Helpful Score: 2
I got this book yesterday in the mail and finished it within 3 hours. I enjoyed the characters and the story, especially the glimpses into the life of Lina as the oldest daughter of the family. She is a professional matchmaker and knows she's made the right match by silvery threads she sees connecting her clients. I enjoyed the bits of Hindi interspersed in the story along with cultural references to India and Indian entertainment.
At Lina's youngest sister's wedding, a match she made, she finds herself in the precarious situation of either spending time with a match of her Auntie Kiki's or making up a fake fiance. She goes with the latter and it snowballs out of control. Her fake fiance initially resembles her deceased fiance Nathu, and then he starts to resemble a mystery man she met at the wedding.
Raja Prasad is a man with connections to royalty. He comes to Lina to seek out her services to find a bride for his younger brother. Through Lina's eyes, you get to know all facets of this interesting hero and it's fun to watch the relationship between Lina and Raja develop. Will he pick the princess in India or will he pick Lina?
At Lina's youngest sister's wedding, a match she made, she finds herself in the precarious situation of either spending time with a match of her Auntie Kiki's or making up a fake fiance. She goes with the latter and it snowballs out of control. Her fake fiance initially resembles her deceased fiance Nathu, and then he starts to resemble a mystery man she met at the wedding.
Raja Prasad is a man with connections to royalty. He comes to Lina to seek out her services to find a bride for his younger brother. Through Lina's eyes, you get to know all facets of this interesting hero and it's fun to watch the relationship between Lina and Raja develop. Will he pick the princess in India or will he pick Lina?
This is an absolutely delightful book to read, I can't recommend it enough. It is fresh and fun, but ends on a perfect note. As I said of another Banerjee title, you won't want the story to end!
Total blah. I couldn't even make it through the first chapter. I could see exactly where this book was heading, and it was going to be a yawn. Don't get me wrong--I love chick lit, and I don't have any problem with the lonely-girl-eventually-gets-guy-after-much-confusion-and-hilarity plotline. When it's done well, that is--written well, really colorful and original characters, cute twists on the plot, etc. I really like authors such as Amulya Malladi and Chitra Banerjee Divakaruni who write beautiful, exciting, and dramatic stories about India and Indian women. I'm not adding this one to my list.
My reasons for packing this one in early were: overuse of Indian words and phrases followed by a sentence explaining what they mean. I'd rather have the words thrown in there and let me figure out what they mean, or have them explained in a way that does not take half a paragraph (usually the context is enough anyway); stereotypical characters by the drove (oldest sister is unmarried, youngest sister is hotter/sexier/funnier/more worldly than oldest sister, older relatives are overbearing and annoying about her single status, all available men are dorks and nerds, etc); and I was bored to tears.
Who knows, maybe it gets better a little farther in. But if the first chapter is any indication of the rest of the book, I'm not willing to waste my time to find out.
My reasons for packing this one in early were: overuse of Indian words and phrases followed by a sentence explaining what they mean. I'd rather have the words thrown in there and let me figure out what they mean, or have them explained in a way that does not take half a paragraph (usually the context is enough anyway); stereotypical characters by the drove (oldest sister is unmarried, youngest sister is hotter/sexier/funnier/more worldly than oldest sister, older relatives are overbearing and annoying about her single status, all available men are dorks and nerds, etc); and I was bored to tears.
Who knows, maybe it gets better a little farther in. But if the first chapter is any indication of the rest of the book, I'm not willing to waste my time to find out.
Fun, insightful Indian chicklit, loved it!
Fun Read!
She didn't want to be hassled by her match-making family so she blurts out a lie, "I'm engaged!"
