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A review by brokenrecord
The Chai Factor by Farah Heron
3.0
3.5 stars. This was a really easy read, which sounds a bit like a backhanded compliment, but I mean it genuinely — I've struggled since the pandemic with sitting down and reading a book for more than a chapter at a time, and few books have been able to break through that, but this one managed to. Which in a way is especially impressive because I wasn't in love with it at any point, but I found it really easy to keep reading.
My biggest issue with this book was just that the romance didn't work for me. I wasn't convinced they were in love by the end, especially considering they only know each other for like a week and part of that time she had serious issues with his brother while also having a ton of other family/work stuff to deal with. I bought them being attracted to one another and in lust, but not love. Also, in general I'm fine with romances without many or any sex scenes (and honestly often times would prefer none, although it depends on the couple/book), but I feel like if you're going to have a line late in the book about how the characters were truly ~making love and not just having sex, you should… include a scene that depicts that rather than just referring to it after the fact? Especially since I never got that impression from any of their other scenes? I mean, I barely got the impression they liked each other very much. I don't even mean in the sense of this being enemies-to-lovers (it isn't really — more, two characters who get on each others nerves to lovers), but just that they seemed attracted to one another but not like they really enjoyed one another as human beings.
I did find Amira a bit too prickly and quick to jump to conflict at the beginning, although I grew to like her more as the book went on and I got to know her better. Conversely, I started off liking Duncan pretty well, but got annoyed by him constantly calling Amira "Princess," even after she told him repeatedly not to, and by the end I had just gotten a bit tired of him and kind of didn't want Amira to accept his apology?
That being said, I did enjoy a lot of the non-romance stuff. I found Amira's family drama interesting. I was mostly glad for how things worked out between Sameer and Travis ( was especially nice. I also liked Amira's relationship with her sister and her mom. I also enjoyed the bits with Amira getting advice from her dad on her engineering project. The family stuff was definitely what kept me engaged in this book.
I found the work stuff a little frustrating at first because it seemed so clear to me right away that
So yeah, even though I didn't like the romance, the rest of this was very enjoyable. It looks like there's a sequel featuring Reena (who I didn't mention but also really liked), so I may give that a shot and hope the romance there works better for me.
My biggest issue with this book was just that the romance didn't work for me. I wasn't convinced they were in love by the end, especially considering they only know each other for like a week and part of that time she had serious issues with his brother while also having a ton of other family/work stuff to deal with. I bought them being attracted to one another and in lust, but not love. Also, in general I'm fine with romances without many or any sex scenes (and honestly often times would prefer none, although it depends on the couple/book), but I feel like if you're going to have a line late in the book about how the characters were truly ~making love and not just having sex, you should… include a scene that depicts that rather than just referring to it after the fact? Especially since I never got that impression from any of their other scenes? I mean, I barely got the impression they liked each other very much. I don't even mean in the sense of this being enemies-to-lovers (it isn't really — more, two characters who get on each others nerves to lovers), but just that they seemed attracted to one another but not like they really enjoyed one another as human beings.
I did find Amira a bit too prickly and quick to jump to conflict at the beginning, although I grew to like her more as the book went on and I got to know her better. Conversely, I started off liking Duncan pretty well, but got annoyed by him constantly calling Amira "Princess," even after she told him repeatedly not to, and by the end I had just gotten a bit tired of him and kind of didn't want Amira to accept his apology?
That being said, I did enjoy a lot of the non-romance stuff. I found Amira's family drama interesting. I was mostly glad for how things worked out between Sameer and Travis (
Spoiler
although I'm never a fan of public proposals, particularly surprise public proposals, and especially when the characters are going from broken up to engagedSpoiler
he and Sameer break upSpoiler
I guessed from some of the hints early on that her mom's secret relationship was with a woman, but that reveal was still fun, and I loved how completely Amira supported her.I found the work stuff a little frustrating at first because it seemed so clear to me right away that
Spoiler
Raymond didn't have Amira's best interests at heart, and I was frustrated that she couldn't see it for so long, although I can also understand why. But since we don't ever actually see Raymond being a great mentor and the two of them being close, it was hard to understand her faith in him. I was glad when she finally did figure it out, though, and decided to leave the company.So yeah, even though I didn't like the romance, the rest of this was very enjoyable. It looks like there's a sequel featuring Reena (who I didn't mention but also really liked), so I may give that a shot and hope the romance there works better for me.