THE SHAADI SET-UP

A woman is given a second chance at first love.

On the surface, Rita Chitniss is thriving. She runs Dharma Designs, a furniture upcycling business that has become so popular in her North Carolina community that her internet-famous neighbors clamor for her pieces. Her boyfriend, Neil Dewan, is handsome, successful, and ready to settle down. And she’s got two dogs, Freddie and Harrie, whom she adores. But Rita has a big problem: Neil is the son of Amar Dewan, the man Rita’s mother once hoped to marry—before Amar left her for Neil’s mother. Because of the bad blood between their families, Rita is determined to keep her relationship a secret. But when she shows up at her parents’ for lunch to find her mother has also invited her ex-boyfriend Milan Rao, now a real estate agent who needs help flipping an unsellable house, Rita agrees to the project only to prove that she’s over him. To cement the idea, she signs herself and Neil up for famed Desi dating site MyShaadi, hoping that when they’re matched their families will bless the relationship. Instead, she matches with Milan. And when one house-flip turns to two, their proximity brings old feelings to the surface. The writing has some standout moments, from the author’s celebration of Indian American culture to her lush and mouthwatering descriptions of food. But too much space is taken up rehashing Rita’s feelings about the past, resulting in minimal romantic chemistry and characters who feel one-note—including Rita’s best friend, Rajvee, who's described as genderfluid but gets no on-page exploration of their identity beyond that.

This rom-com could have used a better setup.