Review - - How Simi Got Her Groom Back

How Simi Got Her Groom Back

by Sonali Dev

Publisher: Lake Union Publishing

Release Date: March 3, 2026

Reviewed by PJ

 

Two sisters. One fake marriage. Zero chance of keeping the truth hidden.

The Naik sisters escaped their traumatic past in Mumbai to come to the States, but their journeys have been vastly different. Simi is working toward a bright future as a pediatric nurse in a small town in Kentucky when Rupi shows up at her door in distress, on the run, and as always, dragging trouble in her wake.

With Rupi’s safety in jeopardy, the sisters hatch a desperate plan to keep her in the country: Rupi must get married—and fast—even if it means Simi recruiting the man she’s been secretly dating as her sister’s groom. A perfect plan? Not quite. But there aren’t many alternatives.

As the big day inches closer, Simi and Rupi face a storm of wedding shenanigans and romantic surprises, not to mention sisterly jealousies. As the stakes and tensions rise, will their secrets tear them apart or will they find a way to risk everything for love?

PJ's Thoughts:

Sonali Dev took me on quite the emotional roller coaster with this book. It starts slow, from Rupi's point of view, a character I initially had trouble connecting with. I really didn't like her. At all. But that's part of Dev's skill in character building. I don't think I was supposed to. Not liking - or trusting - her gave her character the opportunity to grow, and me to change my mind, over the course of the book. 

Simi was the sister I favored at the beginning of the book but, again, my feelings about her also changed over the course of the book.  That's one of the things I enjoy about this author's writing. I never know what kind of journey she's going to take me - or her characters - on. I only know it's going to be one that will be thought-provoking, emotional, and heart-wrenching at times while also sprinkled with humor and human connection. Simi and Rupi are multi-layered, flawed, and carrying an immense amount of emotional trauma that impacts their decisions and actions in present time. They both have a significant growth arc that needs to be traveled before true happiness is in reach. 

The story is told from the point of view of each sister, in alternating chapters. Viewing everything unfolding from their individual perspectives really gives it all an added punch. I vacillated back and forth among stomach-clenching heartache, pure rage, and endearing hope, never knowing until the final pages which way this story was going to go regarding either the romantic relationships or the immigration dilemma. Kudos to Dev for bringing this story to life in such a realistic, relatable way that it elicited so many visceral emotions in me. 

The comedic relief in the book comes from Prem's family, a meddling, boisterous, welcoming group of people who, through their actions, show Rupi and Simi what a loving, supportive family looks like. Of course, that also heightens the angst when the recipient of all that love and support is the sister Prem is set to marry but not the sister Prem loves. It's a tangled mess that I, again, had no clue how Dev would unravel until the very end. 

Review - - Marriage & Masti

Marriage & Masti

by Nisha Sharma

If Shakespeare Were an Auntie - Book 3

Publisher: Avon

Release Date: August 27, 2024

Reviewed by PJ

Veera Mathur has been through a lot in the past year. Both of her friends found soul mates, the man she fell in love with got engaged to another woman, and her father fired her before selling the family company. When her twin sister, Sana, tells her there is no way of getting her old life back, Veera feels lost at sea: a single, unemployed mess with a bad tattoo and tons of talent, but nowhere to go.

Deepak Datta hasn’t had the best luck either. To secure enough board votes for the CEO position at his family's company, Illyria Media, he’s ready to marry board member and famous beauty influencer, Olivia Gupta. That is until he wakes up to a get ready with me video announcing their separation. Despite his immediate relief, Deepak needs to do something fast to repair his image.

After a series of convenient mishaps bring them together again—including a literal shipwreck, way too many drinks, and a sunset elopement on the beach—Deepak and Veera realize their accidental wedding might be the solution to their career aspirations. Together, they plot against the very company that ruined their lives in the first place.

As they try to convince the world their friendship was a ruse for romance they’ve felt all along, the line between fake and real begins to blur. Now Veera and Deepak must ask themselves the terrifying question that has haunted them since the first time they met: will love ruin everything?

With her signature humor and heartfelt storytelling, Nisha Sharma writes a messy, spicy romance about identity, family honor, and love. In Marriage & Masti, readers are sure to love the highly anticipated finale of this beloved trilogy.

PJ's Thoughts:

Nisha Sharma hits it out of the park with this final installment in her If Shakespeare Were an Auntie series. I've enjoyed all three books but this one is my favorite. I loved the humor, the heart, the spice, the Indian-American representation, and the generational - and gender - conflicts. Sharma knows of what she writes and conveys the obstacles many first generation Indian-Americans, especially women, face with humor, wit, and clear-eyed truth. It makes this book fun to read while also being thought provoking.

Friendship is a strong thread in this series and it's been enjoyable to watch the six main characters (three women/three men) evolve over the course of the three books as well as their interwoven relationships. It's a relatable reflection of what we all face as friendships transition due to growth, marriage, and other factors in our lives, occasionally leaving some of us on the outside looking in. 

As stated in the book's blurb, the relationship between Veera and Deepak is messy and spicy. It's also funny and endearing. I'm a huge fan of fake relationships in fiction and this one had me laughing, sighing, cringing, and cheering. 

As with the first two books in the series, family and community played huge roles in Deepak's and Veera's journeys. Particular favorites were Deepak's mother and, of course, the Aunties. We should all be so fortunate to have such a group of Aunties in our lives. 

For more information about Dating Dr. Dill (book one) and Tastes Like Shakkar (book two), click on the book titles to read my reviews. While each book stands well on its own, I'm glad I read them order to appreciate the full effect of the evolution of the six main characters, their friendships, and their romantic relationships. I enthusiastically recommend all three books. 

Review - - Dating Dr. Dil: A Novel

Dating Dr. Dil: A Novel

by Nisha Sharma

Publisher: Avon

Release Date: March 15, 2022

Reviewed by PJ

Nisha Sharma’s new romantic comedy features enemies to lovers, a cast of best friends, and a gaggle of aunties determined to make a match.

Hi! I’m Kareena Mann. As cheesy as it sounds, I’m looking for my soulmate. In four months. And he must gain the approval of my meddling aunties.

Kareena dreams of having a perfect love story like her parents did. That’s why on the morning of her thirtieth birthday, she’s decided to suit up and enter the dating arena. When her widowed father announces he’s retiring and selling their home after her sister’s engagement party, Kareena makes a deal with him. If she can find her soulmate by the date of the party, he’ll gift her the house, and she’ll be able to keep her mother’s legacy alive.

Hi, I’m Dr. Prem Verma, host of the Dr. Dil Show. Prem means love, Dil means heart, and I’m a cardiologist. Don’t let my name fool you. I only fix broken hearts in the literal sense.

Prem doesn’t have time for romance, which is why it’s no surprise when his first meeting with Kareena goes awry. Their second encounter is worse when their on-air debate about love goes viral. Now Prem’s largest community center donor is backing out because Prem's reputation as a heart-health expert is at risk. To get back in his donor’s good graces, he needs to fix his image fast, and dating Kareena is his only option.

Even though they have warring interests, the more time Prem spends with Kareena, the more he thinks she’s might actually be the woman he wants to spend the rest of his life with. In this Taming of the Shrew re-imagination, for Prem and Kareena to find their happily ever after, they must admit that hate has turned into fate.

PJ's Thoughts:

This book! I finished an advance copy of Dating Dr. Dil at 2:00 AM in the morning. These characters absolutely refused to let me sleep until I reached the end of their story. And what a fun, emotional, snarky, steamy, funny, heart-tugging story it was. I couldn't get enough of it. Sharma's Indian-American heritage glowed like a shining star and her well-developed characters leaped from the pages with humor, snappy banter, steamy chemistry, and more than a little friction. The storyline was realistic, the characters were relatable, and the emotions they elicited from me covered the entire spectrum from laughing out loud to sopping up tears.

If you're in the mood for a smartly-written, enemies-to-lovers romcom brimming with cultural richness, ride-or-die friendships, meddling families, a bridezilla younger sister, aunties (OMG, I loved the aunties!), relevant relationship hurdles, and perfectly-pitched humor balanced with poignant emotion, you do not want to miss Nisha Sharma's Dating Dr. Dil. 

As I told a friend the other day, when the first thing you want to do after turning the final page of a book is go back to page one and read it all over again, you know it’s a winner.

Review - - Incense and Sensibility

Incense and Sensibility

by Sonali Dev

The Rajes - Book 3

Publisher: William Morrow Paperbacks

Release Date: July 6, 2021

Reviewed by PJ

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.

PJ's Thoughts:

Complex, thought provoking, and deeply emotional, Incense and Sensibility kept me reading late into the night. Then, when I turned the final page with a heart-felt sigh, all I wanted to do was return to the beginning and read it all over again, slowly this time so that I could fully savor the depth and beauty of Sonali Dev's words. 

I have fully enjoyed the other books in The Rajes series but this third one was my favorite. There's just something about India and Yash that spoke to me. Yes, it's true that I love a second-chance romance but this book is about so much more than that. It's rooted in family, culture, service, loyalty, and in pursuing not only what's in the best interest of others but in our own best interest as well. 

I enjoyed the dynamics within both families and how India's and Yash's journeys were interwoven with them, with side-story threads bringing additional complexity and richness to the main plot without detracting from it. I loved what Yash stood for, admired his genuine dedication to public service, understood his reasons for past decisions (even if I didn't agree), and fully understood the inner turmoil those decisions caused. I adored India. I wanted to be friends with her, take her yoga class, just hang out with her. She and Yash are so good together, as if they had each been created for the other. I was pulling for them the entire way, through some pretty big obstacles. 

I highly recommend adding Incense and Sensibility to your summer reading list. Like the previous books, it can be enjoyed on its own but if you choose to begin the series here and enjoy Raje's story, I encourage you to also check out his sisters' stories in Pride, Prejudice, and Other Flavors (book one - Neurosurgeon Dr. Trisha Raje and Chef DJ Caine) and Recipe for Persuasion (book two - Chef Ashna Raje and soccer star Rico Silva). If you haven't already guessed from the titles, yes, these books are present-day stories inspired by the novels of Jane Austen. And, they are not to be missed.