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Bollywood #2

The Bollywood Bride

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Ria Parkar is Bollywood's favorite Ice Princess--beautiful, poised, and scandal-proof--until one impulsive act threatens to expose her destructive past. Traveling home to Chicago for her cousin's wedding offers a chance to diffuse the coming media storm and find solace in family, food, and outsized celebrations that are like one of her vibrant movies come to life. But it also means confronting Vikram Jathar.

Ria and Vikram spent childhood summers together, a world away from Ria's exclusive boarding school in Mumbai. Their friendship grew seamlessly into love--until Ria made a shattering decision. As far as Vikram is concerned, Ria sold her soul for stardom and it's taken him years to rebuild his life. But beneath his pent-up anger, their bond remains unchanged. And now, among those who know her best, Ria may find the courage to face the secrets she's been guarding for everyone else's benefit--and a chance to stop acting and start living.

Rich with details of modern Indian-American life, here is a warm, sexy, and witty story of love, family, and the difficult choices that arise in the name of both.

352 pages, Paperback

First published September 29, 2015

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About the author

Sonali Dev

16 books2,857 followers
Sonali Dev’s first literary work was a play about mistaken identities performed at her neighborhood Diwali extravaganza in Mumbai. She was eight years old. Despite this early success, Sonali spent the next few decades getting degrees in architecture and written communication, migrating across the globe, and starting a family while writing for magazines and websites. With the advent of her first gray hair her mad love for telling stories returned full force, and she now combines it with her insights into Indian culture to conjure up stories that make a mad tangle with her life as supermom, domestic goddess, and world traveler.

Sonali lives in the Chicago suburbs with her very patient and often amused husband and two teens who demand both patience and humor, and the world’s most perfect dog.

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Displaying 1 - 30 of 599 reviews
Profile Image for Shelby *trains flying monkeys*.
1,652 reviews6,359 followers
October 6, 2015
This author came to my attention last year when I read A Bollywood Affair I really enjoyed that little book so I was excited when I saw this one. Now I'm sad because I did not care for this one as much.

Ria is supposedly an "Ice Princess", she keeps to herself and doesn't let her personal life go public. She is a Bollywood star with a secret. (She a dang drama queen is what she is)
Chicago commercial photographers

Ria finds out that her cousin (who's family raised her) is getting married and she must return to her home for the wedding. She is living in Mumbai after running to be a star leaving her troubled past behind. So she returns to Chicago.
She is haunted by her mom's violent mental illness touched past and thinks that it will be repeated with her. The thing is? This part of the book could have been very good but I just didn't like Ria enough to care about any of her baggage.

Chicago commercial photographers

The of course is a romantic past that comes into play. Ria left Vikram with a cloud of misunderstanding. *insert some eye rolling here*
They grew up together and had been "soul mates" before the drama train hit them and tore them apart.

I LOATHED Vikram's character. He was a total asshat for most of the book.
Chicago commercial photographers

I think that hurt the story for me. You can't enjoy a romance when you absolutely hate one of the main characters. So that could have some bearings on my feelings for this book. I did like her other book though so I'm open to reading more by this author.

Booksource: Netgalley in exchange for review.

Chicago commercial photographers

I'm highlighting a positive review on this book because I really do like this author and think this book may have just not been my cup.
Here is a great review for this book.
Profile Image for Anna.
190 reviews162 followers
February 22, 2022
This is one of my very favorite books! Reading it for the first time was an experience, and it made me a Sonali Dev devout for life.

Ria Parkar is a gorgeous, rich, successful Bollywood movie star who has the world on the palm of her hand – on the outside. On the inside, she is an empty shell of a person who can't form meaningful connections with others or find joy in her work or her personal life.

She grew up in Mumbai, but spent every summer in her aunt's house in Chicago until she turned eighteen, so she was very close with her cousin Nikhil and his cousin (on his father's side) Vikram. Vikram was, in fact, her first and only love. However, for Mysterious Reasons, she hasn't been to America or even spoken to Vikram in ten years.

When she receives a call from Nikhil inviting her to his wedding back in Chicago, the last thing she wants to do is see the people she hurt so badly and open old wounds, especially knowing that Vikram wouldn't miss the festivities for anything. Even for the girl who broke his heart and derailed his life. But after distancing herself from everyone for a decade, Ria knows she owes it to her cousin to be there for the most special day of his life, so she packs her bags and sets off to face the aftermath of what she left behind.

This is a gorgeous, heartbreaking, scalding second chance romance (yep, my favorite) full of tension and longing and stolen moments and flashbacks and all that good stuff, but it also handles delicate subjects like mental illness and abuse in a way that can be very triggering, so make sure to read the content warnings and take care of yourself. ❤️
Profile Image for Madison Warner Fairbanks.
2,590 reviews390 followers
July 28, 2020
The Bollywood Bride by Sonali Dev

Bollywood book 2. Contemporary romance. Can be read as a stand-alone.
Ria and Vikram were childhood friends that eventually became lovers but she left to pursue a movie career. Ria is back in Chicago for her cousin’s wedding and old feelings can’t be ignored.

Of course, there are a lot of background secrets and concerns between the two. The first time around, ok, she was young and was trying to protect him from hurt. But her continued refusal to tell him the past secrets was frustrating and made them both miserable.
It is a romance so I can say without spoilers that eventually everything is revealed and resolved.

I liked the hero for his honorable actions over and over.
The story is filled with many Indian-American customs and family dynamics.
Romantic and emotional.
Profile Image for Rhode PVD.
2,422 reviews26 followers
October 2, 2015
Badly melodramatic. I read and enjoyed her first novel. This one is not remotely as good, in large part because it's hysterically overwritten purple prose. No one can have a headache, it must be a migraine; your sore knee can't ache, it must be excruciatingly painful; you can't cry a little, tears must pour down your face for hours; you can't hop up into your truck, you must leap into your seat like a mustang stallion. The last thing the reader wants to do is imagine herself in the heroine's skin because that skin is writhing in overwrought emotional agony for pretty much the entire book. It feels like reading an upset 13 year old girl's diary....

Sadly the plot has next to nothing to recommend it. It's the old secret-from-the-past keeping the lovers apart plot. If the heroine - or any of several relatives in on the secret - had told the hero what was going on, there would be no plot at all. The whole book the heroine is fussing melodramatically about how he can't know, and you want to slap her and say tell him already!

The love relationship also has little to recommend it. It's moppet insta-love, they meet as kids and snap that's it, soul mates, read each other's thoughts, love each other forever, cannot be with anyone else romantically without it being a shallow substitute for the one true love, and when they are apart life is empty and cold for both of them even after ten years. Yeah, so maybe there are people like that on this planet but they are rare. And this type of relationship has zero conflict, hence the ugly secret melodrama. Otherwise there would be no plot.

The hero is hunky and perfect - way too perfect. He loves orphans and helps children in wheelchairs, and has several patents and VCs are beating down his door to fund his inventions, and he is a respectful son and nephew who gets along with everybody. Oh, and he is really tall and muscly. And he would give up everything in an instant for the love of the heroine because love is the only thing that really matters to him. Yeah, just too, too, too.

There's a teeny bit of behind the scenes Bollywood stuff, just teeny. It's there, but blink and you'll miss it. 95% of the action is unrelated to Bollywood.

So what's good? Why did this book get two stars instead of one? Here's what:

- the aunties: the gang of four auntie girlfriends, each with different Anglo-Indian accents, who have such marvelous friendships, were described with such love. I could imagine them clearly and wanted to hug them all.

-the wedding prep: much of the story takes place during the two weeks before the heroine's cousin's wedding in Chicago. The details of the actual prep, from grated spices carefully gathered in Tupperware, to the oblivious male priest pontificating about marriage to the wrong people; to the entire scene at the Indian-style menswear store where the groom and his best man must shop for their wedding outfits, much to their horror. The prep all is lovingly detailed, sweet, and often down to earth.
Profile Image for Mandi.
2,310 reviews725 followers
September 29, 2015
After escaping the horrors of her childhood, Ria gets shipped from India to Chicago and is raised by her aunt and uncle and she becomes best friends with a boy named Vikram. She comes to them broken, having not spoken a word for more than a year. But during that summer, she meets Vikram, and her world changes. He becomes her friend, she speaks again - she lives again. As they grow into adults, their friendship turns into an intense love. They have both found the love of their lives. But their happy ever after is not in their grasp yet.

Vikram gets the chance to travel for a few months for his job, and Ria eagerly encourages him. But when he is gone, she gets an offer from a film producer and Ria learns, the horrors she faced from her mother, might be in her genetics too. She gets scared and thinks the only way to keep her beloved Vikram safe and for him to have a happy future, is for her to not be part of his life. She goes off with a sleazy movie producer, leaving Vikram stunned.

Fast forward ten years, Ria is a big time Bollywood movie star living in Mumbai and has not seen or spoken to Vikram all this time. But now her beloved cousin is getting married, so she is forcing herself to go back to Chicago for his wedding - and of course Vikram will be there. Will their love reunite in these two weeks?? My heart could barely take it!

Best friends to lovers and a second chance love story - gimme!! I really loved Sonali Dev's first book, A Bollywood Affair last year. This one is more dark and somber - a different feel but still outstanding writing. I was a little worried after the first couple chapters, before Ria goes back to Chicago and meets with Vikram. The sleazy agent, the paparazzi - eh - I'm not a huge fan of those things. But once she gets to Chicago, we get a wonderful family atmosphere and angst that will pull at your heart.

Vikram is so, so angry at Ria for leaving him ten years ago. He has yet to recover from this, or even understand it. I don't want to give too much away about Ria's mother, so let me just say she has some mental issues - issues Ria fears will transfer to her. So instead of just coming out and telling Vikram this (wouldn't that have been easier?) she pretends a movie career is what she wants and there is no room in her life for him. This devastates Ria, but she would rather him have a good life without her. Of course, Vikram can't have a good life without her because he loves her so much!!

Their reunion is not a happy one. He lashes out at her. He uses his current girlfriend to make her feel jealous and he isn't over the fact that she left him for another man.

"You're good." He looked at her as if he were seeing her for the first time. "You're really good. I didn't stand a chance, did I?" Hell, your sugar-fuckin'-daddy didn't stand a chance, did he?" A short, mirthless laugh whooshed out of him. "But you know what? It doesn't matter. Not anymore. I can see right through you now. Right fucking through you."

He is so hurt over it all. They share stolen, intense, somber-filled glances. It's told in Ria's point of view, but you know Vikram has not moved on from her for one second. It's the kind of book that makes you turn the pages as fast as you can because you can't stand the fact that these two aren't together. And this author REALLY makes you wait for that happy reunion. I almost didn't make it *wink*

"I don't know what you are talking about." Even to her own ears her repetitive mumble sounded pathetic and unconvincing.

He leaned closer, locked her in place with his blazing gaze. "I'm talking about the big, searing holes we're burning into each other. this insane, crazy thing between us. I'm taking about how badly we want each other. It's time to finish this, Ria."


Ria is referred to as the Ice Princess in the media - but in her real life, she is much more warm. She guards herself - which has come from years of being stalked by the paparazzi, but flashes of that girl Vikram used to know come through. Her aunts, cousins and friends surround her with love and laughter in the two weeks she is home for the wedding. It heals her and wakens her up to what she has been missing for ten years.

Vikram is broody deliciousness. So sexy stomping around, pissed off at the world. The hurt from Ria leaving him radiates off of him so intensely. You just want to hug him - and then get naked with him.

I enjoyed the angst in this one. It hurt, but with a solid HEA at the end, it was worth it.

Grade: B+
Profile Image for Jennifer.
1,774 reviews6,698 followers
December 29, 2015
description
I LOVE Bollywood films! The culture, the music, the movements, the clothing, the colors...it's just beautiful and fun! I was already so excited to hear that Sonali Dev was writing a second book and was extra happy to learn that the female lead character: Ria is a Bollywood star! Well, just like in real life, stardom is not all it's cracked up to be. I appreciated the complexity of Ria and how her past completely haunts every moment of her life, and I became immediately interested in her character. However, other areas of this book just didn't draw much emotional response from me unfortunately. Although I can't deny how sexy the romantic tension and scenes were, overall this story was much too predictable and I had a hard time connecting with the lead characters consistently. The personal and relationship drama kind of felt like a new-adult romance but the characters were past the typical age for that genre.

In summary (and in my opinion), The Bollywood Bride isn't as good as A Bollywood Affair was, but of course they are two different stories so other readers may have a different reading experience. Sonali Dev continues to be an author I seek out though. She brings the Indian culture to life in a way that allows readers from all over the world to relate, and already I can't wait to see what she writes next!

My favorite quote:
“The way the joke goes is that the secret to a happy marriage is for a man to wake up every morning and tell his wife he’s sorry...But the real secret is to wake up every morning and thank her. Because the happiness a good woman brings to your life is incomparable. No one else can make you happy the way she can. Not your job, not your friends, not even your children can give you what a good marriage gives you. A good marriage is all you need to make it all worthwhile. And she gives you that. The day you realize this is the day you no longer have to worry about a thing.”
Profile Image for Ellie.
840 reviews188 followers
September 28, 2015
Oh, I didn't know it had a cover already. It's beautiful, I love it!
September is so far away :)

What a journey that was! Passionate, a bit dark and a lot of intense! I just wanted a little more of the ending.

Full review as posted on my blog - Ellie Reads Fiction

I loved this story even more than the Ms Dev's debut novel, A Bollywood Affair which made my best reads last year. It's a second chance romance story, with darker undertones and more on the serious side than book but written in the same wonderful, engaging style. Ms Dev takes on an emotional journey at the background of an Indian wedding with in all its glory and colour and symbolism and above all - Love.

The heroine is a successful Indian actress who hides a terrible secret. Ria was an amazing character - strong and fragile, broken and hopeful. I loved everything about her. I understood her pain, her fear and her hope and this made me forgive even the mistakes she made.

Told from her POV this is mostly Ria's story. And it's an intense emotional journey, full of self-reflection. All her actions that seemed cruel and heartless on the surface were actually done because of her love for the others - Vikram and her family - and her loyalty to them and fierce determination to protect them.

The secrets Ria kept and the personal issues she was silently battling on her own were not artificial made-up drama but serious problem treated in a respectful and caring manned by the author.

Vikram was a complex and intriguing hero on his own. At first we see lot of lashing out and negative emotions from him. Given what had happened between Ria and him it's understandable, yet I was angry at him for being so cruel and vicious. I had a moment of doubt about him (because of the whole girl-friend situation) but I think it was well handle eventually and it added to richness of his portrayal.

The coming back together of Ria and Vikram happens at the background of his cousins wedding which became a central metaphor in the story, a character of its own. I loved the detailed insight we got into the Indian traditions and lifestyle. The Indian wedding ceremonies were beautifully done, creating a sense of magic and touch of reality. I also appreciate how it was balanced out with the fears and anxieties of modern-day life the characters felt.

The writing it beautiful, Ms Dev creates a story with rich texture and makes reading it an experience for the sense - touch, smell, sight, sound. I said it my review of A Bollywood Affair and it hold true for this story as well, it's like a Bollywood movie - colourful, vibrant, full of emotion, even the romance was a true, meant-to-be-together-forever kind of love.

My only minor quibble has to do with the ending. The issues between Ria and Vikram were resolved in a rather realistic, mature level but I would have loved to see more of them as couple. There were so many obstacles for them still to overcome, a whole new life to build for themselves. Now, on the other hand, I can hope for a short (or longer) sequel.

It's a wonderfully diverse and passionate romance with a touch of darkness and some serious modern-day issues examined. A recommended read for those looking for an authentic romantic stories well told.
Profile Image for Book Riot Community.
953 reviews203k followers
Read
September 29, 2015
So many Rioters are raving about this book, so of course I had to read it. One even threatened me with harm if I didn't enjoy it - good thing for me I think it's great fun! Ria Parkar is a famous Bollywood actress, seemingly untouchable, until a scandal threatens to rock her world. She travels to a cousin's wedding in Chicago to wait out the media frenzy, where she'll have to face another part of her past: the handsome Vikram, her first love. Ria's trip is a chance at closure and to make amends, but will she use her time wisely? This book is so, so delightful! Really glad I took the time to read it.


Tune in to our weekly podcast dedicated to all things new books, All The Books: http://bookriot.com/category/all-the-...
Profile Image for Shantala  (Shanaya Tales).
315 reviews76 followers
October 29, 2019
I haven't read a Sonali Dev book that I haven't loved, and this one was no exception. Though I've to say that with this one, even going in, I knew I was going to love it.

Especially because like I said, I already knew I enjoyed the author's writing / narrative style, and second-chance at first-love is my absolute favorite romance trope. So really, there wasn't much that could have gone wrong.

But this wasn't just a good read, but also a super addictive one. In-fact it was so unputdownable that I procrastinated on a lot of important chores that I now am scrambling to catch up on - which is kinda nuts, but also so worth it! #noregrets :D

Coming to this book / story - I loved the characters - all of them, the protagonists & the extended family, the narrative style flipping between the present & the glimpses of the past, and the angsty / swoon worthy romance!

Which is why, I cannot recommend it enough!!
Profile Image for Jennifer.
1,416 reviews143 followers
March 15, 2016
4.25 Stars

I have been looking forward to reading The Bollywood Bride ever since reading (and loving) Sonali Dev's debut, A Bollywood Affair. And I'm happy to say that this is another successful romance by Ms. Dev though it has a different one than its predecessor.

This book is centered around Bollywood actress, Ria Parkar, who is known as the Ice Princess. But, what the media does not know is that she has something big in her past that directly affects her current state of mind. She spends an obscene amount of energy trying to keep her emotions in check and never let on that she is terrified of losing control. A potential scandal inspires Ria to leave India to attend her cousin's wedding in Chicago. Once there, her mysterious past comes up when she is reunited with her childhood sweetheart, Vikram.

I absolutely adored Ria! She is tormented, but such a sweet soul. I really felt for her as she struggled to maintain her Ice Princess persona around Vikram while trying to hide the fact that she still has feelings for him. I thought Sonali Dev did a wonderful job of portraying someone with the possibility of mental illness in her future especially in how Ria tries to avoid tying people to her uncertain diagnosis. Vikram was not as developed, but he was easy to like especially once he got over his jerk tendencies related to Ria's earlier betrayal.

What makes The Bollywood Bride stand out is that, like with A Bollywood Affair, Sonali Dev provides readers with a richly detailed look at Indian culture. The wedding setting provides opportunities for wonderful descriptions of food, clothing, decorations, and, of course, people. The idea of family is important in these books and that is shown in high definition here. I especially enjoyed reading about Uma, Nik, and the gaggle of aunties.

I don't want to reveal much more about the plot and character journeys in The Bollywood Bride in order to avoid spoilers. I spent quite a bit of time wondering how the author was going to get the story to a happy ending and that mystery was a big part of the reading experience for me. I do want to give major props to Sonali Dev for her impeccable writing and willingness to dive into complex themes like the stigma of mental illness, pressures of fame, and family loyalty. I definitely recommend this for anyone who wants a unique twist on contemporary romance.

I received a free eARC from Kensington Books via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.
Profile Image for Carly Ellen Kramer.
Author 3 books65 followers
October 20, 2015
I bought this book on a whim at the airport before a long flight, and WOW! Drama and romance across continents... a perfect travel companion to take your mind off of hours jammed into an airplane seat. ;) Highly recommend (the book, not the airplane seat).
Profile Image for AYearOfBooks.
17 reviews10 followers
February 13, 2016
I’m a total sucker for second chance at love story-lines, and Sonali Dev executes this setup flawlessly in her newest book The Bollywood Bride.
When Bollywood actress and “Ice Princess” Ria Parkar returns home to Chicago for her cousin’s wedding she is reunited with her childhood friend and former flame, Vikram. Sparks fly between the two as the wedding preparations progress, and Ria is forced to confront the issues of her past as she contemplates walking away from Vikram yet again.
Sonali Dev is a ridiculously talented writer, and she infuses her characters with such vibrant complexities that I truly felt like I knew them. While the romance is wonderful, (Vikram is a total stud) Dev really excels in portraying Ria’s family, whom she depicts with warmth and tenderness.
With its passionate, steamy, and sentimental love story, and a look inside Indian-American culture, "The Bollywood Bride" is a must read for romance readers. I absolutely loved it, and I cannot wait to read Dev’s next book!

Thank you to Netgalley for providing an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.
Profile Image for Ashley.
2,955 reviews2,053 followers
February 19, 2016
I was very disappointed in this book. It was the book chosen for the CBR book club, so I'm not going to write as full of a review as I normally would because I want to save my thoughts for our discussion next month. I'd also like to note that I’m definitely reconsidering reading Dev’s first book, which I’d put on my TBR previously after it was featured on NPR’s romance reading list. I still might read it, though, as it was actually the second book she wrote, this one being her first, just published later. That one also seems to be more highly rated.

There were so many things that didn’t work for me in this book I’m almost too overwhelmed to write about them all. So let’s do a list!

•So. Much. Drama. Seriously. I don’t know if this is a legacy of being part of Bollywood, but everything that could possibly be thrown into this story was thrown into this story. Murder, mental illness, rape, sleazy entertainment industry behavior, lost loves, overly cute family members, and so so so much anger.

•Almost every scene in this book was so overwritten. I almost sprained my eyeballs while reading I was rolling them so much.

•The conflict could have been entirely avoided if the main characters would have just talked to each other, which as we all know, is the very best romance trope in existence and everybody loves it and it’s not frustrating to read about at all :\

•The POV didn’t work for me. Ria was too much in her own head, and Dev’s prose was way too focused on what Ria was doing and feeling at all times. It was awkward and too much, and I didn’t like it. A lot of unnecessary details there.

•I was frustrated by the book mostly because every now and then I would see glimmers of a story I could have loved, like the author was just letting herself write and not being so self-conscious about it, and then she would immediately do something to lose me again. I hate being yo-yoed by books.

•Vikram was a frothing ragemonster with an enormous temper at the beginning of the book, and then all of a sudden he turned on a dime and was a complete sensible angel.

•The mental health issues the book brought up I thought were entirely obscured by the dramatics of the plot. It felt like what happened to Ria’s family was only there to make Ria seem like a tragic figure.

•The parts focusing on the specifics of Indian culture were really fascinating, and I wish Dev had focused more on that than all the dramatic histrionics.

On a related sidenote, I’ve never seen a Bollywood film, but would be interested to dive in. Does anyone have a few good recommended starting points for me?

[2.5 stars because the end was better than the beginning]
Profile Image for Nasty Lady MJ.
1,071 reviews16 followers
December 24, 2015
To see review with gif click here.

I enjoyed this book, but it wasn’t great. I felt like it missed out on a lot of opportunities. The subject matter that it covered was not only interesting and exciting, but there was also a lot of emotional issues that could’ve been explored more that were barely touched.

If you know anything about me and romances, you’ll know that I’m really fond of the “second chance” trope. I think this is because it gives the author a chance to develop the characters at two different stages of their lives and the romance doesn’t feel as forced as in some other tropes. Still though, it’s a hard trope to pull off efficiently.

And I don’t think it was done efficiently here. I didn’t really feel Vikram and Ria reconnect. It was more or less sexual tension and then bam let’s get naked. Let’s not go through any of our shit first and try to resolve our hatred for each other.

This is the best part of second hand romances, rediscovering that love. That even though you’ve been hurt by someone and have changed over a period of time, you can still reconnect. But I think Vikram just wanted Ria for her breasts and Ria wanted Vikram for his biceps.

It’s not terrible though, there were some sweet moments with these two, but it missed the boat in a major way.

Just like having Ria be a big Bollywood star, but hardly spending anytime discussing her career. Rather, it was her at the wedding making moony eyes at Vikram, his biceps, and blue eyes. All she really does besides that is stare and mope.

The one thing that I did think was handled reasonably well was the effect that mental illness can have on a family. Being from a family that has mental illness on both sides, I see where Ria was coming. While the mental illness that my family members suffer from is nowhere near as severe (that I know of) as the one that Ria’s relative suffers from, I felt her angst wondering if a ticking time bomb is going to go off in your head.

Not a pretty feeling.

Though, I wish some of the other aspects of mental illness was as well thought out. Parts of the illness and Ria’s reaction to it were fluffed over a little bit too much for my liking, but I guess overall it worked.

Despite it’s faults, I did like Bollywood Bride. It was a nice book to read on the flight home for Christmas, and it served it’s purpose it entertained me without really offending me. It’s not a perfect read though, but it was nice to find a romance that didn’t deal with blondes in corsets or hot marines who came back home and fell in love with Ms. Nebraska.
Profile Image for Olga.
1,018 reviews156 followers
July 13, 2017
Un dia me ha durado... Dice la autora que es el primer libro que escribio ( aunque se haya publicado como un segundo) pero que libro mas bueno, bonito y muy duro, durisimo por el tema que trata, por la historia que cuenta...

La pareja protagonista es de 10, ella con los traumas que arrastra desde pequeña y que la hace ser como es ( una mujer fuerte pero insegura, nada plena a pesar de su fama y belleza) y él (ainssss Vikraim) que personaje mas maravilloso con sus defectos, con su fuerza de voluntad , con su forma de amarla y su forma de luchar por ella.....

Una historia que se remonta a la infancia, a la soledad de dos pequeños que se conocen y llegan al primer amor, donde dos pequeños se unen por diferentes motivos y que ese hilo hace que ni el tiempo, nis las desgracias pueda desconectarlos despues de 10 años sin verse...

Como siempre Sonali nos sumerge en la cultura Hindu ( en este caso en el rito del matrimonio hindu) con todo su colorido, olores y simbolismo... un gusto leer sus libros y deseando que se publiquen mas....
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
Profile Image for Molly O'keefe.
Author 103 books2,121 followers
Read
August 25, 2015
This was such a beautiful book. I love the way Sonali touches on and brings fresh and exciting life to the conflicts that I love in romance. All the angst and internal wounds that keep me awake reading way too late. Reading this feels very much like going to an Indian wedding - readers just get wrapped up in the color and the romance and the family. Beautiful book. Highly recommend.
Profile Image for Tova.
630 reviews
September 30, 2018
Well, that was dramatic. RTC

I don't know what I am more excited for? Jen being or Nikhil being and not being Arjun Reddy? But also, I am so happy to see the origins of Ria and Vikram.
Profile Image for Carolyn.
186 reviews47 followers
February 24, 2016
Ria is a Bollywood film star, known for playing the ingénue who usually gets married by the end of the film. She’s known as the “Ice Princess” because she’s intensely private and hates being in the public eye. On the eve of a potential PR disaster, she goes back home to Chicago for her cousin’s wedding. There, she’s forced to confront Vikrim, her former boyfriend. She broke his heart a decade before, but can’t tell him why. Vikrarm assumes she did it to break into the Bollywood scene and become a superstar, and he hates her for it. Ria has secrets, but she feels their burden is hers alone to bear. But as wedding preparations force her to be with her former lover, she finds her secrets harder and harder to keep.

This book would have been about 20 long pages if any of the characters decided to TALK to each other. The whole book, Ria’s fretting that she CAN’T tell him her TERRIBLE SECRET, and I just wanted to shake her. By the time she finally does tell him the truth about what happened all those years ago, he’s like “Shit. Why didn’t you tell me? I totally could have helped you.”

I didn’t buy our couple’s great love story, which should have been the lynchpin of the whole book. These two were childhood sweethearts, who can basically read each other’s mind and anticipate the other’s wants and needs. The breakup shattered both of them so much that in ten years, they never found love. They’re soulmates. Okay, sure. I can buy that conceit. But not with this couple. Vikram spends half the book being a total dickasaurus and then does the whole “I was only mean because I LOVE you” thing. Dude, it’s not the 3rd grade. You can’t pull a girl’s hair because you like her. After he decides to win her back, his personality does a complete 180. He’s totally sweet and loving and there’s no explanation as to why he changed (except love, of course). When the plot requires them to be estranged, he’s a dickbiscuit. When it’s time for them to be in love, he’s an angel. It happened so quickly I got whiplash.

Their relationship especially looks paper-thin when compared to the other characters in the book. Ria’s aunt and uncle are still very much in love, and her cousin and his fiancée actually have a playful and easygoing chemistry. They actually seem like they’re “meant to be together” unlike our heroes who have to love each other in service of the plot, and I actually missed them when they weren’t in a scene.

I liked some parts of the book. It was nice to read about Indian and Indian-American culture. I enjoyed any time Ria was around her loving, overprotective family, and the chapters about the wedding made me want to be there. But I didn’t care about Bollywood Bride’s main story. Ria has too many terrible secrets stuffed into this short book. There’s a subplot about a pervy director that doesn’t go anywhere and another tacked-on bit conflict with Vikram’s mother. Her secrets are dark and serious, but their overabundance lessens the emotional impact.

I don’t read a lot of romance, so I don’t really know if I disliked this genre or just this book. Fans of romance: do you have any recommendations for me or should I just move on?
Profile Image for Kate Meader.
Author 48 books3,192 followers
September 24, 2015
Wow, what a beautifully written story! Like Sonali's first book, A Bollywood Affair, this one is a tour de force of language and characterization. Her descriptions are so amazing, pulling the reader in so deep you are experiencing every moment with these characters. Within the first 10 pages, I was tearing up, my heart swelling for Ria. Vikram was perfect, his journey from bitterness to forgiveness wonderfully done (though I would have loved to be in his head for a few scenes). Bride is darker than Affair, but it shows Sonali at the height of her talents. Read this book now!
Profile Image for Joanna Shupe.
Author 29 books2,254 followers
August 6, 2015
I cannot say enough about how much I loved this book. Every letter. Every word. Every beautiful turn of phrase. You will laugh, cry, and swoon. Absolutely gorgeous!
Profile Image for Malin.
1,512 reviews98 followers
February 21, 2016
2.5 stars

Ria Parkar is a celebrated Bollywood star, frequently playing the innocent ingenue who ends up the bride. Professionally she's intensely private, revealing very little about herself. When a paparazzi gets an incriminating photo of her looking deranged and as if she's about to jump off a ledge (she was retrieving her phone), Ria is worried that all her deep dark secrets will be uncovered. Her cousin, who she was raised along-side, is getting married in Chicago, and she's dreading her return there, she can't disappoint him. Chicago is where she has the happiest memories of her childhood, but it's also means facing Vikram, her childhood friend, who also became her first lover and the man whose heart she completely crushed when she went into the Bollywood movie business.

Of course Vikram hasn't gotten over Ria, but generally does his best to prove to her and everyone how unconcerned he is by her presence, flaunting his new, young girlfriend as much as possible. As far as he knows, Ria callously discarded their love and sold her soul to become a star, ignoring the summers they'd spent together since she was a child and their future hopes of happiness. Ria has never been able to tell him about the reasons she was raised by her aunt and uncle and why she had to find a way to make a lot of money really fast after her father died. He has no idea of the role his ambitious mother played in driving Ria away and now keeps lashing out to her, without Ria having the energy to fight back. It's quite clear that they both have intense feelings for one another and it's only a matter of time before they reignite the old passion they shared.

The Bollywood Bride won the poll to select the first Cannonball Book Club book of the year. It wasn't the one I voted for, but it was a book by an author I'd heard a lot of positive things about. Sonali Dev's A Bollywood Affair was raved about on a number of romance review sites that I followed after its release in 2014 and I bought it when it became available for sale, but as per usual, it's now lingering unread on my TBR shelf. Still, the stand alone follow up seemed like a good place to start. I like discovering new authors and try to branch out in my romance reading every so often. Indian culture and Bollywood are not areas I know much about. My one experience of inter-cultural romance of that kind pretty much comes from Bend It Like Beckham. I want readers of this review to know I was excited to start this book. I really did try to keep an open mind.

The book was really hard going in the first half. I didn't warm to Ria much as a character and I was frankly completely appalled by Vikram's behaviour when we finally met him. The supporting cast, Ria's aunt and uncle, her cousin, his fiancee, Vikram's girlfriend and the big, boisterous extended family that surrounded them were fine. There was just a little bit too much of the "woe is me" to Ria and far too much of the epic douche-canoe with latent anger issues about Vikram. The truth about why Ria was raised by her aunt and uncle in Chicago when she didn't attend a series of boarding schools in India during term time, and why she was unable to speak for a full year in her childhood, is gradually revealed, and has a lot of the Gothic horror feel to it. I don't really want to spoil what it is, but it's also the reason why Ria had to come up with a way to earn money fast once her father died, and unlike what Vikram thinks, it was not really a very fun or glamorous way to get into show business. Let's just say that the things Ria had to do to get her first starring role in Bollywood may be triggering to some readers.

Vikram grew up with Ria and her cousin (whose name I cannot be bothered to look up). In fact, he's whatshisface's cousin on the other side of the family. His friendship is what finally broke Ria out of the trauma she was suffering as a child and made her start speaking again, and as they grew older, their friendship became heady and intoxicating first love. Vikram's parents are incredibly successful and famous and he's on track to becoming a doctor. Then Ria's dad dies, she goes to his funeral, discovers all of the horrible skeletons in the family closet and Vikram's mum makes it abundantly clear that Ria isn't going to drag her precious family legacy down by thinking she has a future with Vikram. Not that Ria tells Vikram any of this. Nope, she believes that the deep dark family secrets make her into a ticking time bomb and that she'll just ruin Vikram's life sooner or later. She therefore makes him believe that she's over him and even watches as he's beaten up by studio thugs.

Now, ten years later, she's still carrying the burdens of her family secrets and having to pretend that she's super happy and successful and completely unaffected by seeing Vikram again, even when their first encounter back in Chicago is her walking in on him making out with his girlfriend. They keep having really awkward scenes together until Vikram finally dumps his poor girlfriend and decides to pitch woo at Ria again. He no longer cares why she dumped him way back when, he just wants to be with her. Ria still has those secrets, though, and leaves Chicago the second the wedding is over. Then the scandalous photos of her possibly being suicidal are released, all her dirty secrets are uncovered and her career as she knows it is probably over.

I honestly don't know if it's the fact that I am from a Western, middle class background with little knowledge of Indian culture that made it so difficult for me to get into this book. At first, I thought Ria might be a bit of a whiner about her family issues, but as the true extent of the horrors she and other family members suffered, I got that things were actually pretty bad and she was probably right to be a bit fragile and anxious. Yet I don't understand why she couldn't get more professional help regarding said issues and why she couldn't be more honest, at least with those closest to her. I get that there may be a stigma attached in other cultures, but I'm not saying she should be open to the press, just that a couple of conversations with Vikram probably could have solved a whole load of problems.

So while I didn't really like Ria at first, I sort of warmed to her eventually, even as I kept wanting to facepalm at all the stupid decisions she made in order to protect Vikram from her toxic self. So dumb, so unproductive. Vikram really didn't work for me as a hero, and his stupid nickname Viky made me grimace every time it was used. While we kept being told in Ria's POV what a great guy he was, nothing in his POV sections actually showed us that he was. In fact, he seemed like a bitter, manipulative d-bag with far too many anger issues, and I'm honestly not sure why Ria should be so sorry he was the one that got away. There's also the fact that he does a complete 180 about halfway through the book, deciding to let bygones be bygones, dumping his current girlfriend and just wanting to make everything ok with Ria. In the last third of the book, he's suddenly super sensitive and supportive, nothing at all like the angry, verbally vicious jerk we meet at the start. It was a bit exhausting.

The bits of the story involving Ria's cousin's wedding and where the supporting cast took centre stage were really good and interesting. If this romance had been about Ria's cousin and his wife, I suspect I might have loved it. But no, it was all angsty and conflicty between two characters I didn't particularly like or believe in as a couple. The solution to Ria's not wanting to have children felt painfully obvious to me and again, once they actually speak honestly with one another, so much is resolved in one damn conversation. If they'd just talked things through, so much of the stupid melodrama would have been avoided. Now I'm sadly less excited about picking up Ms. Dev's first book, but since I own it, I guess I'll get round to it eventually. I'm going to be really interested in discussing this in March with the rest of the Cannonballers. I originally rated this 3.5 stars, then quickly decided it was probably more a 3 star book. Looking at some of the other romances I've rated 3 stars though, this is actually more a 2.5 star book. I'm very sorry, Ms. Dev, it may be just that the culture I grew up in is too different from that portrayed in your book, and that I therefore don't get it, but at the same time, I can't help but think that any cultural issues that needed a clear understanding should have been more carefully fleshed out for your readers.
Profile Image for Bea .
2,011 reviews135 followers
November 7, 2015
There was so much praise and fuss when Dev's debut book, "A Bollywood Affair" came out last year that when a publicist offered this book for review, I jumped at it. I wanted to see the fuss about Dev for myself (I have "A Bollywood Affair" in my TBR, waiting its turn).

I read the book in one afternoon, in one sitting really. It was hard to relate to Ria at times, she's emotionally distant and has many secrets she's keeping from various people. There are so very many secrets, and not all of them are Ria's. But she has reasons for shutting herself off from other people. Dev took a long time to get to the heart of the matter; it was frustrating at times. I wanted the pace to be a little faster. As Dev slowly pulled back the layers, I became both impatient and steadily more invested in Ria and Vikram's story. I admit, at first I didn't like Vikram. He spent the first third of the book being an asshole but he slowly turned himself around and I ended up liking him quite a bit.

I loved seeing life in India, a country I would love to visit some day, as well as what life is like for some Indians living in the USA. The daily details, the food, the wedding rituals, all added texture and depth to the story. I did get frustrated with the Indian attitude towards mental illness and my heart broke for those characters. The portrayal of Ria's family was sweet and made me laugh, smile,and tear up. They're not a perfect family, they make mistakes, but they love each other and care for each other. Dev gives us more than a second chance romance, addressing culture, mental illness, secrets, forgiveness, sacrifice, and finding your passion. "The Bollywood Bride" was gripping, intense, angsty, and emotional. I need to push "A Bollywood Affair" higher up my TBR pile.
Profile Image for T. Rosado.
1,780 reviews59 followers
February 25, 2021

4 Stars

I find that I really enjoy a second chance romance when it's the hero who's been spurned. When they do finally reunite, there is some serious resentment. Be forewarned, not everyone will, but I loved how the author handled the couple's reunion. Vikram wasn’t happy to have unexpectedly seen Ria again and it was absolutely delectable to watch it all go down. Lots of angry tension that gradually shifted to sexual/romantic tension.

I also enjoyed the interactions between all of the extended family. Various members were constantly around as they prepared for a traditional Indian wedding for Ria's cousin. It read like a modern day Regency house party. Albeit, culturally, not at all like that. :) It was fun and sometimes, frenetic.

Since this is a second-chance romance, there is a great deal of sensitive back story to weed through in order for this couple to finally have their happy ending. Back stories that were heartbreaking, as well as convincing. I enjoyed this couple, their extended family, and traversing their road back to each other.
Profile Image for Melanie (Moviemavengal).
301 reviews4 followers
August 21, 2015
Sonali Dev's The Bollywood Affair was my favorite book of last year. I gave away copies for Christmas to my sister and many friends. You always worry if the second book by a favorite author can live up to the love you had for the debut.

I need not have worried. The Bollywood Bride was just as excellent, but very different in tone than her first. The Bollywood Affair is similar to a Rom Com movie, with a meet cute and several comic misunderstandings.

The Bollywood Bride is a book full of angst. I cried more reading this book than I think I have, well maybe ever. (I am in an emotional state with a son leaving for college, but this book still packs quite the emotional wallop.) It's that good kind of angst -- and for lovers of Bollywood movies, I can compare it to crying with a watery smile on your lips watching films like Veer-Zaara or Kabhi Khushi Khabie Gham. All I can tell you is have a box of Kleenex handy nearby. I like books that take me on an emotional journey like The Bollywood Bride. Sometimes you're in the mood for some serious angst and some real life reasons for the couple to be apart and it to be absolutely glorious when they finally come together.

I got my hands on an advance copy of Bollywood Bride and devoured it in less than 48 hours -- staying up super late one night reading. It was a very hard book to put down!

Ria is a famous Bollywood actress, and we can see from the start that she lives an isolated life in India -- her nickname is "The Ice Princess". She decides to return to the States for a family wedding after a horrible encounter with a paparazzi photographer. She's threatened with blackmail, and she uses the wedding as an excuse to escape. But going back to the Chicago suburb of Naperville also means unavoidably coming face to face with her young love. The boy she left to start her career in the movies. Ria is incredibly stressed anticipating their encounter and they see each other in the worst possible moment -- when he is in a compromising position with his new girlfriend. Ria is mortified. And Vikram is still filled with anger at the way she left him all those years ago. He taunts her, and says horrible things (I wanted to give him a tight slap more than once!). They're living in the same house for the time leading up to the wedding, and constantly thrown together. I didn't know who was going to snap from the tension between the pair first -- Ria or ME!

We gradually learn why Ria gave up Vikram, because we can tell, and so can Vikram, that she still has so many feelings for him. So. Many. Feelings. She has a good reason to have given him up, a genetic disposition to severe mental illness in her family. The events that led to her giving up Vikram and starting her career in Bollywood are truly horrific. She has good reason to fear ever having a normal future. Ria is terrified that all her secrets will come out.

When Ria and Vikram finally admit they still have feelings for each other -- it was explosive! The level of sexual and emotional tension that Sonali Dev was able to maintain up to that point was extraordinary.

Vikram is truly worthy of Ria. She needs saving. She needs someone in HER corner when her world falls apart, and he comes through. (How could we ever doubt it?) He comes through in spades. One other thing I really did like though is that Ria stands up for herself, too. Vikram's mother had been very cruel to her in the past, and rather than the situation playing out that Vikram defends her -- Ria defends herself and puts her future mother-in-law in her place in one of the most satisfying moments of the book for me.

I can't recommend this book enough. Don't go in expecting it to be just like Bollywood Affair. Like Bollywood Affair, it has three dimensional characters, and a rich world both here in the States and in India -- but it has a very different kind of story to tell. And I loved it! I've heard there are two more books in this series. It's going to be so hard to wait for the next one now!
Profile Image for Ivy Deluca.
2,236 reviews303 followers
February 26, 2016

description
The follow up proves the first was no fluke: Sonali Dev has a true talent. I absolutely adore her ability to set the scene. As you can tell from the title, many of the events of the book center around an Indian wedding, in this case, the wedding of Ria’s cousin Nik. It is rich in details and it really helped immerse me in the story.

A page turner: The tension builds well, and the payoff to their first love scene was fantastic. It was a little slow going at first, but I thought Vik and Ria’s chemistry jumped off the page from the moment they see each other again. Ria’s backstory unfolds slowly, and while I won’t go into details as to what that burden was, suffice it to say, I understood why she was conflicted and why she forced herself to turn her back on Vik. My empathy for her kept me turning the page to find out when Vik would learn the truth and I wanted Ria to have that moment where she didn’t have to carry that burden anymore.

Angst factor 11: Part of why I’d held off on reading this ARC is that A Bollywood Affair was a sumptuous, and occasionally sad, but overwhelmingly fun read. This is not. I appreciate the change in tone, but you have to be in the proper mood for it.

Vikhram and Ria’s angst drives this story, and the suffering is compelling, yet exhausting. Ria’s a classic long suffering heroine, you know the kind - the one who sacrifices her happiness to save those around her, in particular the hero. The one who never says WHY she did it, and therefore, suffers even more when the hero inevitably thinks she’s a cold hearted woman.

That martyrdom can be so frustrating: while I sympathized with Ria, the way she just made unilateral decisions regarding the relationship is something that is difficult to take at times. It’s infuriating just as much as it’s compelling to read.

description
I enjoyed this second chance romance alot. Definitely recommend to my angst-loving friends.

**ARC provided by publisher via netgalley for review**


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Profile Image for Sarah Beth.
425 reviews13 followers
September 30, 2021
2021 reread. This was the first Sonali Dev book I ever read and will probably always be one of my favorites--both of her books and romances in general.

This book has all the tropes: meddling mother, mad wife in the attic, reunited lovers, a wedding, a Deep Dark Secret, friends-to-lovers-to-enemies-to-lovers, "protecting" a lover by pushing them away, forced proximity, high school sweethearts, one-sided decisions, shining-armored knight rescuing damsel in distress, and blackmail. Reunited lovers is one of my favorite tropes, and Sonali Dev does it well--in this book and in Recipe for Persuasion.

Note: this book features depictions mental illness, sexual abuse, and disordered eating dramatized for entertainment in a way that some people may find upsetting.

Summary:

Bollywood "Ice Princess" Ria Parker travels to Chicago to attend her cousin's wedding festivities. Depressed and weighed down by guilt and shame from parental abuse and abandonment, sexual abuse, hereditary mental illness, intentionally breaking her lover's heart to "protect him" from herself, and work-related stress, Ria is submits to two-weeks surrounded by an excessively functional family and deliriously happy couples, including her ex and his new, undeniably likable gf. On top of everything, Ria's ex, Vikram, her childhood best friend and one true love, is being as Petty as possible and seizes every opportunity to twist the knife, which Ria embraces because she is convinced she deserves his spite.

Vikram is obviously not over Ria; he can sense that Ria never wanted to break up, because, duh, they still get each other better than anyone else ever could, and he abandons contempt for sweetness and seduction. Not to mention, Vik is an unforgettable, first-class hero; whether he's destroying Ria or adoring her, their chemistry is undeniable. He wants Ria, even if he can only have her for the wedding celebration's four remaining days. Meanwhile, Ria is torn between her undying love for Vik and her Deep, Dark Secret.

And this is all just the first part of the novel. I'm done spoiling, because all this leads up to a swoon-worthy confession of everlasting love, a sexy and devastating romance, gripping family drama, public scandal, and a redemption arc. Dev intermingles misery and classic wedding romcom moments to propel the plot and encourage closeness between the main characters. This book is waves of anguish and ecstasy, and is well worth the read.

*****
2017 Review: Super addicting & compelling story. Did not want to stop reading.
Profile Image for Litsplaining.
486 reviews267 followers
November 14, 2018
This book felt different than the first book in the series. While book one in the series, A Bollywood Affair, involves main characters I could connect to and root for, Dev did the opposite in this book. I didn’t ever feel as if Ria Parkar was a woman who needed me as a reader to be invested in her story. Truthfully, I almost got the feeling that Dev had done such a good job at painting this character as an “Ice Queen” to fit the storyline that she’d managed to alienate me as a reader from caring if Ria’s story worked out well in the end.

Dev does write well when creating these romance novels by giving her stories a concrete theme to revolve around and creating a specific atmosphere that each story takes place in so, even if you don’t love the story itself, you walk away thinking that it’d be nice to visit that place Dev was writing about. I feel like I would read the rest of Dev’s books because of her writing expertise. However, I am hoping the next series that deals with the idea of Black Market organs being harvested and donated will bring back some of the passion of A Bollywood Affair back into Dev's writing.
Profile Image for Marty.
11 reviews3 followers
August 3, 2016
Very Underwhelmed

While the portions that focused on the wedding were fantastic, any time we had to spend on the main relationship was grueling. The hero goes from Grade A ragey jerk to sweet, understanding and perfect with almost no development and the heroine is so marred down in melodrama it's hard to take any of her perspective seriously. This is also one of those stories where if the two "true loves" would just have an honest conversation the book would be over in 20 pages. How in the world is the hero so incredible he can instantly read her mood and it seems sometimes her mind and yet not know ANY of her history or hang ups after 20 years?? The book just stretches credibility too much, which is a shame as the writing itself and the side characters are a ton of fun.
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