THE SHAADI SET-UP by Lillie Vale

September 21, 2021

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From the publisher:

In this witty and heartfelt rom-com debut for fans of Jasmine Guillory, Emily Henry, and Tessa Bailey, an Indian American woman signs herself and her boyfriend up for a matchmaking site to prove they’re a perfect match, only to be paired with her ex instead.

High school sweethearts Rita Chitniss and Milan Rao were the golden couple, until the day he broke her heart. Now, six years later, Rita has turned her passion for furniture restoration into a career and has an almost-perfect boyfriend, Neil. The last thing she needs is for Milan to re-enter her life, but that’s exactly what happens when her mother, an unfailing believer in second chances, sets them up. Milan is just as charming, cocky, and confident as he was back in school. Only this time, he actually needs her business expertise, not her heart, to flip a hard-to-sell house for his realty agency. 

While Rita begrudgingly agrees to help, she’s not taking any risks. To prove she’s definitely over him, she signs herself and Neil up on MyShaadi.com, a Desi matchmaking site famous for its success stories and trustworthy enough to convince everyone that she and Neil are the new and improved couple. Instead, she’s shocked when MyShaadi’s perfect match for her isn’t Neil…it’s Milan. Ignoring the website and her mother is one thing, but ignoring Milan proves much more difficult, especially when she promises to help him renovate the beach house of her dreams. And as the two of them dive deeper into work—and their pasts—Rita begins to wonder if maybe her match wasn’t so wrong after all….


Milan dumped Rita in a voicemail while she was flying to meet him for their trip to Europe during college. He never shows and she is heartbroken, but determined to go on their trip anyway. Six years later, Rita met Neil on Tinder and they hit it off. It’s been a few months of him spending the night a couple of times a week. But his life is ruled by his mother, and she wants him to find a wife, an Indian wife.

In a weird coincidence, Rita’s mom was a young woman when she fell in love with a man. But his family arranged a marriage for him and he broke her heart. Rita thinks her mother never got over him, and it turns out Neil’s father is that man. Rita doesn’t want to get any more involved with Neil that what they already are; he has marriage on his mind. She finally figures out that she can make this all public if the Indian marriage/dating app matches her with Neil. They coordinate their answers, but the 100% match for her is not Neil, it’s Milan.

Meanwhile, Neil’s mother “wrestles” his password to the app from him (she asks him for it) and starts arranging dates for him with the women from the site. And he goes. Rita is pissed but doesn’t really care and isn’t the least bit jealous. And Rita’s mom conspires with Milan’s mom to bring them back together. He is a very successful real estate agent, and she loves decorating and woodworking – she takes other people’s junk and turns the junk into treasures.

Milan has been sitting with a listing for this ultra-modern house for close to a year. No one wants it. So when the moms decide that Rita can fix up the place so he can sell it, they both agree to give it a try. It is very successful, and the house sells almost immediately for above list price. Milan had purchased an old B&B on the beach and has been renovating it to flip. He asks Rita to do the decorating and she agrees. The more time they spend together, the more they both realize that they are still in love. But Rita is leery; she knows she’s not the same girl he fell in love with, and she wants to make sure they are both going into this with their eyes wide open.

This was a really fun read. The families lent a lot of humor to the story, and the characters were all interesting and believable. I am looking forward to her next book – this was a debut novel (for adults; she writes children’s books, too!)

9/2021 Stacy Alesi, AKA the BookBitch

THE SHAADI SET-UP by Lillie Vale. G.P. Putnam’s Sons (September 7, 2021). ISBN: 978-0593328712. 368 pages.

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A LOT LIKE ADIOS by Alexis Daria

September 15, 2021

From the publisher:

The national bestselling author of You Had Me at Hola returns with a seductive second-chance romance about a commitment-phobic Latina and her childhood best friend who has finally returned home.

Hi Mich. It’s Gabe.

After burning out in her corporate marketing career, Michelle Amato has built a thriving freelance business as a graphic designer. So what if her love life is nonexistent? She’s perfectly fine being the black sheep of her marriage-obsessed Puerto Rican-Italian family. Besides, the only guy who ever made her want happily-ever-after disappeared thirteen years ago.

It’s been a long time.

Gabriel Aguilar left the Bronx at eighteen to escape his parents’ demanding expectations, but it also meant saying goodbye to Michelle, his best friend and longtime crush. Now, he’s the successful co-owner of LA’s hottest celebrity gym, with an investor who insists on opening a New York City location. It’s the last place Gabe wants to go, but when Michelle is unexpectedly brought on board to spearhead the new marketing campaign, everything Gabe’s been running from catches up with him.

I’ve missed you.

Michelle is torn between holding Gabe at arm’s length or picking up right where they left off—in her bed. As they work on the campaign, old feelings resurface, and their reunion takes a sexy turn. Facing mounting pressure from their families—who think they’re dating—and growing uncertainty about their futures, can they resolve their past mistakes, or is it only a matter of time before Gabe says adiós again?


Michelle is a talented graphic artist and one of her marketing campaigns went viral. Gabe’s partner in the gym they own is pushing hard to expand to New York, and wants to hire her. He doesn’t know about Gabe’s previous relationship with Michelle. When his partner can’t go to NY, Gabe has to do it. And the only way Michelle is going to help them is if he agrees to stay with her. She has an apartment in the city, and Gabe agrees.

They have unfinished business. Best friends all through school, their relationship intensified the summer after they graduated. Except unbeknownst to Michelle, Gabe is planning on going to college in California, not NY where they both live. When she finds out she is livid. Feeling her temper got the best of her, Michelle reaches out occasionally over the years. She really misses her friend and can’t understand why he won’t respond.

But her apartment is being renovated and shockingly, the date to finish has past and there is no toilet in the apartment. Since her parents are away, Michelle moves back home to the Bronx, next door to Gabe’s family. But when she brings him to the Bronx instead of Manhattan, he freaks out.

What Michelle doesn’t know is that Gabe had a big falling out with his parents. He told them he was going to California, on scholarship, but his father wants him to stay and help out in the stationary store he owns. They have a big fight, and Gabe hasn’t been back or even talked to his parents for nine years. This is really Gabe’s story; he needs to resolve the issues with his family and his business, and learn who he really is. With Michelle’s help, he does that.

The only part of the book I didn’t love were the “interstitials;” snippets of fanfiction they had written together when they were in high school. I could have lived without that, it reminded me of my least favorite parts of Rainbow Rowell’s books. But it did play a big part of the ending, and I did like that!

This is a terrific romance with some humor and interesting, diverse characters. There isn’t a whole lot of sex but it is steamy. If you like the friends to lovers trope (and I do) then this is your book! It is the sequel to You Had Me at Hola, but while I highly recommend you read it (I loved it) you don’t have to for this book to work. Enjoy!

9/2021 Stacy Alesi, AKA the BookBitch

A LOT LIKE ADIOS by Alexis Daria. Avon (September 14, 2021). ISBN: 978-0062959966. 416 pages.

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THE HEART PRINCIPLE by Helen Hoang

September 7, 2021

The Kiss Quotient, Book 3

From the publisher:

A woman struggling with burnout learns to embrace the unexpected—and the man she enlists to help her—in this heartfelt new romance by USA Today bestselling author Helen Hoang.

When violinist Anna Sun accidentally achieves career success with a viral YouTube video, she finds herself incapacitated and burned out from her attempts to replicate that moment. And when her longtime boyfriend announces he wants an open relationship before making a final commitment, a hurt and angry Anna decides that if he wants an open relationship, then she does, too.

Translation: She’s going to embark on a string of one-night stands. The more unacceptable the men, the better.

That’s where tattooed, motorcycle-riding Quan Diep comes in. Their first attempt at a one-night stand fails, as does their second, and their third, because being with Quan is more than sex—he accepts Anna on an unconditional level that she herself has just started to understand. However, when tragedy strikes Anna’s family she takes on a role that she is ill-suited for, until the burden of expectations threatens to destroy her. Anna and Quan have to fight for their chance at love, but to do that, they also have to fight for themselves.


This is the latest entry into one of the best contemporary romance series. While there are three books in the series, I think that each stands alone. To prove my point, the second book in the series is from 2019, and honestly, I don’t remember a whole lot about it other than the main points – a main character on the autism spectrum and an emotional journey to the happily-ever-after. And that I loved the first two books, so I was thrilled to find this new one. There is an author’s note at the end of the book explaining why there was two years before publishing, and I must insist that if you read this book, and you should, you should also read that note.

I don’t know a ton about autism. That the main character in this series is on the spectrum means that I learn more about it and I think that is a very good thing. For instance, I learned that Asperger’s Syndrome is no longer a diagnosis; instead, the diagnosis is “autism spectrum disorder.” But more importantly, I learned how this woman lives with her autism and deals with it. Interestingly, the author is also on the spectrum and that just makes it more real.

Anna is a concert violinist in San Francisco. She started learning as a child, but was no prodigy – but a viral video turns her into a sensation, and a famous composer even writes her own piece for her. But Anna has taken a leave of absence from her job because she is stuck. She can’t play her own piece all the way through. In fact, she can’t play anything all the way through other than scales. As soon as she makes any kind of mistake, she has to start over, leaving her playing in a loop and very, very frustrated.

There is also frustration in her personal life. For one thing, Anna has spent her life trying to fit in with her family and even with her boyfriend of five years. Julian tells her he wants to marry her, but first wants to sleep around a lot to make sure he’s not missing anything. He wants an open relationship. Anna isn’t happy about it, and then she gets angry and decides what’s good for the gander is good for the goose and downloads a dating app, She decides to have a one-night stand or even better, a bunch of one night stands. The first guy she finds is just perfect – Quan is very good looking in a very bad boy way. But when she goes to meet him at a bar, she has a panic attack.

Quan has his own issues as a cancer survivor. He’s not looking for a relationship; he just wants to get back in the saddle again, as it were. Anna is sweet and beautiful and quirky, and as all she wants is a one night stand, kismet. It doesn’t work out like either one of them planned, so they decide to try again. Meanwhile, they talk and text and watch documentaries together while texting. The second try also fails, but they are both enjoying each other’s company and keep it going. And for the first time in her life, Anna is being herself and not just trying to please someone else.

Anna has been in therapy for a while to try and deal with her violin issues, and it’s not helping. On the other hand, she tries very hard to tell her therapist what she thinks she wants to hear. It’s not very useful and eventually the therapist tells her she believes Anna has been “masking”, trying to fit in, and gives Anna articles and a book about women on the autism spectrum.

Then Anna’s father has a massive stroke. Despite the fact that the doctors want to call in hospice, her mother and her much older, very dominating sister decide to bring him home and take care of him themselves. Anna moves home and is assigned an eight hour shift. She hates living there, hates taking care of her father not because she doesn’t love him, but because it is just so hard for her to try and fit in 24/7. To make matters worse, she thinks her father hates living like this and wants to die. He has a feeding tube, diapers, he can’t talk at all and it just breaks her heart.

Her sister thinks that autism diagnosis is crap and that Anna just needs to work harder. She also is planning a big birthday party for their father and wants Anna to play her violin at the party. Anna has fallen in love with Quan, but her wealthy Chinese family is not thrilled with this Vietnamese non-professional man. Julian is a doctor and his parents are good friends with Anna’s parents so they are invited to the party. But nothing goes right for Anna, and her struggle is real.

This is the type of book that is almost impossible to put down. That said, the crisis point of the story got me so emotional that I had to put it down and just cry. I avoided going back for a couple of hours, but then steeled myself to keep going and get to the happy ending I knew was coming.

Caretaking is a big issue in this story. In fact, the book is divided into three sections; before, during, and after [the stroke.] These characters wormed their way into my heart and there they stay, especially after reading the author’s note. I loved this book so much – I think it is the best book of an already excellent series, and everyone should read it. This is a wonderful romance with lots of humor, pathos, and hot sex, but it is the emotional journey that means everything here. It was worth the two year wait! Don’t miss it.

9/2021 Stacy Alesi, AKA the BookBitch

THE HEART PRINCIPLE by Helen Hoang. Berkley (August 31, 2021). ISBN: 978-0451490841. 352 pages.

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THE DATING PLAYBOOK by Farrah Rochon

August 25, 2021

The Rajes, Book 3

From the publisher:

When a personal trainer agrees to fake date her client, all rules are out the window in this “fun, heartfelt, and totally relatable” romantic comedy (Abby Jimenez, NYT bestselling author of Life’s Too Short).

When it comes to personal training, Taylor Powell kicks serious butt. Unfortunately, her bills are piling up, rent is due, and the money situation is dire. Taylor needs more than the support of her new best friends, Samiah and London. She needs a miracle.

And Jamar Dixon might just be it. The oh-so-fine former footballer wants back into the NFL, and he wants Taylor to train him. There’s just one catch—no one can know what they’re doing. But when they’re accidentally outed as a couple, Taylor’s game plan is turned completely upside down. Is Jamar just playing to win . . . or is he playing for keeps?

  • PopSugar: Best Summer Reads of 2021
  • BookBub: Best Romance Books of Summer
  • Washington Post: Romance Novels to Read This Summer
  • Oprah Daily: Most Anticipated Romances of 2021

This is the second book of a no-named series, although it works well as a standalone, too. Although I loved the first book so much, I shouldn’t even tell you that, but if you can, please go read The Boyfriend Project. It made my best books of the year list for 2020.

This book has an added bonus for me; it’s a sports romance, which I love. Jamar has been booted from the NFL after his first year due to a serious injury. None of the teams want to take a chance on him, despite his surgeon’s clearing him to play. Determined to get back to the sport he loves, but wanting to avoid publicity about it, he decides to find a trainer to work with him from outside the NFL bubble. Jamar has seen Taylor’s boot camp style workouts online and besides thinking she’s pretty hot, thinks she is just the woman who can kick his butt back to the NFL. He shows up at one of her popup classes and impresses her when he can do one armed burpees. They chat after, and eventually he talks her into being his personal trainer.

Taylor loves what she does, but the business end of things sucks. She is losing money hand over fist and desperately needs an infusion of cash to pay her bills. She hasn’t gotten a couple of jobs she really wanted because she never went to college. It becomes apparent fairly quickly that something is up about that.

These characters were so well developed that I couldn’t help but care about them. Taylor has all kinds of family drama and Jamar has some serious guilt going on in his backstory. Even though they agree that they cannot be romantically involved, they end up in a fake relationship for the media attention. Which of course eventually turns into a hot romance.

I loved this story and these characters and I can’t wait for the next book in this series! Just wish it had a name.

8/2021 Stacy Alesi, AKA the BookBitch

THE DATING PLAYBOOK by Farrah Rochon. Forever (August 17, 2021). ISBN: 978-1538716670. 384 pages.

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THE VISCOUNT MADE ME DO IT by Diana Quincy

August 17, 2021

Clandestine Affairs, Book 2

From the publisher:

Diana Quincy returns with the second novel in her Clandestine Affairs series featuring a steamy romance between a working class London bonesetter who is dangerously attracted to her mysterious noble client.  

A seduction that could ruin everything . . .

Hanna Zaydan has fought to become London’s finest bonesetter, but her appealing new patient threatens to destroy everything she’s worked so hard for. With each appointment, the daughter of foreign merchants is slowly seduced by the mysterious former soldier. She’s smart enough to know Griff is after more than he’ll reveal, but whatever it is, the bonesetter’s growing desire for the man just might tempt her to give it to him.

An attraction that cannot be denied . . .

Rumors that he killed his own parents have followed Thomas Ellis, Viscount Griffin, practically since he was a boy. More than a decade after the tragedy, Griff receives a tip about his parents’ killer . . . one that takes him straight to a beautiful bonesetter. Griff is convinced Hanna is a fraud, but she stirs genuine feelings in him that he thought had perished along with his family.

Hanna has a gift for fixing fractured people, but can she also mend a broken heart? More importantly, will Griff let her?


I read the first book in this series, Her Night with the Duke, and really liked it, so I was happy to get my hands on this one. This is a terrific romance with the most fascinating heroine.

I never heard of a bonesetter before, but based on the work she does in this story, it is sort of a cross between a chiropractor, orthopedist, and maybe physical therapist, all rolled into one. Hanna is not allowed to go to medical school, she is a young woman, but nothing stopped her from learning from her father. He, too, was a bonesetter, and from the time she was a young girl Hanna knew this was her destiny. The only problem is that the medical community thinks of bonesetters as charlatans and quacks.

Griff’s parents were murdered when he was a teenager and he hasn’t heard from his sisters since. His father’s best friend was named his guardian, and he took care of Griff as best he could. Eventually, Griff joins the army until he is severely injured and sent home. His shoulder, elbow and wrist were injured and never healed properly, leaving him in constant pain for years. His guardian, a doctor and head of a local hospital, tells him to just give it more time and offers opium, which Griff is avoiding at all costs.

Griff happens to be nearby when a young man along with a group of his rowdy friends, approaches Hanna, offering his wrist up as being “injured” to see if she’ll fall for it. Not only doesn’t she fall for it, she is so angry and embarrassed at being made a spectacle that she dislocates his wrist. Before she can walk away, Griff notices the unusual sapphire pendant she is wearing. It was his mother’s, and had disappeared after her murder.

Thinking it may lead him to whoever murdered his parents, he goes to visit the bonesetter under the pretext of his war injuries. She examines him, and there is chemistry between them. She says she thinks she can help him, and by manipulating his shoulder, she relieves the pain he has been in for years. He is amazed, but still curious about the necklace. She prescribes a salve to be strongly massaged into his joints and eventually helps his elbow and wrist as well. Griff was on the precipice of suicide; he just didn’t know how much longer he could live with the pain but after her treatment, he was a new man.

His guardian doesn’t believe that she actually helped him. He thinks it is a coincidence because he felt that at some point it would just heal on its own, and he thinks it did. But Griff knows better. He gets closer to Hanna, even bringing her another patient, but his guardian is set on having her thrown out of London.

Griff and Hanna can never be together. He is of the aristocracy, and she is of the working class. Even if he wanted to look past that, Hanna is also Arab and her family would never allow her to marry outside her race. With all these seemingly insurmountable odds against them, the mystery of his murdered parents, and the struggles Hanna is having with the hospital board, it is quite the hurdle to get to their happily ever after.

This was a terrific love story and Hanna was an intelligent, interesting character. I liked the mystery that was entangled in the story, and of course, the happy ending. I think this books stands alone beautifully, but do read the first one as well, it was also a really interesting read.

8/2021 Stacy Alesi, AKA the BookBitch

TTHE VISCOUNT MADE ME DO IT by Diana Quincy. Avon (July 27, 2021). ISBN: 978-0062986818. 384 pages.

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SO WE MEET AGAIN by Suzanne Park

August 16, 2021

From the publisher:

From the author of the “genuinely funny” and “delightful” Loathe at First Sight (NPR), a young Korean American woman’s journey to finding a new career and new love means learning to embrace the awkward and unexpected—exploring familial expectations, finding your voice, and unimaginably falling for your childhood rival.

When investment banker Jessie Kim is laid off in a virtual meeting and then overhears why (“she’s already being overpaid anyway for a woman” and “Asians are worker bees, not someone who can drum up new deals”) she delivers an “eff you guys” speech and storms out. 

After moving back home to Tennessee to live with her loving but meddling mother and father, she runs into her childhood nemesis—golden child Daniel Choi—at the local Asian grocery store. The smart, charming lawyer appears to have it all…while Jessie has nothing.

Jess begrudgingly accepts Daniel’s help to relaunch her long abandoned Korean cooking YouTube channel: HANGUK HACKS, showcasing easy meal prep for busy professionals. But just as she discovers Daniel’s life isn’t as perfect as it seems and there’s more to him than meets the eye, he shows up for a life-changing business opportunity, and their rivalry is back on . . .


Another fun and funny romance featuring food, always a winner for me. Jessie loses her job in finance and moves back home with her parents. They are Korean and a bit old fashioned. Jessie is surprised to learn that her lifelong nemesis, the boy she was always compared to and always lost to, is also back home and living with his parents. Daniel was the preacher’s kid, and his father is back working in the church where he was raised. Everyone is told Daniel has taken a sabbatical from his high powered, high paying job in Silicon Valley, but no one really knows why or any more than that.

When Jessie runs into him at the grocery store, she cannot believe the scrawny boy with a bowl cut that she remembers is now this super hot guy who evidently works out. But she is embarrassed and her come down in the world and doesn’t want to deal with the competition that always rears up between them. But it’s a small community, and when Jessie joins a local entrepreneur group, she finds Daniel is the hero of the group. He even wants to help her.

Jessie decides to bring back to life her old YouTube channel. This time, she gets the idea of hacking the prepared meal kits that are so popular, but often boring. She is going to add some Korean flair to those, and she starts off cooking in the kitchen. But her mom shows up, throws in her two cents, and a meme is born. People love her mom, and her dad shows up too, also drawing good comments. The video goes viral, and her YouTube is up and on its way.

Business is great but it turns out Daniel is in cahoots with one of her business partners, and things get messy. Jessie has fallen for Daniel, but this is just the breaking point. Eventually, her business grows even more successful, and Daniel helps her take it to the next level, along with their relationship. There are a lot of laugh out loud moments here, and the romance is more sweet than sexy, which is understandable as they both live with their parents. But it really works, and I loved it.

Park tells a good story and I really respect her female lead characters; they are smart women working in male dominated industries. I loved her previous book, Loathe at First Sight, and while this is a very different book, it is also a terrific read. Park moves onto my “must read” list and I can’t wait for her next book!

8/2021 Stacy Alesi, AKA the BookBitch

SO WE MEET AGAIN by Suzanne Park. Avon (August 3, 2021). ISBN: 978-0062990716. 368 pages.

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INCENSE AND SENSIBILITY by Sonali Dev

August 12, 2021

The Rajes, Book 3

From the publisher:

Yash Raje, California’s first Indian-American gubernatorial candidate, has always known exactly what he wants—and how to use his privileged background to get it. He attributes his success to a simple mantra: control your feelings and you can control the world. But when a hate crime at a rally critically injures his friend, Yash’s easy life suddenly feels like a lie, his control an illusion. When he tries to get back on the campaign trail, he blacks out with panic.

Desperate to keep Yash’s condition from leaking to the media, his family turns to the one person they trust—his sister’s best friend, India Dashwood, California’s foremost stress management coach. Raised by a family of yoga teachers, India has helped San Francisco’s high strung overachievers for a decade without so much as altering her breath. But this man—with his boundless ambition, simmering intensity, and absolute faith in his political beliefs—is like no other.

Yash has spent a lifetime repressing everything to succeed, including their one magical night ten years ago—a too brief, too bright passion that if rekindled threatens to destroy the dream he’s willingly shouldered for his family and community . . . until now.


I read all three books in this series last week, and frankly, that says a lot. I loved spending time with the Rajes, and while each book stands alone, I think they are best read in order. This is Yash’s and India’s story.

Yash is the crown prince of the Raje family, everyone’s favorite son. He is brilliant and kind, and has devoted his life to public service. Now he is running for Governor of California. His sister is his campaign manager, but the whole family is involved. When shots are fired at a rally, Yash’s bodyguard takes the bullet meant for Yash, but it passes through his body into Yash’s. Both are taken to the hospital.

Yash has pretty superficial wounds, but Abdul, the bodyguard, is in critical condition. Abdul’s wife is in the hospital as well, having given birth to their first child, a daughter, just two days earlier. Yash is just beside himself, feeling guilty and out of control, and control is his most important character trait. He recovers quickly, and a couple of weeks later is set to speak at another rally. But as he is supposed to go on, he has what seems like a panic attack. His sister’s best friend Ashna suffered from panic attacks, but their friend India was able to help her so they want Yash to see India.

India, her sister China, and their mom live in a building that also houses their yoga studio and handmade incense factory. India and Yash met at his sister’s wedding ten years earlier, and had an amazing connection. They spent the night together, just talking, and Yash showed her around his family’s estate. But he was leaving the next day, so their plans were put on hold. But Yash’s best friend, Naina, makes him a proposition. She wants to work on her plan to help women around the world, but her family is driving her crazy because they want her to marry. Naima and Yash come to a decision; they will be “spoken for” and that will allow them both to do their work unimpeded by their families’ marriage plans. Both families are thrilled with the idea, and it works well for them. They are rarely in the same place, but for ten years they have avoided having to marry. Of course, Yash has to give up on India for the greater good, his political career.

India is heartbroken when she learns about Yash and Naina. No one but the two of them know it is a relationship of convenience, but Naina returns to California where she will be working for a while. She is in the audience when Yash is shot, and the picture of her crying over his body goes viral. Naina wants to get married because she thinks it will be best for the careers. There is no love there; they tried having sex a few times but it wasn’t good. This will be a marriage of convenience, but Yash has had it. He is tired of living the lie, and he certainly doesn’t want to move forward into a marriage. But Naina lets slip to the media that they are engaged, and he doesn’t now how to get out of it.

Meanwhile, Yash goes to India for help. She is not of a mind to help the man who broke her heart, but India is a kind soul and would never refuse to help someone who needed her. As their relationship deepens, Yash is torn and cannot figure out how to get out of the mess he finds himself in, especially when he is leading the polls so close to the election.

One of the reviews of this book that I read described it as “West Wing meets Jane Austen” and while that is quite a stretch, the politics are an important part of the story. It seems hopeless that Yash and India will ever be able to get together, but have no fear, they get their happy ending. I loved this latest entry into this wonderful series, so now I have to patiently wait for the next Sonali Dev book. Something to look forward to!

8/2021 Stacy Alesi, AKA the BookBitch

INCENSE AND SENSIBILITY by Sonali Dev. William Morrow Paperbacks (July 6, 2021). ISBN: 978-0063051805. 400 pages.

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RECIPE FOR PERSUASION by Sonali Dev

August 11, 2021

The Rajes, Book 2

From the publisher:

From the author of Pride, Prejudice, and Other Flavors comes another , clever, deeply layered, and heartwarming romantic comedy that follows in the Jane Austen tradition―this time, with a twist on Persuasion.

Chef Ashna Raje desperately needs a new strategy. How else can she save her beloved restaurant and prove to her estranged, overachieving mother that she isn’t a complete screw up? When she’s asked to join the cast of Cooking with the Stars, the latest hit reality show teaming chefs with celebrities, it seems like just the leap of faith she needs to put her restaurant back on the map. She’s a chef, what’s the worst that could happen? 

Rico Silva, that’s what.  

Being paired with a celebrity who was her first love, the man who ghosted her at the worst possible time in her life, only proves what Ashna has always believed: leaps of faith are a recipe for disaster. 

FIFA winning soccer star Rico Silva isn’t too happy to be paired up with Ashna either. Losing Ashna years ago almost destroyed him. The only silver lining to this bizarre situation is that he can finally prove to Ashna that he’s definitely over her. 

But when their catastrophic first meeting goes viral, social media becomes obsessed with their chemistry. The competition on the show is fierce…and so is the simmering desire between Ashna and Rico.  Every minute they spend together rekindles feelings that pull them toward their disastrous past. Will letting go again be another recipe for heartbreak―or a recipe for persuasion…? 

In Recipe for Persuasion, Sonali Dev once again takes readers on an unforgettable adventure in this fresh, fun, and enchanting romantic comedy.


I read the first book in the series, Pride, Prejudice, and Other Flavors, when it came out in 2019 and I really liked it. But somehow I missed this second book, and the third book is out now, too. So I went back to the beginning and re-read the first book before running through the rest of the series. Yes, these books are that good.

If you are a Food Network fan, then this is your book. It is centered around a cooking competition show based on Dancing with the Stars; professional chefs are paired with “stars”, most of which are B list celebrities, in a cooking competition. Ashna is a chef and graduate of the Cordon Bleu in Paris.

Ashna’s family is a mess. Her mother left to work in India, and Ashna’s relationship with her is poor, to say the least. Her father raised her but he commits suicide and Ashna is the one to find him. So serious emotional issues abound here. Ashna goes to Paris to learn how to cook at The Cordon Bleu, leaving his chef and manager in charge of the restaurant for two years. Unfortunately, while she is gone, they ripped off the restaurant and disappeared with over $5 million dollars, leaving Ashna is a very bad place. She returns to run the restaurant, but things are really bad. The restaurant is old and looking it, and the customers are few and far between.

Ashna gets some help from her friend DJ as he creates new recipes for her, in hopes of getting new customers. But Ashna has some serious baggage and finds herself having panic attacks when she tries to cook anything other than her father’s recipes. When her cousin, a producer of the cooking show, loses one of the chefs at the last minute, she begs Ashna to fill in. The winner gets $100,000 plus the restaurant will get a ton of free publicity, so despite her misgivings, Ashna feels like she doesn’t really have a choice if she wants to save her restaurant.

She is shocked to find herself paired with Rico, one of the best soccer players in the world, and her high school boyfriend. No one knew about their relationship and she broke his heart when she left him. Rico has enough star power to demand to be on the show and to be paired with Ashna and their first meeting goes viral, pushing them in the lead as the contest starts. Cooking together means Ashna has no way of ignoring him, and as she works through her fear of cooking, especially in public, Rico has her back and they grow even closer.

The Rajes are a large, wealthy family and Ashna, while not exactly a sibling, is considered one. With her mother never around, the Raje matriarch is like a second mother to Ashna, and her children consider Ashna a sister. I love this family, and their relationships give another layer to this story. This was a terrific follow up to the first book, and I can’t wait for the next book. Fortunately, I don’t have to wait. Review to follow shortly.

8/2021 Stacy Alesi, AKA the BookBitch

RECIPE FOR PERSUASION by Sonali Dev. William Morrow Paperbacks (May 26, 2020). ISBN: 978-0062839077. 448 pages.

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FIRST COMES LIKE by Alisha Rai

June 6, 2021

Modern Love, Book 3

From the publisher:

The author of The Right Swipe and Girl Gone Viral returns with a story about finding love in all the wrong inboxes…

Beauty expert and influencer Jia Ahmed has her eye on the prize: conquering the internet today, the entire makeup industry tomorrow, and finally, finally proving herself to her big opinionated family. She has little time for love, and even less time for the men in her private messages—until the day a certain international superstar slides into her DMs, and she falls hard and fast.

There’s just one wrinkle: he has no idea who she is.

The son of a powerful Bollywood family, soap opera star Dev Dixit is used to drama, but a strange woman who accuses him of wooing her online, well, that’s a new one. As much as he’d like to focus on his Hollywood fresh start, he can’t get Jia out of his head. Especially once he starts to suspect who might have used his famous name to catfish her…

When paparazzi blast their private business into the public eye, Dev is happy to engage in some friendly fake dating to calm the gossips and to dazzle her family. But as the whole world swoons over their relationship, Jia can’t help but wonder: Can an online romance-turned-offline-fauxmance ever become love in real life? 


I really liked The Right Swipe, so I’m not sure how but I missed Girl Gone Viral. I will be looking for that soonest! Because I liked this book a lot as well.

Rai writes charming, sweet romances set in her Muslim culture, which I find very interesting. In this story, our heroine, Jia, is a wannabe beauty influencer. She’s getting to where she wants to go and isn’t in the market for love. Except her family is driving her crazy, and she may have met someone.

Dev is Bollywood royalty, and when he DMs Jia, she falls fast and thinks he has, as well. She pushes for a meeting but he’s holding her off. Then she ends up at an event where she finally meets him – except he has no idea who she is. Apparently she’s been catfished. But there is an attraction there, so when Jia asks Dev to be her fake boyfriend to keep her family off her back, he agrees.

Fake relationships always turn into the real thing – it is a classic trope of the romance genre and one that I enjoy. On the other hand, I’ve never known anyone who was in a fake relationship or fake engagement, but I’m not one to rule it out. I choose to believe.

I like the strong, feminist characters here and the sweet romance that is culturally appropriate. An excellent addition to the Modern Love series.

6/2021 Stacy Alesi, AKA the BookBitch

FIRST COMES LIKE by Alisha Rai. Avon (February 16, 2021). ISBN: 978-0062878151. 432 pages.

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THE DATING PLAN by Sara Desai

May 28, 2021

From the publisher:

Even with a step-by-step plan, these fake fiancés might accidentally fall for each other in this hilarious, heartfelt romantic comedy from the author of The Marriage Game.

Daisy Patel is a software engineer who understands lists and logic better than bosses and boyfriends. With her life all planned out, and no interest in love, the one thing she can’t give her family is the marriage they expect. Left with few options, she asks her childhood crush to be her decoy fiancé.

Liam Murphy is a venture capitalist with something to prove. When he learns that his inheritance is contingent on being married, he realizes his best friend’s little sister has the perfect solution to his problem. A marriage of convenience will get Daisy’s matchmaking relatives off her back and fulfill the terms of his late grandfather’s will. If only he hadn’t broken her tender teenage heart nine years ago…

Sparks fly when Daisy and Liam go on a series of dates to legitimize their fake relationship. Too late, they realize that very little is convenient about their arrangement. History and chemistry aren’t about to follow the rules of this engagement.


The fake fiancée is at the forefront of this terrific romcom. Daisy and Liam go way back; they were childhood friends. But they haven’t seen each other in years. Daisy is career driven, but her traditional family is making her crazy – they want to see her married. Liam is in even deeper trouble. His inheritance is contingent on him marrying, so these old friends decide that they are the answer to each other’s problem. So the fake fiancée is born.

Daisy and Liam need to learn more about one another as adults, plus they need to date to have everyone believing their story. Falling in love was never the plan, but of course that’s what happens.

I loved Desai’s last book, The Marriage Game, and this new one lived up to my expectations. A super fun romance – don’t miss it!

A LibraryReads Pick!

One of…

SheReads’ Most Anticipated Romance Books of 2021
GoodReads’ Hottest 2021 Romances
Marie Claires Best New Romance Novels of 2021 (So Far)
PopSugar’s Best New Romance Books of March 2021
HelloGiggles’s Best New Books to Read in March

5/2021 Stacy Alesi, AKA the BookBitch

THE DATING PLAN by Sara Desai. Berkley (March 16, 2021). ISBN: 978-0593100585. 352 pages.

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