I have been a fan of Naomi Ragen’s books for many years. I loved all of her earlier books, until around 2010. The three books after that date I did not care for. But I still am a fan and am thrilled to report that I LOVED “An Unorthodox Match”. This is a beautiful story of faith, love, forgiveness, second chances, and acceptance.

“An Unorthodox Match” is set in Borough Park, Brooklyn, home to one of the largest Orthodox Jewish communities outside Israel. Yaakov, a devout Talmud scholar, is struggling to care for his five children after the death of his beloved wife. Recognizing that he is not coping well at all he finally accepts that he must look for a new wife so he contacts the local matchmakers.

Leah feels like a fish out of water in Borough Park. Understandable as she grew up as Lola, a secular Jew, knowing very little about the traditions of her faith. But after the death of her fiancé she turns to the faith she learned from her observant Jewish grandparents and decides to become a baal teshuva, a returnee to the faith, and joins the ultraorthodox neighborhood in Borough Park. She is looking for the structure the ultraorthodox lifestyle provides. Leah has many obstacles to overcome – primary being her mother’s insistence that she is ruining her life, and the non-acceptance by the Borough Park residents. As an act of mercy she volunteers to go to Yaakov’s home to care for the younger children and to tidy their home.

When Yaakov and Leah finally meet they are immediately attracted to each other but their match is considered – well, unorthodox. The matchmakers disapprove. Yaakov’s 15-year-old daughter Shaindele resents Leah’s visits to their home. Ragen’s portrayal of Shaindele is truly heart-breaking. After her mother’s death, Shaindele’s childhood is over. She must now take care of the younger children, clean the house, do the laundry, and do some cooking. And she still must attend school and do her homework. Shaindele resents that Leah can do all this and she couldn’t. The mother-in-law disapproves of Leah. So how can Yaakov and Leah possibly be together? I loved Yaakov and Leah so much I wanted them to just ignore all this, but that they could not do that.

I found this is be a complex story, as life itself is complex. Ragen dishes up the good, bad, and the ugly. While presenting the beautiful side of Orthodox Judaism she also exposes the ugly side. Like any community, those are those who are cruel and judgmental, and those who are kind, loving, and generous. This was an intimate look inside a very insular community, a community that follows a very strict code of conduct. I am sure that some readers will probably be offended by the rules of the community, but this is their way of life. This book is full of great characters, some being very minor in the story. Ragen writes of the parent-child upheavals after the death of one of the parents. The struggle Yaakov and Leah have with their faith and their community was poignant. Above all, a well written book should evoke emotions in its reader. This book did just that – I felt compassion, anger, fear, and joy.

Note: The cover has nothing to do with the story inside. This is a clean romance between two Orthodox people.

Thank you to Jordan Hanley at St. Martin's Press for the advance reading copy. All opinions expressed are my own.

Where to even start with this book? As someone who loves trying new things, I was very excited to see An Unorthodox Match offered on #Netgalley . An Orthodox Jewish romance? sounds both new and delightful! And as someone who lived frum for a few years, as a ba’al teshuvah (someone who returns to Orthodox Jewish observance), I thought there would be comfortable or at least familiar elements to the story. And there was some familiarity, although in a broader sense, as I was part of a far-flung Chassiddish outreach community, not the tight-knit insular Brooklyn and New Jersey orthodox communities described in the book.

But overall I was disappointed in this book. I don’t know what I was expecting, but it wasn’t this. For one thing, it didn’t feel like a romance. It read more like general fiction. The two main characters don’t meet until at least halfway through the book, and their romance felt rushed. I realize some of that is cultural differences, but their mutual esteem was based on things like childcare and housekeeping abilities and religious observance, and less about who they really were as individuals. Multiple points of view other than Yaacov and Leah were introduced as well, from women within the communities to Leah’s mom. Fruma Esther, Yaacov’s grieving mother-in-law grew on me. Despite her age, she was open to learning from her experiences. Shaindele, not so much, even if she was a child being completely stressed out by forced parentalization/ housewifery by her mother’s passing. She was still a pretty horrible kid.

I was also majorly sidetracked by the breath-taking bigotry expressed repeatedly by characters in this story. I have never before gasped aloud in shock over the casual use of a slur in a book (partly because I usually manage to avoid books that would use that language), but obviously there’s a first time for most things. There was a character in here who dismissively referred to handicapped people as cripples. I honestly can’t remember which of the female characters said it, and since they all seemed pretty bigoted, it’s difficult to even guess. It could have been Shaindele bemoaning the terrible marriage prospects she would have if her father married a ba’al teshuvah (Obesity, disability, and poverty were among her concerns). It could have been Fruma Esther. Or it could have been Leah herself, who demonstrated some breath-taking bigotry of her own, despite coming from the wider world and a broader experience that one would hope would teach her more tolerance, not less. Leah is the one who cut short a date with a prospective suitor because he was autistic, and was completely fat-phobic and possibly racist as well. All this, after bemoaning how the matchmakers were judging her on externals and superficiality instead of on her own merit. This is clearly the author’s choice, not just an in-character flaw, though, since the author sets up not only the autistic suitor, but also the obese suitor and the African convert suitor in lazy and offensive stereotypes, as though demonstrating humorous extremes and how poor Leah’s matrimonial choices are (i.e. obese men only care about food, African men are base sensual creatures who abandon their family responsibilities and give in to physical desires without thought for rules or morals, autistic men only care about being on time and speaking literally, as well as have no emotions, etc.). The way Ragen describes these characters is revolting. I’m always horrified to hear or see bigotry, but I find it especially disheartening coming from people who are part of a minority group themselves. We are stronger together, not as bigots in our own little corners!

Yaacov’s dates get only slightly kinder depictions, presumably because they’re white-presenting, neuro-typical orthodox Jewish women. But they are caricatures themselves, whether greedy or bitter or immoral. This is, at the very best, sloppy, unimaginative writing, and at the worst repeatedly offensive.

My other frustration, the one that made me set down this book repeatedly, and struggle to pick it back up, was the extended lectures on orthodox morality. I partly blame myself for my reaction: what did I expect from a religious romance? I’ve certainly experienced enough heavy-handed moralizing in Christian romances? Why should I assume the writing of the conservative branch of any other religion would be any different? But Leah is honestly extremely tiresome as Regan writes her, a judgmental and almost bitter woman who repeatedly goes on extended rants, usually as internal monologue, about the evilness of the world at large and the superiority of the Orthodox Jewish way of life. The way she remembers her unsettled childhood with her free-spirited mother, and how her mother is depicted throughout the book is also insultingly simplistic. I’m sorry you had a bad childhood. That doesn’t mean that everyone else in the same circumstances did. Had she stuck to the positives of community and safety and such in the Orthodox community, I wouldn’t have minded so much, and perhaps have even agreed with some of the allure of that lifestyle. But constant lectures about how everyone in the world outside their community is either loose women who seek new sexual partners at filthy bars every weekend, or the depraved men who prey on those loose women and the more innocent women out there was just really tiresome–and inaccurate. I’ve read conservative Christian novels that were significantly less preachy, and that’s saying something.

Was there anything I did enjoy? I think my favorite parts were from Yaacov’s POV. Granted, he was not only grieving and guilt-stricken, but a helpless man-child seemingly unable to take care of any practical needs for his family, from income to housework to childcare. But he seemed like a good guy. He didn’t express the same bigotry that the female characters all did, and rebuked Shaindele more than once for judgmental views of ba’al teshuvah, if nothing else. He seemed like a man who was faithful to the message behind the writings he read, and he eventually did what it took to provide for his family. There were no rants in his points of view either. It was a refreshing contrast to the other POVs in the story, and part of what kept me reading (the other being that I feel honor-bound to finish advance copies like this).

I also appreciated the bit of discussion about maternal mental health, but I can’t really discuss that more, because spoilers. It was the most open-minded aspect of this book, with an important reminder about caring for women at all stages of pregnancy and birth, and the importance of professional help for mental illness when needed. Of course, those reminders highlighted how judgmental and close-minded Orthodox communities can be about issues like mental health, but at least this issue was treated with more respect than obesity, disability, or diversity of background were.

This book releases next week, but I really cannot recommend it. I read online that Naomi Ragen is one of the most popular authors in Israel, and I’m completely confused by that fact. Yes, I managed to read the whole book, but all the bigotry and ranting/ moralizing left me with a bitter taste in my mouth that a whirlwind HEA could not wash away, and I doubt I’ll ever give the author another chance. There’s got to be better books, romantic or otherwise, set in Orthodox Jewish communities. Please feel free to share suggestions if you know of any specific titles.

Thanks, Netgalley, and St Martin's Press, for this free advanced copy, even though I didn't like it.

I’ve been Naomi Ragen’s fan for many years. I didn’t expect such an Orthodoxly themed book but I enjoyed it nonetheless,

Naomi Ragen is back with a new book, An Unorthodox Match, about a young woman who has returned to her Jewish roots, navigating her new life in Ultra-Orthodox Boro Park. She tries her best to fit in with the community, but never feels totally accepted. I enjoyed reading and learning about the religious community and how an outsider might be treated, and as with all of Ragen’s books, there are some controversial ideas. Lots of Yiddish is thrown in which can usually be deciphered using context clues. I found the story to be a quick, interesting read.

An Unorthodox Match is a poignant, unorthodox love story between a devout Torah scholar and a young woman who is a recent convert. The story is fraught with conflict; prejudice, gossip, acceptance, faith, and living up to the strict tenets of the ultra orthodox branch of Judaism. I felt like I had been dropped into another world, with language and customs that were foreign to me, but which were an integral part of this book. Thank you to Jordan Hanley from St. Martin’s Press for letting me read and review this book prior to publication.

“An Unorthodox Match” by Naomi Ragen is a brilliant novel and undoubtedly one of the best books that I was fortunate to read this year.

What was the most remarkable about this book?

1. The characters! Lea (previously Lola) and Yaakov were wonderful characters. They were kind and good at heart, but they had to deal with tremendous heartache and doubts about their place in the world. Both, Lea and Jacob were written with deep understanding of human nature and emotions. They seemed so true-to-life, their behaviour was realistic and it was easy to care for them. I was rooting for them to be together the whole book! It took a while for them to meet for the first time and a few times it seemed like every force in the book’s universe was against them. In general, it is not easy for me to get so involved in the story, so kudos for the author, who convinced me effortlessly how wonderful her characters were and made me care about them a great deal.

2. The setting! The novel takes place most of the time in the ultraorthodox enclave of Boro Park, Brooklyn. The place and people living there were showed both from the outsider’s and insider’s perspectives. It was like visiting a private, intimate world of people living their lives differently, according to ancient, religious rules and cultural restrictions imposed by their community. So many things surprised me, as I had no previous knowledge of the way of live in the ultraorthodox community. The picture painted by the author was at times beautiful and sweet, at times dark with hidden, unspoken truths, pettiness and bitter prejudices. There were also funny and scary elements in the story, when the author showed the possible troubles with matchmaking!

3. The story was heartfelt and compelling. Just like Lea, many people have doubts about their place in the world and they look for something true and lasting to believe in. The relationship between the main characters was convincing and beautiful. Their different backgrounds and difficulties to overcome were skilfully shown by the author.

4. The ending! I loved the ending. I found it satisfying and full of hope.

It was the first book that I have ever read that described the ultraorthodox community and I found it fascinating. Naomi Ragen offers her readers a glimpse into the hidden world and I adored it! I am looking forward to reading more books by this author.

I received “An Unorthodox Match” from the publisher via NetGalley. I would like to thank the author and the publisher for providing me with the advance reader copy of the book. I thoroughly enjoyed it!

I found this an extremely interesting and funny book. It was an introduction to a world I was not familiar with, Orthodox Judaism. The story is well written, the characters are well rounded, and the situations true to life. Overall, a very good book. I received a complimentary copy from NetGalley and the publisher and this is my honest opinion.

I always enjoy Naomi Ragen's books and this one was no exception. It was a bit too "romance-y" for my tastes and while I understand the need for authenticity, the Yiddish words should have had some translation. The book's cover is completely inaccurate--if I'd seen it before reading this book, I never would have read it, assuming it was a bodice ripper!!

Thank you get gallery for letting me read this well researched book! It has everything you would even think about in a story! The characters you will fall in love with and this story is as if you live next door and watched this family struggle and grow. The religion aspect alone I learned so much and so glad my Kindle reader helped me to translate some of the words. You will feel the joy and sorrow,the laughter and makes you think of what it even feels to join a family and be
in a religion and relationship that so many people don't understand! History fiction I so enjoy but who is to say this really didn't happen somewhere during this time? Enjoy for yourself you will be so glad you read this well written part of history!

I have enjoyed Naomi Ragen’s previous books and An Unorthodox Match holds up well in comparison. Yaakov and Leah are an unorthodox match on several levels: their lineages, their background, their experiences, their personalities, and most importantly their places in a community that is less open to newcomers than its proselytizing indicates. Yet at its heart, this story is quite orthodox: the story of two people whose lives cross in unusual ways. While there is little suspense about how the book will end, Ragen makes one keep reading through her full character development and cogent prose. There are several points in the story that seem to happen too quickly or too easily to get us to the end result, but overall this is a satisfying read that opens our minds to religious philosophies with which we may not be familiar while wrapped in a story filled with generosity and love.

An Unorthodox Match focuses heavily on the Jewish faith but at it's heart, it's a story of love (both past and present), acceptance and finding one's place in the world which I found very relatable.

Leah Howard grew up with a free-spirit single mother who didn't provide a lot of boundaries. After the tragic death of Leah's fiance, Josh, and a filed relationship of five years, Leah seeks out the teachings of the Jewish faith to guide her in the life she wants to live...a family (husband and children).

Yaakov, a widower with five children is not ready to find a new wife/mother for his children; he still feels so much guilt over the untimely death of his wife. When his mother-in-law insists it's time, she requests the services of a shadchan, a matchmaker. Afer a series of unfortunate dates, Yaakov gives up and focuses on providing for his family when Leah walks into his life in the form of volunteer help caring for the home and children. You can see where this is going, right? But will the instant attraction between Leah and Yaakov know no bounds?

I enjoyed reading this book and having a brief look into the lives of the fictional characters of Boro Park. The characters grabbed you and you had to continue reading to find out what happens next. Thank you

When I was a child, I read and re-read the All-of-a-Kind-Family books about an orthodox Jewish family in New York’s lower east side at the turn of the century. When I grew older, I moved on to Chaim Potok’s novels. Naomi Ragen fits into this sub-genre of Jewish fiction. An Unorthodox Match is the third of her books that I have read and loved.

Leah, while technically Jewish by birth, was raised without any religion by a single mother who ran from her orthodox roots. Leah’s interest in faith is kindled during a college class. Following a career set back, she decides to convert to Judaism and moves to Boro Park, Brooklyn. Yaakov a Torah scholar and father of five, is recently widowed and struggling. Leah is sent by a local rabbi to help with the younger children. The book follows the predictable narrative arc of a romance: you know the couple is meant for each other, but numerous obstacles prevent them from coming together. Will the roadblocks be removed before an interloper steals one of the lovers away?

What sets this romance apart is the Jewish culture and customs. Every faith community seems to have its judgmental hypocrites, as well as sincere, gentle followers. Boro Park is no exception. Naomi Ragen is charitable to the orthodox community, but not blind to its shortcomings. Note: The cover is a bit misleading. There is no physical contact to speak of in the book. While the romantic tension builds, the scenes remain chaste. Overall, an enjoyable, satisfying read.

Lola/Leah had it all. Or so she thought. A tragic love story, a new love along with a great career, but while her eyes were elsewhere, her lover hops into bed with the boss and the boss has destroyed the business leaving Lola/Leah with no job, no boyfriend, and no place to go.

Although her mother is Jewish, she rebelled against her parents and the faith early on and led her own non-believing life. She has taught her daughter that religion is a cult and she should make her own rules. But Lola/Leah is broken. And curious about her faith. 

When she enters a program for newly practicing Orthodox Jews, she finds it hard and rewarding. She knows this is how she wants to live her life. And when love finds her, the same people who showed her the path will try to push her out of it.

There was a lot of writing in this book. A bit too much. But the story. The words. A lot of them hit too close to home. Oh, how we love to convert someone to a believer or bring back a lamb that has strayed. But we still think we are better than you. I was humbled by this book.

A beautiful and powerful look at true faith and love. Well Done!

NetGalley/ September 24th, 2019 by St. Martin's Press

It was great to pick up another book by Naomi Ragen. It has been awhile since I have read a book by this author and forgot how much I enjoyed some of her previous books like Sotah and The Devil in Jerusalem. An Unorthodox Match was a quick, easy, enjoyable read. Lola/Leah is a Jewish girl who is raised by a single mother. She has experienced a tragic loss and needs change in her life. She finds herself exploring an Orthodox community where she is seeking love and acceptance. Even though she is Jewish this new community feels like a different religion. Although this book was very predictable it is a feel good read that will make you realize that the most important attributes in life are being kind, forgiving, accepting and loving. This would be a great book club read. Great discussions can be had on the roles of men and woman in the Orthodox community and the differences in Reform and Orthodox Judaism. Thank you NetGalley, St. Martins Press and Naomi Regan for this ARC in exchange for an honest review. It will be published on September 24, 2019, make sure to give it a try.

In An Unorthodox Match readers are introduced to the insular, ultraorthodox Jewish community in Boro Park, Brooklyn. It is here that Leah has come to study and embrace their ways. However, the longer she lives there she learns all is not as she thought it would be. Also living in Boro Park is Jacob, a widower. He is struggling to properly care for his children and home while continuing with his Torah studies. He is failing. Leah offers to help with the children and housekeeping and as a result of her kindness, Jacob's younger children thrive and there is order in their home. Over time, a relationship develops between Leah and Jacob. However, there are obstacles and overcoming them will not be easy.

Leah and Jacob are well defined, introspective and intriguing characters who have very different backgrounds. Even so, there is a commonality in that they have both experienced loss. Packed with emotion and often brutal honesty, readers become immersed in this utterly absorbing story. The secondary characters add a great deal of depth to the narrative.

Without a doubt, this is one of the best books I have ever read. It is beautifully written, moving and memorable. Highly recommended.

I received a complimentary copy of this book through St. Martin's and NetGalley. The opinions expressed in this review are my own.

This was the first time I read a novel with an Orthodox Jewish setting. I appreciate the connection of 2 different backgrounds coming together in a faith based love story. The novel touched on so many different real world experiences, not shying away from those events but handling them in a respectful way. At times I was losing interest in the story, but not so much to abandon the book- thankfully. However, I felt the ending was abrupt.

I received an ARC of this book through Netgalley.

I really liked An Unorthodox Match. The writing was not spectacular and the story was a bit obvious, but I thought Ragen did a really good job of dealing with a complicated and fraught topic. Leah is in her mid 30s. Her grandparents were practicing Jews, but her mother rejected religion and brought her up with little structure and too much freedom. After more than her share of bad experiences, Leah searches for structure and community in an orthodox Jewish community in Brooklyn. Yakov is a recent widower who was left with five children, and he and his younger children are not coping well at all. Leah volunteers to help Yakov and his family. And you can kind of guess where this is going... But what I liked about the story is that Regan delves pretty deep into Leah and Yakov's personal struggles with religion and their orthodox community. Regan does not paint an idealized picture of the community she depicts. She makes it clear that all communities reproduce what are often harsh hierarchies, but at the same time she also suggests that a religious community at its best can take care of its own. It's not my world, but I really appreciated how it was depicted through the characters in this novel. Thank you to the publisher and Netgalley for giving me access to an advance copy.

Thank you to St. Martin's Press and NetGalley for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Despite the (completely misleading) cover, this book is in no way scandalous, not even close. Lola, a Jewish girl "with a past" turns to Orthodox Judaism and becomes Leah. The parts I really enjoyed were about her budding relationship with the widower whose children she is caring for. What I really had issues with were the portrayal of the outside world as big, dark and threatening - while showing the sexism, racism and ableism of the Orthodox community as somehow being "normal".

The story is very predictable, and full of unfamiliar terminology. It was quite irritating to constantly be wondering whether I had understood correctly from the context, or was on the wrong track. By the time I reached the glossary at the end, I had no interest in going back through the text to decipher the meaning of the Yiddish I didn't fully understand while reading.

There were entirely too many exclamation points in the opening chapters. I didn’t need all that yelling.

Too much anti-feminism and hate for the modern world. If I’m looking for escapist stories, I don’t want to be repressed and told my life is wrong.

This is unfortunate. I wanted to read a Jewish story but couldn’t relate to the protagonist’s point of view from a modern stance.

Also, fat shaming is bad. A woman doesn’t need to be a stick figure to have worth. It’s about time publishers stop thinking this is ok. It’s boring, unimaginative writing.