Preeti Patel is nearing the end of her residency and trying to juggle the stress of her residency, finding a job, her family, and trying to find a place to stay now that her roommate is married. However, the new place that she has found comes with a roommate - her ex Daniel Thompson, who she never really got over.

I completely, absolutely loved this book so much. Sajni Patel has such vivid descriptions, and I found myself engrossed in everything from the medical descriptions in the opening of the book up to the abundant details of the ending, taking me right into the heart of the scene. I loved reading the descriptions of food, which made everything more vivid and one of the ways I find to best connect to cultures. This book also touches on so many incredibly important topics while bringing in some of my favorite romance tropes, especially exes and "there was only one bed!".

This book touches on grief in a variety of ways - first from the way that Preeti and Daniel are both still grieving over their relationship and its unresolved end. Second, from Preeti's role as head resident at the hospital, and the grief that both the patients will have and the grief that Preeti as a doctor who often has to be the bearer of bad news. And the anxiety representation! I loved how the topic of anxiety is treated in this book, especially in the way that different characters deal with Preeti's anxiety, as well as the commentary on the social stigma of mental illness and seeking treatment for mental illness in this book. Her anxiety attacks were so real and I loved the way that Daniel would help her through them.

The characters were all so completely well done. I found Preeti and Daniel to be so well fleshed out. Both characters had some amazing family members that would support them so well. I loved Preeti's parents and Daniel's sister and grandparents, they're exactly the type of family you'd want to have in your corner - endlessly supportive yet will tell you exactly what you need to hear. I also love Preeti's found family - her group with Reema, Liya, and Sana. While the girls were all on different paths and busy with different things going on in their lives, you knew that they'd be willing to drop everything for each other in a heartbeat if need be.

I love the intersection of your culture and community, and how there can be toxicity in your community that isn't necessarily something you can escape safely without losing that entire community, but you can make it more bearable with the right support system and people uplifting you in the community. I also loved the commentary about how many cultures have rooted a deep respect for elders, especially in your family, and the way that this respect can either cultivate or destroy the next generation, depending on the intentions of the adults in question. The added difficulties that come from an interracial relationship and a relationship where the two people in question come from different classes - the possible struggles that come from expectations that clash in an ugly way when classism and racism rear their heads made the complexities of navigating this romance so worth reading.

Thank you to Forever (Grand Central Publishing) and NetGalley for the ARC.

I enjoyed this book so much!! There’s a marked improvement from the first book by Sajni Patel and that made this book all the more enjoyable. I loved the second chance romance and the slow burn of reignited feelings between Daniel and Preeti. I loved seeing Liya from the previous book pop in and also see the growth of the friendships. My favourite part was how these books address really problematic aspects of the Hindu and South Asian communities in a pointed way. Thoroughly enjoyed this book!!!

Thank you so much to Forever at Grand Central Publishing for providing me with an ARC in exchange for an honest review!

First Love, Take Two proved yet again why Sajni Patel is one of my favorite South Asian authors and romance authors in general. She’s so good at encapsulating the experience of the sons and daughters of desi immigrant parents and combining this experience with the most heartfelt romances. I loved every minute of Preeti and Daniel’s story, especially being a fan of second-chance romances, and I’m so excited for everyone to read this book when it comes out this September--especially if you’re a fan of the Trouble With Hating You like I am!

As mentioned, second-chance romances is one of my favorite sub-genres of romance. There’s always so much tension between the two main characters after having not seen each other however long they’ve spent apart, and this was certainly the case between Preeti and Daniel. Every scene in which the two were in the same room as one another, you could feel the history between them--and the forced proximity trope in this book definitely added to that. I will say at some points towards the beginning of the story, it was hard to feel the connection that Daniel had to Preeti because we didn’t get to see his POV during this book. In The Trouble With Hating You, we had a dual-POV from both Liya and Jay, which is why their relationship felt more developed as a whole. However, because we only see Preeti and Daniel’s story from Preeti’s POV, their relationship naturally felt one-sided. I would have been interested to see some scenes from Daniel’s perspective as well, especially during Reema & Rohan’s wedding, when he first knew he could be running into Preeti. I do understand why this scene and transition from The Trouble With Hating You to First Love, Take Two wasn’t included in the book, since this scene's focus was on Liya’s confrontation with Mukesh and the aftermath, but considering this could have been the first moment where Preeti & Daniel got a glimpse of each other after being apart for so long, it did feel a little glossed over.

Speaking of Daniel, he’s probably the sweetest love interest that I’ve ever read about in an Adult Romance. He was there to support Preeti, even after six years of having his heart broken by her, every step of her journey in this book. I adored how he always put Preeti’s needs first when she was having an anxiety attack and never diminished her feelings when she was having an attack (I died during the scenes in which he played his guitar for her). I also really loved the anxiety rep in this book, and thought that the Alien face-hugger was a really great metaphor to describe the feelings people with anxiety have when they feel an attack coming.

I think my favorite aspect about this book is the demonstration of intergenerational conflict between Preeti and her friends and their parents & relatives within the desi community. Sajni Patel does a really good job in her books of highlighting the issues that older generations in the desi community bring and inflict on their children. I loved how one of the themes of this book and the series overall is how Preeti and her friends vow to make a positive difference as the younger generations of the desi community and ensure that no one ever is mistreated in any way in generations to come. I think that this reflects a lot of the sentiments and mentalities that many young Indian-Americans have as well. I loved the scenes in which Preeti stood up to her fois, her parents, and Yuvan whenever they said anything offensive--I feel like it gives a lot of courage to other Indian-Americans who didn’t have that courage when they were younger. It was also super refreshing to see Preeti’s parents be so supportive of her relationship with Daniel, especially after reading about Liya’s dad in The Trouble With Hating You.

Overall, First Love, Take Two is a super adorable and powerful second-chance romance with amazing rep! Be sure to pre-order this book or pick it up once it comes out this September!

Sajni Patel is the MASTER at picking apart the South Asian community for all its flaws. THE TROUBLE WITH ATING YOU focused on sexual assault and the victim blaming that is oh so prevalent in our society and FIRST LOVE, TAKE TWO focused on the racism and anti Blackness in our society. Both books did a phenomenal job of exploring the impacts of gossiping, rumours, and the "log kya kahenge" ["what will people say"] mentality on young women.

The romance in this book is God tier and oh my gods I want a Daniel Thompson in my life. Preeti's character arc as she develops thicker skin, goes to therapy, and unlearns the idea the mess in her life is her fault was amazing to read. I think as South Asian women, we all go through this journey of having to unlearn some of the toxic traits that we may not even realise we developed while growing up in the community.

My only complaint with this book is the pacing. Much like with THE TROUBLE WITH HATING YOU, I often found myself confused by pacing of the novel and the way the love interests interacted early in the book.

Nonetheless, I cannot recommend that you read this book (and THE TROUBLE WITH HATING YOU) enough!

First Love, Take Two
I was absolutely thrilled when I got this ARC. The characters are just out of this world. Preeti is a charming woman that you just find yourself rooting for from the beginning. Don’t even get me started on Daniel he is the best person and supporter any relationship could ask for. I love light romance reading because you know how things will end, but that never stops me from being surprised at every twist and turn along the way.
Also, I think the romance genre generally gets a bad rep for not bringing any substance or important topics into their work and I just have to say how wrong that is, especially in this book which hits on important topics like mental health and racism. Don’t count it out because it’s a romance, but boy it does have plenty of STEAMY content wrapped up in as well!
A gigantic thank you to NetGalley and Forever by Grand Central Publishing for the ARC

First Love, Take Two is the second book in the The Trouble with Hating You universe, but you don’t have to read The Trouble with Hating You prior to reading it! First Love, Take Two follows Preeti Patel, who is nearing the end of her residency, trying to find a new place to live, and securing a job. It just so happens that her temporary housing arrangement comes with a surprise: her ex, Daniel Thompson, who she’s never quite gotten over, despite the fact that they broke up six years ago.

There’s much to love about First Love, Take Two, but I wanted to start with this: I often feel like interracial relstionships depicted in media are between a person of color and a white person, and I really appreciated that that wasn’t the case in First Love, Take Two. I really appreciated how First Love, Take Two addresses anti-Blackness in the South Asian community, classism as well as xenophobia. Another thing I really appreciated was how mental health was portrayed in First Love, Take Two. Mental health is something that’s rarely discussed in families of color, which can make it really difficult to seek help. The way Preeti’s anxiety and depression was written really resonated with me personally.

Preeti is a charming heroine who carries a lot on her shoulders, and someone who I just couldn’t help but empathize with. Watching her grapple with what made her happy, protecting her family, and doing what was expected of her was something that felt very real. I think I spent most of the book just hoping that she would figure out what would make her happy, or rather, content. I also want to add that I haven’t read about a main character who is touch averse before, and I appreciated how that was written.

David, on the other hand, was just charming. As a love interest, he was everything! I found him to be just so sweet, and I loved how much he cared about his family. You could so easily tell how much hurt he was in, and how he still deeply cared about Preeti, despite his own hurt and anger for the situation. Despite not having talked in years, he still remembered every detail about Preeti, and knew how to calm her down when she was struggling with her mental health.

There was just so much tension between Preeti and David! I spent a good chunk of the book wanting them to just communicate and talk it out, but I understood why they couldn’t. I’m not a big fan of the miscommunication trope, but I think it was really done well here. Despite it having been six years since the two of them broke up, you could tell how much Preeti and David still loved each other, and still remembered how to support and take care of one another. They were just so tender, and I think that when you know someone so well and when they trust you with their heart, it’s so easy to be careless with it — especially when they’ve hurt you before. And I think it shows a lot of emotional maturity that both Preeti and David were able to put their own feelings aside, despite the lack of closure, the hurt and guilt, to properly be there for one another.

I loved the ensemble cast of characters; Preeti’s friends, and David’s grandparents were such a standout to me. I found them all so lovable, and I’m really excited that I can go back and read The Trouble with Hating You for more adventures with everyone!

Overall, I truly loved First Love, Take Two, and I cannot wait to read more of Patel’s works in the future! As I’m not South Asian, nor am I Black, I highly recommend you seek out ownvoices reviews.

What. A. Gem.

I absolutely loved Patel's first book and enjoyed her YA book as well so I was thrilled to read this book.
I finished the book in one day and was invested from the first chapter (which is very rare for me!).

I appreciated the way Patel gives readers an unfiltered view of Desi culture with an emphasis on the "next generation" who are learning to find their voices and improve communal norms.

If you're looking for me, I'll be out searching for my own Daniel.

Full review will be up on pop-culturalist.com and my IG page @meetcuteromancebooks.

WE FINALLY GET PREETI'S BOOK!!! Sajni's books are becoming a favorite right under Uzma Jalaluddin's books. I adore her writing style and the characters in this book are top-notch. This book is about second chances and while I normally don't believe in second chances (because people have the tendency to make the same mistakes - this book definitely opened my eyes to it).

5 stars

I love this book so much! sajni patel continues to write the best desi diaspora books i've ever read. i hope she never stops writing because this book was phenomenal. I wish i could go back and reread this again for the first time.
I haven’t come across many books that particularly focus on touch aversion and Patel does a fantastic job of representing the challenges, fears and consequences of touch trauma.

This book right here, nails second chance romance. It’s definitely a trope that is hard to do in a way that the reader isn’t hating on one of the characters. This author did it was such grace that you cannot help but cheer for these two characters to overcome their roadblocks to come back together again.

I absolutely loved Daniel. He is absolutely a cinnamon roll hero, and one that takes charge to be the best kind of support that Preeti needs. Though I wish Preeti communicated more about her needs, I am so glad we got to see and be a part of her growth.

This author definitely has a beautiful way of writing, her descriptions are so vivid, I can easily imagine this book in my mind.

This book touches on a lot of very hard subjects. Please make sure to read the authors note at the beginning of the book for content warnings.

i just found the book very predictable, and i think i’ve discovered that sajni’s style just isn’t for me. her character voices come off as juvenile, and makes me feel like she is better suited to writing ya (and, in fact, i think that’s why the knockout is the book from her i’ve enjoyed most). preeti just frustrated me as a character and the main “conflict” honestly didn’t feel impactful to me. i liked the love interest and i really appreciate the author for trying to normalize calling out toxic behaviors within our communities, standing up against racism and anti-Blackness, and normalizing mental health struggles and seeking treatment for the same, and that’s why this book gets my 3 stars here, but the story itself just wasn’t very special to me.

this is my first book from the author Sajni Patel and I must say she did a pretty good job of describing the problems associated with interracial relationship. She also brushed through the stigma associated with seeking help for depression, which I think could have been dealt in detail. I liked the love story btw Preeti and Daniel and the reference of food in the book made me sooo hungry at times 😊. I realized after reading the book that in a sandwich the cheese at the bottom and the greens at the top acted as a barrier to prevent sogginess. I don’t know why I didn’t know this till now 🤭🤭. It’s a very easy read. Her writing style I found is very conversational which is actually easy to follow.

I've read both of Sajni Patel's books in the past and I've found that I don't think her writing style is for me. Of her two previous books, I enjoyed her YA book The Knockout more because the juvenile style and tone that Sajni's book capture seem like they're for a much younger audience and not necessarily for adult readers. I think that the author does a great job in bringing up important topics such as anti-Blackness in the South Asian community and the stigma that doctors have when dealing with their own mental illnesses which I really appreciate. These concepts should be discussed in adult books, however, I find that the plot and her characters just end up falling flat for me. I really wanted to like Preeti. I love reading about South Asian MCs who are pursuing medicine, but it felt that Sajni was trying too hard to make Preeti this quirky doctor (who apparently didn't know how to make a Powerpoint presentation?). There were a plethora of lines that didn't line up in terms of consistency and the target audience for the book. Instead of saying words like bitch or penis (all very normal words to use in an adult novel, especially if she's a doctor), the author used words like a witch or lady parts. As an aspiring physician, if Preeti is comfortable delivering babies in a hospital, I think she has the capacity to use the correct anatomy terminology associated with peoples' genitalia. I did really like the love interest Daniel. He was very sweet and kind. Again though, I felt there was inconsistency when it came to how he felt towards Preeti. Sometimes he was upset, sometimes he was flirting with her as if nothing that had happened between them bothered him. I was left feeling very confused.

On the other hand, I really love the way the author writes friendship in her books because that's such a powerful aspect of this novel. Even though Preeti's friends were interesting, to say the least, they always hyped her up and were there for her when she needed them. By the end of the book, I was happy to see Preeti stand up for her and her family against some of the toxic people in the South Asian community, including her aunt. However, as a character, I don't think Preeti really developed because the main conflict of this book seemed to have stemmed from her just putting off talking to Daniel about why she left him so many years ago. I'm not a fan of the miscommunication trope and it kept happening up until the end of the book making me think that Preeti didn't really develop as a character.

All in all, I think this might be my last Sajni Patel book because I've tried her work in the past and I just don't think it's for me.

What a fun romance akin to the Brown Sisters trilogy. I loved the characters and the representation this book will bring to the genre.

It’s no secret that The Trouble With Hating You is one of my all time favourite books and this book is part of that world, with the focus being on our MC Preeti. I have to applaud for the way she handled mental health and touch aversion and the stigma surrounding both subjects. I haven’t come across many books that particularly focus on touch aversion and Patel does a fantastic job of representing the challenges, fears and consequences of touch trauma. Preeti is a doctor in her residency and we follow her journey of seeking therapy to improve her mental well-being and the cultural as well as professional judgements she faces. The dynamic between Preeti and Daniel is a beautiful mixture of affection, understanding and care that is reflective of their romantic history. I know I’m a little bias in my opinion but I felt that I was more connected with The Trouble With Hating You and found that this book, for me, was more focused on Preeti than Preeti-Daniel for me. Having said this, I still think that the concepts discussed in this book, woven in with a sweet and spicy interracial romance, will be sure to win you over!

I am just floored by this book. As a person in an interracial relationship and with generalized anxiety disorder, I related to Preeti so much. Personally, the depictions of an anxiety attack rang true to my own experiences. She has such immense pressure on her from her job and community and barely a moment to breathe. Add in moving in with your ex-boyfriend, navigating an arranged relationship, and medical drama? You could cut the tension with a scalpel. The clash of cultures here is never toned down to focus on the romance and I really appreciated that. Just because a book is marketed as a romance doesn't mean that it can't also discuss important themes such as racism and mental health. But don't worry - the steam that's here is STEEEEAMY.

*Thank you to Forever and NetGalley for the ARC in exchange for my honest review*

Thank You NetGalley, Publisher and Author for this advance ebook copy!

I'm going to keep this one short and sweet..... 😘

The writing for this book was refreshing and to be honest at times the characters felt a little dull at times.
But the more I kept reading the more I started to enjoy this novel!
A good, quick heartfelt read.
I enjoyed the writing overall I just wished there was more along the way!

Thank you for giving me the chance to read and review this book!.

Ooof this was a struggle to get through! I picked this up because The Trouble with Hating You was already on my tbr, but I very quickly removed it about halfway through. (DNF'ing this arc was unfortunately not an option.) Patel advertises First Love, Take Two as a companion-sequel to The Trouble with Hating You, but I continually felt lost or out-of-the-loop in regards to that book's Big Events. Even though Patel peppers First Love, Take Two with thoughtful instances of anxiety, mental health, racism, and traditional vs modern values, everything felt So Dramatic for absolutely no reason. (Am I missing some cultural cues?) The complete lack of chemistry between her two love interests dominated my reading experience, and I was checked out whenever a conflict got its Moment.

Ideal for those who want a sweet romance. This is lighthearted and cute. Ideal for romance readers who enjoyed the first in the series. The prose and writing style made me DNF.