Sunshine incarnate Bhanu brings big UX energy to whatever she does, including going for the promotion where her only serious competition is her work nemesis, AKA Sunny, the grump with the Denzel voice. She expected to get a reprieve from him while visiting her family in Hawai’i, but the universe has other plans. When Bhanu runs into Sunny at the hotel and witnesses his ex criticizing him about being single, Bhanu does the first thing that comes to mind: she impetuously claims to be Sunny’s girlfriend just to get some peace and quiet. Except Sunny is on island for a friend’s wedding and his ex has already texted the entire wedding party about this mysterious girlfriend.
Bhanu truly is the bane of Sunny’s existence. But the last thing he wants to do is cause tension during his friend’s wedding festivities, much less be the object of their pity. He has no choice except to play along, if only he and Bhanu can put aside their quarreling and act like a real couple.
Between Bhanu’s hilariously meddling family and Sunny’s ecstatic friends, the two are pushed closer together, even as stress mounts over the impending promotion.
They say what happens on island, stays on
island. But as Sunny and Bhanu let their guards down, will either of them be
able to resist this romantic getaway without crossing the line?
Hellie’s Heeds
The tropes are alive and well–you have a sunshine heroine nicknamed Bane; and a grumpy hero named Sunny–and the snappy banter and situational comedy laughs are on-going. In addition to having the Pride & Prejudice Perfect Trope of “Enemies to Lovers” (and the Sunshine & Grumpy trope), we also have the “fake dating” trope which the heroine introduces when Sunny’s ex-girlfriend tries to publicly shame him in a hotel lobby–and Bane (Bhanu) just wants the woman gone. Obviously the best way to get rid of this woman is to introduce herself as Sunny’s newest flame. (Bhanu doesn’t always think things through, but it’s part of her charm.) This leads to further complications as Bhanu agrees to allow Sunny to stay in her hotel room (since the hotel is booked and has nothing available) and for her to attend the pre-wedding events as Sunny’s supposed girlfriend.
What I really appreciated was the slow build of enemies to friends (of a kind) to lovers, allowing for the reader to get attached to both characters and appreciate the relationship that was building between them. Sometimes “enemies to lovers” runs the risk of “I actually hate this guy but he’s so hot I’m going to have sex with him anyway”--which I don’t find romantic--and I don’t bond with the characters who do things like that. Additionally, I was on board with Bhanu not liking Sunny–and I loved how like Bhanu, I slowly began to appreciate another side of Sunny and realize he’s actually a really good guy. The chapters go back and forth between the two–so the misunderstandings and miscommunications are shared.
The writing style of the author is fun and breezy, with what I feel are distinctive voices for each of the characters. (I really wish I could have found a story or book that details Bhanu’s sister’s love story–because I loved her and her boyfriend! But all in all, all I could think was I need to find more of Ms. Patel’s books because I think I might be a little behind on the backlist.) And while the story is breezy and rom-com in nature–the emotional depth and caring I had for these characters also speaks to Ms. Patel’s ability to create likable but flawed characters who deserve a happy ending.
Lastly, hands down: this had one of the most swoon-worthy romantic gestures of all time, topping Mr. Darcy going to London to make sure Mr. Wickham married that idiot Lydia. Bold, you may call my declaration (who tops Mr. Darcy of all things?), but I had to stop and read it to my husband and go, “Why can’t you be more eco-conscious like Sunny?” Best of all, the dark moment was quality dark moment–not just a misunderstanding between the two characters leading to them refusing to talk to each other (which is what would happen in real life) but the kind of dark moment you grow from.
A fun beach read, preferably on a beach in
Hawaii with some ube-flavored cookies or a shake to really feel like you’re
there. When can I go?
This does sound like a fun story. Two people finding one another is always sweet. Thanks for the review.
ReplyDeleteGreat review thank you.
ReplyDeleteWelcome back. Patoct
ReplyDeleteThanks!
DeleteThis sounds like a cute book! Thanks for the review, Hellie!
ReplyDeleteSound like a fun read. But I am a believer that no one can top Mr. Darcy
ReplyDelete