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A review by deetour8
The Bollywood Bride by Sonali Dev
5.0
Within a minute of seeing “a book by a person of color” on the Popsugar List I knew I wanted to read a book by an Indian. I have a secret love for Indian culture that stems back to two of my childhood best friends being Indian. However, I live in a community that does not have a lot of Indians so my library is sorely lacking on books written by them, plus I was really in the mood for a romance. I was having problems finding one and then someone pointed out this year’s Illinois Reads flyer asking me about it. And low & behold, The Bollywood Bride is on it! The library had an e-copy available & I had this bad boy read within two days, it was that good.
Ria Parkar is a Bollywood actress known as the Ice Princess because she keeps to herself and doesn’t show emotion to the public. However, one thoughtless move caught and misconstrued by a reporter is threatened to be published and could bring to the spotlight a past that she’s tried to keep hidden. Her cousin getting married in Chicago at the last minute is the perfect opportunity for her to lay low, and she goes home for the first time in ten years.
In Chicago, also staying with her family is her first love, Vikram, who she hasn’t seen in ten years. They grew up together, spending every summer together in Chicago, which led to love. They had their whole life planned out together. But then Ria made a decision that ended their relationship, Vikram believes she sold her soul for stardom, and Ria has no intention of changing his mind despite the fact that she’s still in love with him. Living in the same house for two weeks is tough with all of the intense emotions between the two.
The entire book revolves around her cousins wedding which is a huge Indian celebration with tons of tradition, food, clothes, and culture making you wish that you were invited. Slowly, Ria’s story unfolds showing the reasoning behind actions that throughout a lot of the story I thought she was a complete imbecile for. This story is a love story, but unlike your usual love story there are layers. Vikram doesn’t just over hear something or slowly start to unravel Ria’s secret during the time she’s in Chicago. It’s about a love so strong that she’d sacrifice her whole life and happiness to protect the person she loves, even if it’s from herself.
Ria Parkar is a Bollywood actress known as the Ice Princess because she keeps to herself and doesn’t show emotion to the public. However, one thoughtless move caught and misconstrued by a reporter is threatened to be published and could bring to the spotlight a past that she’s tried to keep hidden. Her cousin getting married in Chicago at the last minute is the perfect opportunity for her to lay low, and she goes home for the first time in ten years.
In Chicago, also staying with her family is her first love, Vikram, who she hasn’t seen in ten years. They grew up together, spending every summer together in Chicago, which led to love. They had their whole life planned out together. But then Ria made a decision that ended their relationship, Vikram believes she sold her soul for stardom, and Ria has no intention of changing his mind despite the fact that she’s still in love with him. Living in the same house for two weeks is tough with all of the intense emotions between the two.
The entire book revolves around her cousins wedding which is a huge Indian celebration with tons of tradition, food, clothes, and culture making you wish that you were invited. Slowly, Ria’s story unfolds showing the reasoning behind actions that throughout a lot of the story I thought she was a complete imbecile for. This story is a love story, but unlike your usual love story there are layers. Vikram doesn’t just over hear something or slowly start to unravel Ria’s secret during the time she’s in Chicago. It’s about a love so strong that she’d sacrifice her whole life and happiness to protect the person she loves, even if it’s from herself.