A review by donnicakelsey
The Trouble with Hating You by Sajni Patel

emotional funny lighthearted tense medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? No
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

2.75

This is difficult for me. If this was my first read from an Indian author, my takeaway about Indian culture would be about its conservatism, nagging aunties, and I'd also be able to name several dishes.

However,  this isn't my first book centered around Desi culture. I love (and highly recommend) Sonali Dev, Sara Desai, and Nisha Sharma. Overall, I was a little disappointed at how negatively Indian culture is portrayed at times.

So on to the plot:

Liya Thakkar is a successful biochemical engineer, happily defying conservative Indian traditions. Jay Shah, is a lawyer, and dedicated brother and son, holding on tightly to his grief. After a terrible first meeting, they begin working together. 

In a classic hate to love, with an arranged marriage twist we follow these main characters as they navigate working together and confronting their pasts. Both characters bring their trauma to how they interpret each other's actions, which leads to some good banter, but some extremely frustrating scenes. 

My other issue is that both Liya and Jay are both kind of unlikable. Liya is obsessed with material things and mentions her Louboutins and other expensive accessories (along with the price) many times. 

Jay can be sweet and protective, but low key somewhat of a misogynist. He was surprised she could cook because she was a feminist, disregards Liya's boundaries,
forces her almost rapist to buy her flowers and apologizeā€¦ bruh why should that man be around her? šŸ˜¤
and blamed her for wanting to go to Dallas for her DREAM JOB.  And his gift? No, just no, but also her reaction was also a big no for me.  

I liked the female friendships & Shah family were fantastic. Mama Shah might seriously be my favorite character in the whole book. 

2.75 stars
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