A Bollywood Affair

By: Sonali Dev

Narrated by: Priya Ayyar

In the tradition of Shobhan Bantwal's successful Indian American novels, Sonali Dev's debut captures the colorful spirit and fascinating details of Indian and Bollywood culture - including a lavish wedding - while delivering an emotionally layered and accessible story.

Mili Rathod has been bound by marriage since she was four years old. But when her husband shows no sign of claiming her after 20 years of waiting, Mili grabs the chance to leave India and come to America on a scholarship.

Playboy filmmaker Samir "Sam" Rathod is Bollywood's favorite bad boy. He'll do anything for his big brother - even travel halfway across the globe to take care of the "wife" who just crawled out of his brother's past. Yet Mili isn't the simple village girl Sam expected. She's a whirlwind who sucks him into her roommate's elaborate elopement and soon has him drowning in her onyx eyes. And though Mili fancies herself in love with his big brother, the husband she has never met, Sam is hoping for a very different ending.

©2014 Sonali Dev (P)2014 Blackstone Audio

Just average

I generally enjoy reading books by Indian authors. Best I can say about this one, though, is that it was an average read. With the exception of a few chapters, most move too slowly, with much repetition of old stereotypes. I would skip this one.

Steamy Bollywood Romcom

This was a fun read. I thought the author tied in the romance, drama, and Indian culture/generation clashes together really well. There were a few times where the feuding between the two main characters dragged. The first person internal POV also shifts between characters in the middle of scenes. I think this is unusual in an interesting way. It can be jarring but I think it gives this novel an edge. I recommend it if you like romance/family drama stories. The narrator did a great job with the voices and accents. I do not speak Hindi or any local dialects so I cannot speak to that as other reviewers may have.

Delightful

I absolutely love this book. It manage to be beautiful even when painful, and some of the descriptions were so intensely magical. I can't wait to listen to more books by this author.

An entrancing story.

I didn't know what to expect since I didn't read the blurb. Although I had read read another book by the author a few years ago. So I did know I liked the author's voice.

What I liked were characters so real and lifelike I had to have more. An ever intriguing story I needed to see how it unfolded. The main characters are both wonderful people but they are far from perfect. I liked how different people saw and interacted with them differently, how they saw themselves and each other and how those views changed over time or circumstances.

What I didn't like was, um, well I'm sure I can think of something. I'd say, that it ended, which was sad as I enjoyed the book so much. But it ended well. Wrapped up the loose ends and gave closure where needed. And if course the requisite happy ending.

I highly recommend this book to anyone who loves a good romance with a nice balance of humor and depth.

I Tried& Tried But Just Could Not Follow This Book

Is there anything you would change about this book?

I think that it may have been too complicated/complex for me to follow. So strip down and streamline the plot. That would be my recommendation.

What do you think your next listen will be?

A contemporary romance.

What three words best describe Priya Ayyar’s performance?

Heavily accented English

Could you see A Bollywood Affair being made into a movie or a TV series? Who should the stars be?

Perhaps I could see a Bollywood affair being made into a movie or a mini TV series. I have no idea who I would suggest for acting in it.

Any additional comments?

I really wanted to like this book and to follow the journey of all of the characters. However, after many tries to start at the beginning and follow along, I just wasn't successful.

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mystery food marriage

Loved it! I could visualize colors, taste food, hear music and experience the chaos. Family!

Very good story

I was nervous to get this after seeing a some bad reviews, but I enjoyed this book very much. I thought the writing and the narration were both quite good. Occasionally the character voices sounded alike, but it wasn't that often, nor so confusing that I couldn't figure out quickly.

1st time read in the genre

The narrator was not the best for me at first. she seemed to get better as the book moved on. I really enjoyed this story. It had a very predictable ending, but it has some good twists and turns to get there.

3 stars and I'm being generous

Coming from India, I've been Overdosed with Bombay Masala Film Industry and seen it all from classics to cheesy with boring, funny, hilarious and ridiculous in between, I can definitely say I'm a somewhat well versed reviewer of anything india related. The story, for any non-indian would be Oh-So-sweet serendipitous love. It somehow, fell way too short for me. It's sad that in India authors are getting smarter and mature, while authors of Indian descent, living abroad are rehashing old bollywood drama in the hopes that the non-expatriates won't notice or make the connection Of the characters, they had no chemistry and/or vitality. The cardboard cutouts of 2 dimensional caricatures. The old adages have been dragged through mud, clichéd lines and ideologies which are in process of refreshing metamorphosis in good ol' India are somehow hung up to dry in the book. The best comparison would be a dish frozen in 1990s bollywood, is microwaved and dished now. 3 stars and that's too generous

Satisfied customer

Would you consider the audio edition of A Bollywood Affair to be better than the print version?

Have not read the print

What about Priya Ayyar’s performance did you like?

She has a pleasant voice and I enjoyed it except that she makes no effort to at least lower her voice an octave or two for male characters. Sometimes it is confusing and it takes a beat or two to realize it is a male speaking.

Any additional comments?

I love Sonali Dev and I anxiously await her next book, A Change of Heart. Hope there is a different reader!