by #ARCBookReview: Pride, Prejudice, and Other Flavors (The Rajes #1) by Sonali Dev
Ever since I read Sonali Dev’s second book, The Bollywood Bride, I have been a huge fan of her writing. Sonali Dev’s books are vivid in detail, well crafted and with characters that make an impression. With this said, I was very excited when I heard of her upcoming book, Pride, Prejudice and Other Flavors that is set to release on 7th May 2019 and luckily got an ARC to read before the release.
Pride, Prejudice, and Other Flavors revolves around Trisha Raje, a very talented neurosurgeon who is the best in her field of expertise but socially inept. Part of the influential Raje family, she is poles apart from her social superstar family members. Single with no love interest and no true friends to call her won and add the guilt of her mistake that made her an outcast in her family so many years before, Trisha’s life is complicated to say the least.
DJ Cain, on the other hand, has risen from an unfortunate background and worked his way up with people like Trisha judging him based on his history rather than his achievements. So, right from the start theirs is a relationship full of misunderstandings, conscious and unconscious hurt and disagreements in spades for every lustful thought.
Can these two headstrong and very different people from worlds apart family backgrounds ever come together?
I loved the blurb of this book and the cover is unconventional enough that when combined with the author’s name on the front, it will attract readers.
This is a book that cannot be devoured. It is not an easy read. Full of characters and situations that invoke strong emotions, I felt flayed by the depth of emotions I felt as I read the book. The situations are realistic, the emotions vivid and the characters multi-dimensional.
It is very loosely based on Jane Austen’s Pride and Prejudice in the sense that here the pride and prejudices of each character are showcased realistically and with brutal honesty.
Trisha is misunderstood by her loved ones and weak enough to go along with everyone’s wishes in hopes of acceptance from her family which was both sad and frustrating. I wanted to see her grow a backbone and clear all misunderstandings while also taking lead in saying no when she didn’t want to do something rather than saying yes just to pacify her loved ones. Her relationship with Cain also became prey to her silence and acquiesce to everyone rather than following her heart. I wanted to see more romance and more fight from her side to get her happy ending rather than waiting for the events to happen on their own.
Cain also fell prey to his prejudices against the rich class and ended up hurting himself and Trisha. While I understood where he was coming from, I kept hoping that these two would stop butting heads and try understanding each other. I didn’t relate to their relationship as much as I had hoped to which is a true shame because they had so much potential. I didn’t get that satisfied feeling I usually get seeing the hero and heroine get a happily-ever-after.
I disliked the Raje family initially because of their showoff nature and the fact that they so easily cut off their daughter without giving her a chance to prove her innocence. The author succeeds in proving that though these people are good and work for the betterment of others, they are still prone to making mistakes and can be insensitive to others like they were to their daughter’s plight. The history, beliefs and the family structure is beautifully brought to life in the book and I am eager to read more about the Raje’s in the future.
A well written story that will keep you glued to your seat, I enjoyed reading Pride, Prejudice, and Other flavours by Sonali Dev and give it 3.5 stars out of 5. Had there been more romance between the protagonists and rather than a HEA that seemed a bit rushed and unlike the soul satisfying end from Dev’s other books, I would have rated this book 4 stars. But for now it is 3.5 stars and Njkinny recommends it to people looking for an emotionally rich story of Indian immigrants trying to make a better life in America who are often prey to harassment, prejudices and identity struggles.
I received an ARC from the publishers via Edelweiss and I am very thankful to them. The above is my honest and unbiased opinion and in no way influenced.
