, isnt that what matters?"
Hey guys, so I finally finished the Matchmaker's List by Sonya Lalli. Whew...this book, this book was a whirlwind. At first it may not seem like it, it just seems like a modern, contemporary, cultural, romance-ish story of a girl struggling to find herself and where she belongs...but holy crap. The journey to finding her self and what makes her happy, is a rollercoaster of DRAMA. Okay, so first, the writing in this book is really easy to read. Not too descriptive, but just enough to be immersed in the story. It was easy and swift enough to be able to just skim through the pages and still absorb all the freaking drama. SOyeah, I enjoyed the writing. Uniquely, it also had chapters that alternated between past and present events. Which were intriguing and helped add more vibrancy and layers to the story. Additionally, although some of the chapters are chalked full with information andyoumight to think about it, do not. Just keep plowing on. Now...onto the story. Oh my goodness..the story. It starts with a good natured grandmother just wanting the best for her granddaughter. A good life. Which includes a husband. AN indian husband. SO her granddaugher could be a good little indian wife who cooks for her husband and raises his children and thats about it. But, Raina does not want that. She doesnt want to be only that. SHe wants more. SHe wants to carve her own path in life. She wants to not be defined by everyone else. She just wants to be herself. She just struggles on how to express that. So..her grandmother tries to set her up with many indian boys. The pressure is outstanding...because her family has already been through scandals, so raina tries to go along with it. but she just...cant. She just isnt 'indian'. I like how this book tackles the big topics of what it means to find yourself, lose yourself, and your way, and be shattered and do the shattering of another, but most of all...it highlights what one can do to put themselves back together, to pick up the pieces. EIther on their own, or with friends. It really highlights what things should be priorities in life. Healthy relationships, right love, and passion. Everyone is searching for their passion. It is arguable that one is not really living life, until they find something, or someone to live for. This book hit a bit hard for me, because one of the past relationships Raina is still dealing with later is similar to a situation I am in. I wont go into detail cause it might be spoiler, but I think Raina is strong, and brave, and courage, and beautiful. Despite all her mistakes on her path to finding herself, all the drama she caused (which makes for a VERY entertaining read), she just wants what most of us want...a place to feel at home and belong. So she kinda screwed up and messed up her life trying to find that? Dont we all at some point? But it does not matter how hard we fall...just how we rise back up. I really admire Raina, because technicallyy, she could of been me in another life. And I really appreciated her character. And I hope she finds happiness. I also liked the side characters, Zoey, Asher, Nani, Shay, Depo, they all deserve a shoutout. It was truly a deep, impactful yet entertaiing read about the rollercoaster that is the clash that is between traditional and modern cultural takes on...everything in life. I highly suggest this book if you are struggling to find where you fit into this crazy, messy world. And to remember who you want to be and who you strive to be. Okay, now I am done rambling. Remember, this is all my opinion. If you want your own, read the book. Till next time. Bye.
malvika_k's review
funny
hopeful
lighthearted
reflective
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? Yes
4.0
bjoerg1992's review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
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
3.0
khuizenga's review
2.0
Ok, this book is actually not poorly written, and the author shows a pretty good understanding of human reactions and feelings, so why she made such a terrible error in judgment in the actual premise of this book is beyond me. She clearly wanted to examine the tension between more modern world views and conservative Indian families, in many different ways, but all the characters who would actually be impacted by these conservative views were side characters. I'll get more into it in the spoilers below, but needless to say, I think Sonya Lalli is actually a gifted author who had a bad lapse in judgement here.
I would actually probably read something else written by Lalli, because I quite enjoyed her writing style. However the decisions she made on the perspectives to focus on in this novel were so questionable it's weird she made them, especially since the way her characters reacted in the story mostly displayed a level of awareness of how heinous the whole thing was that I'm surprised she continued.
Spoiler
When Raina feels too much pressure about getting married, she tells her good-hearted Nani that she is gay so that the pressure is off. The most unbelievable part of this is that her gay friend, Zoe, says that this isn't the worst idea possible. Then the book spirals into a whole bunch of gay suffering without actually focusing on a character who is gay! It's all made up. The entire perspective is from someone who is straight, who then gives an actual gay Indian character the courage to come out! Granted, he is rightfully EXTREMELY pissed when he discovers that she is not actually gay, and the book does acknowledge that this was a terrible, hurtful, stupid thing to do, but that doesn't change the fact that the whole thing is a critique of marriage culture and homophobia within Indian society while still centering straight cis voices. My guess is Lalli is straight, and really wanted to write about this dynamic, but didn't feel like she could honestly write a gay perspective, and she was most likely right, but this was just not the way to do it. Nani for life, but honestly I was never able to forgive Raina, who mostly infuriated me throughout the novel and since the whole thing is told from her perspective, that's a problem.I would actually probably read something else written by Lalli, because I quite enjoyed her writing style. However the decisions she made on the perspectives to focus on in this novel were so questionable it's weird she made them, especially since the way her characters reacted in the story mostly displayed a level of awareness of how heinous the whole thing was that I'm surprised she continued.
pixiepages's review
5.0
This book is hilarious! If you know anything about the Indian community then you know how true this is. Which I think makes it funnier to me. Raina just turned 29 and still isn't married and in that culture it is looked down on. So her grandmother decides to play matchmaker and that's when it gets fun. Read this for a hilarious romance.
ccmata's review
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? It's complicated
3.25
ellyg08's review
lighthearted
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.0
geisttull's review
3.0
A little meatier than a formulaic romance novel, but I didn't care much for the main character.