ARC, 374 pagesRelease Date: May 30, 2017Published by: Simon Pulse
Read from: May 21-May 26, 2017Dimple & Rishi, #1Source: TxLAFor fans of: Contemporary,Romance, DEAR, Realistic Fiction, Stand-alones, YA, LOL, Diversity, Own Voices, Realistic Fiction, Multiple POVs, Sparkly CoversA laugh-out-loud, heartfelt YA romantic comedy, told in alternating perspectives, about two Indian-American teens whose parents have arranged for them to be married.
Dimple Shah has it all figured out. With graduation behind her, she’s more than ready for a break from her family, from Mamma’s inexplicable obsession with her finding the “Ideal Indian Husband.” Ugh. Dimple knows they must respect her principles on some level, though. If they truly believed she needed a husband right now, they wouldn’t have paid for her to attend a summer program for aspiring web developers…right?
Rishi Patel is a hopeless romantic. So when his parents tell him that his future wife will be attending the same summer program as him—wherein he’ll have to woo her—he’s totally on board. Because as silly as it sounds to most people in his life, Rishi wants to be arranged, believes in the power of tradition, stability, and being a part of something much bigger than himself.
The Shahs and Patels didn’t mean to start turning the wheels on this “suggested arrangement” so early in their children’s lives, but when they noticed them both gravitate toward the same summer program, they figured, Why not?
Dimple and Rishi may think they have each other figured out. But when opposites clash, love works hard to prove itself in the most unexpected ways.
*MY THOUGHTS*
“He could be crafted from unicorn dust and jellybeans, and I still wouldn’t want to have anything to do with him..“pg. 47
Dimple Shah is headstrong and has her life planned. She has no time for the schedule that her mom has already put in place for her. And then there’s Rishi who dutifully follows all that his parents have laid out for him, especially the part about finding his future wife. But of course, when Dimple and Rishi meet, it’s not exactly what either one is expecting, but maybe it’s what they needed all along…….
“If you always look like you’re going to bite them beti, no boys are ever going to want to talk to you. That was kind of the point, though, which is what Mama didn’t get.“pg. 81
ALL. THE. HEART. EYES. When I talk about contemp romances, I think about the characters apart and then the characters together. Dimple is so smart and innovative and I loved that she wasn’t willing to change who she was. And then there’s Rishi, who had so much heart and showed how much he changed throughout the entire story. And then the two of them together was even cuter. They both had something they could bring or teach to the other and I loved that. Relationships are about what all parties can bring, and too often that’s lost in YA. Also, Rishi has made the Book Boyfriend list for sure, because OMG he was the swooniest dude I’ve read about in a long time. Someone go find me a Rishi please lol I really loved the two of them together, but even better, I loved them apart as well. I laughed with them (so much so that people I work with turned to look at me weird because they didn’t know why I was laughing lol) and at one point I cried with them. That’s how I know I’ve loved a character and their story, when I connect with them on that level.
“I feel like I need to speak out, because if no one speaks out, if no one says, This is me, this is what I believe in, and this is why that’s okay, then what’s the point?“pg. 142
“Do it. Do what you love, what you’re passionate about.“pg. 173
I’m so glad this book is going out into the world. There’s everything, from romance, to culture, to a million laughs. This book is everything a Rom-Com should be, plus some. I hope to see more of these characters in the future.
I'M SO HAPPY TO SEE SO MANY PEOPLE ENJOYING THIS! I read it a while ago and absolutely fell in love because it was so feel good and well written! Thanks for the review!
xx Anisha @ Sprinkled Pages