Two successful young people meet on a flight from North America to India and stumble down a star-crossed path to love in Hudson-Maggio’s contemporary romance.
Indian Tej Mayur and Indian American Harlow Kennedy are both caught up in their fast-paced lifestyles. Tej is the extremely successful owner of the restaurant Bombay Baby in Atlanta, and Harlow works in Toronto, managing coding and app-creation projects around the world. Both are also eligible marriage material, which means that there’s intense pressure from family members for each of them to get hitched soon. Tej fends off sultry women who are only after his fortune, while Harlow receives an unwanted proposal from an unappealing bachelor. Then Tej and Harlow serendipitously meet when Harlow is assigned to cover a Bombay Baby project for her work. The two are instantly attracted to each other, but there’s much that stands in the way of their getting together, including issues involving ego, family, and multiple engagements. However, a matchmaker whom Harlow consults notes her belief that “the universe revolves according to the laws of karma,” and when Tej’s family mandates that he wed a woman who was chosen for him within a matter of days, he has to decide whether or not he will play with his fate and test his own karma. Overall, readers will find this to be a gratifying and heartwarming story, featuring two characters that they will be likely to find endearing, despite their flaws. Each chapter alternates between the two main players’ perspectives as they grapple with their futures; this format results in a delightful and easygoing read that some will find to be reminiscent of Indian romance films. The story does lack a certain complexity, and some readers may find it a bit too lightweight, but its inclusion of customs of Indian marriage and wedding culture effectively bring it to life.
An entertaining and uncomplicated tale of two young lovers.Pub Date: July 1, 2022
ISBN: 979-8886806854
Page Count: 388
Publisher: Paper House
Review Posted Online: June 22, 2022
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
Categories: ROMANCE | GENERAL FICTION | CONTEMPORARY ROMANCE
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Through palpable tension balanced with glimmers of hope, Hoover beautifully captures the heartbreak and joy of starting over.
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The sequel to It Ends With Us (2016) shows the aftermath of domestic violence through the eyes of a single mother.
Lily Bloom is still running a flower shop; her abusive ex-husband, Ryle Kincaid, is still a surgeon. But now they’re co-parenting a daughter, Emerson, who's almost a year old. Lily won’t send Emerson to her father’s house overnight until she’s old enough to talk—“So she can tell me if something happens”—but she doesn’t want to fight for full custody lest it become an expensive legal drama or, worse, a physical fight. When Lily runs into Atlas Corrigan, a childhood friend who also came from an abusive family, she hopes their friendship can blossom into love. (For new readers, their history unfolds in heartfelt diary entries that Lily addresses to Finding Nemo star Ellen DeGeneres as she considers how Atlas was a calming presence during her turbulent childhood.) Atlas, who is single and running a restaurant, feels the same way. But even though she’s divorced, Lily isn’t exactly free. Behind Ryle’s veneer of civility are his jealousy and resentment. Lily has to plan her dates carefully to avoid a confrontation. Meanwhile, Atlas’ mother returns with shocking news. In between, Lily and Atlas steal away for romantic moments that are even sweeter for their authenticity as Lily struggles with child care, breastfeeding, and running a business while trying to find time for herself.
Through palpable tension balanced with glimmers of hope, Hoover beautifully captures the heartbreak and joy of starting over.Pub Date: Oct. 18, 2022
ISBN: 978-1-668-00122-6
Page Count: 352
Publisher: Atria
Review Posted Online: July 27, 2022
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 15, 2022
Categories: ROMANCE | CONTEMPORARY ROMANCE | GENERAL ROMANCE | GENERAL FICTION
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SEEN & HEARD
SEEN & HEARD
Packed with riveting drama and painful truths, this book powerfully illustrates the devastation of abuse—and the strength of...
156
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Hoover’s (November 9, 2015, etc.) latest tackles the difficult subject of domestic violence with romantic tenderness and emotional heft.
At first glance, the couple is edgy but cute: Lily Bloom runs a flower shop for people who hate flowers; Ryle Kincaid is a surgeon who says he never wants to get married or have kids. They meet on a rooftop in Boston on the night Ryle loses a patient and Lily attends her abusive father’s funeral. The provocative opening takes a dark turn when Lily receives a warning about Ryle’s intentions from his sister, who becomes Lily’s employee and close friend. Lily swears she’ll never end up in another abusive home, but when Ryle starts to show all the same warning signs that her mother ignored, Lily learns just how hard it is to say goodbye. When Ryle is not in the throes of a jealous rage, his redeeming qualities return, and Lily can justify his behavior: “I think we needed what happened on the stairwell to happen so that I would know his past and we’d be able to work on it together,” she tells herself. Lily marries Ryle hoping the good will outweigh the bad, and the mother-daughter dynamics evolve beautifully as Lily reflects on her childhood with fresh eyes. Diary entries fancifully addressed to TV host Ellen DeGeneres serve as flashbacks to Lily’s teenage years, when she met her first love, Atlas Corrigan, a homeless boy she found squatting in a neighbor’s house. When Atlas turns up in Boston, now a successful chef, he begs Lily to leave Ryle. Despite the better option right in front of her, an unexpected complication forces Lily to cut ties with Atlas, confront Ryle, and try to end the cycle of abuse before it’s too late. The relationships are portrayed with compassion and honesty, and the author’s note at the end that explains Hoover’s personal connection to the subject matter is a must-read.
Packed with riveting drama and painful truths, this book powerfully illustrates the devastation of abuse—and the strength of the survivors.Pub Date: Aug. 2, 2016
ISBN: 978-1-5011-1036-8
Page Count: 320
Publisher: Atria
Review Posted Online: May 31, 2016
Kirkus Reviews Issue: June 15, 2016
Categories: GENERAL ROMANCE | ROMANCE | CONTEMPORARY ROMANCE
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SEEN & HEARD
SEEN & HEARD
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