I loved this so much! Sonali Dev continues to write incredible tension between characters that makes me miss open door scenes less in her books. I loved the second chance romance and the emotional tension between the main character and her mother over their shared grief and sacrifices. It’s a whole book packed into a novella and it doesn’t feel short or incomplete at all!

I always start a short story with the hope that it will be a great story in a small package. They rarely live up to my wishes. The Wedding Setup was a true exception. This story was everything you hope to get out of a romance and it was done in a short story. Unbelievable! I'm definitely a Sonali Dev fan now and cannot wait to read more by this author. In my opinion, if you can write such a fully fleshed out short story, a full length novel should be a real stunner.

This story has everything you look for in a romance -- two characters that you instantly "ship" to be together, a painful backstory for both of them that included a tragic loss, the heroine has been sacrificing herself for others and not living out her dreams, nosy aunts and best friends, and most importantly...a happily ever after. It was perfection in very few words and I loved it.

Thank you to NetGalley for this ARC. I voluntarily chose to review it and the opinions contained within are my own.

There’s little Sonali Dev could write that I wouldn’t enjoy. My biggest gripe about THE WEDDING SETUP is that it wasn’t a full length novel.

The story of Ayesha and Emmitt especially hit home for me because while the grief of losing such an integral member of their family isn’t something I can relate so intimately with, the themes of rebellious daughters, family expectations and minimizing yourself for the sake of maintaining the peace made me feel so emo.

I could definitely relate to the “forbidden” nature of Ayesha and Emmitt’s relationship (ignoring the ick factor of them getting together when she had graduated high school and he had graduated college) and I’m a sucker for any friends-to-lovers arc. This one was made all the more irresistible due to the longing and desire and regret that build up over time between the two characters.

I’m also obsessed with Amma as a character. I always say that mothers observe more than we give them credit for (especially, it seems, when we go out of our way to conceal it) and the fact that Amma, ultimately, just wanted Ayesha to be happy and *herself* was so incredibly heartening. While this is a short story about a second chance romance, it’s equally just an emotional lil story about South Asian families and how they deal with grief, expectations, and the need to communicate with each other more openly.

Special thanks to Netgalley and Amazon Original Stories for sharing this digital reviewer copy with me in exchange for my honest opinions!

My first encounter with Sonali Dev’s magic words was through her Bollywood series. The Bollywood Affair is, to this day, one of the most breathtaking books I’ve ever read, and The Bollywood Bride is literally everything I’ve ever wanted in a romance novel. Everything!

So you can imagine how giddy I was that I got to press pause on – impatiently – waiting for Sonali’s next book, The Emma Project, to read her latest short story, The Wedding Setup.

Our main character, Ayesha, had a lifelong crush on her older brother’s best friend, Emmit. They had a secret relationship for a couple years after she graduated high school, the happiest time of her life, but, after her brother’s sudden death, Ayesha found herself incapable of continuing to defy her mother’s wishes by dating Emmit, and decided to send him away.

After seven years of lost dreams and missing Emmit and working an exhausting job in her family’s restaurant, all to make her mother happy, Ayesha finally gets a break to attend her best friend’s wedding festivities. Except, guess who’s plotting with her best friend to also attend the wedding and get her back? Yup, Emmit’s back in town. 😎

Sonali is a master at writing my all-time favorite trope of second chance romance. She really digs deep into the heartbreak, constructing the most intense stories and really conveying the characters' despair, only to lead you beautifully into the most epic happy ever after.

I loved this short story so much and I can’t wait for more of Sonali’s perfect words!

I have enjoyed Sonali Dev’s Jane Austen-inspired novels, so I was pleased to get a chance at this short story. Like her novels, this one includes Indian culture and food. Unlike the novels, I didn’t notice a Jane Austen connection.

Dev really packed a lot into this short story. After Ayesha’s brother dies, she subsumes her entire personality into being a good daughter and helping her mother to run their restaurant. She even breaks off with her boyfriend, since he’s not Indian and her mother is opposed to their relationship.

Seven years later, it’s time for Ayesha’s best friend to marry, and Ayesha and Emmitt are thrown together again. The chemistry is still there, he still loves her, but she tries—really hard—to push him away. He’s not going to go, though, and Ayesha finally decides that she’s ready to let go of her grief and take her chance at living her own life.

The second chance at romantic love is nice, but it’s the second chance to repair her relationship with her mother that really got my tears going.

Possible objectionable material:
A fade-to-black sexual encounter. Death. Recovery.

Who might like this book:
Sonali Dev fans will not be disappointed. Anyone who loves second chances, steadfast love, and family love.

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for in exchange for my honest opinion.

This book also reviewed at https://biblioquacious.blogspot.com/2022/01/january-11-releases.html

Thank you to Amazon Publishing and Netgalley for giving me the opportunity to read an advanced copy of this beautiful short story by Sonali Dev!
I really enjoyed reading this. I don't read a lot of short stories but I am glad I read this one. It captured so many emotions in such a short span- Love, loss, grief, family and friendships! All with some funny Indian innuendos and nuances! Also, any story set with a wedding backdrop just always seem magical.

I loved this short story - despite its length there is a ton of emotion, although I should expect nothing less from Sonali Dev! Ayesha has been working at the family restaurant and trying to be the perfect daughter - which doesn’t include Emmitt who she secretly dated seven years ago. But put together a friend's wedding and meddling (in the best way) family and you have a recipe for a wonderful second chance romance.
Thanks to NetGalley for an early review copy.

When Ayesha’s brother died seven years ago it changed her life in many ways.
Suddenly she felt a responsibility to make her mother happy.

She’s 28 now and she works at the family restaurant with her mom. She put her own dreams aside to help out. She also gave up Emmitt, the love of her life.

After seven years apart, Ayesha runs into him at her best friend’s wedding. He’s still in love with her after all of this time and he wants another chance to be together. Ayesha thinks that if she gets back together with Emmitt she will lose her mother.

I thought you’d was a well written novella with likable characters. I feel like it just ended too suddenly. But I guess that’s a sure sign that it was an enjoyable story right? I felt it was over too quickly.
This was a good story to hold me over till I read her next book :)

I got to read an early ebook edition from NetGalley, thanks!

For a short story I liked this one. I don't normally get too invested in short stories, but only because sometimes they seem unfinished. This love story is about Ayesha and Emmitt and finding their way back to each other after loss and misunderstandings. It ended well and if there is more to their story I'd love to find out where their lives end up.

Thanks to NetGalley and Amazon Original Stories for an ARC of The Wedding Setup in exchange for my honest opinion.
There is a lot of backstory and emotion packed into this short story! Ayesha is attending her best friend Bela’s wedding and is being set up by her mother and Bela’s mother with an obgyn, when she realizes her brother’s best friend, Emmitt, is also attending the wedding. Ayesha and Emmitt haven’t seen each other for seven years since their break up, when they were both grieving over Ayesha’s brother’s sudden tragic death. The characters’ grief, guilt, familial duty, and love are explored in the story.
I enjoyed this short story and look forward to reading more by the author!

This was a poignant second-chance romance novella! I’m honestly impressed with how much backstory Sonali Dev managed to fit into such a short story. Due to its length, THE WEDDING SETUP is extremely fast-paced. I thought we got a decent grip on the characters, but some elements of the story would have been stronger if this was a full length novel - mainly, Ayesha’s character development and the present-day romantic arc between her and Emmitt. Nonetheless, I enjoyed this short story as an exploration of grief and a complicated mother/daughter relationship.

The Wedding Setup focuses on a smaller cast of characters. First we meet 28-year-old Ayesha and her mother, her Amma. They are seven years in the aftermath of losing Ayesha’s older brother, Ajay; her father had passed away some years before that. The loss shattered their world, and Ayesha in particular hasn’t been the same since. Once a feisty and opinionated young woman, she now is meek and emotionally closed off. After losing her brother, she’d also pushed away his best friend – and the love of her life – Emmitt, and dropped out of her MFA program. By now, she’s overworked and still grieving, directionless and just a shell of her former self.

Right before her going to her best friend Bela’s wedding, Amma tells Ayesha she needs to hurry up and find a husband and have children. And Amma has just the man in mind: an ob-gyn who just arrived in Chicago. Conveniently, he’ll be at the wedding. Ayesha is not interested, but promises her mom that she’ll give him a chance. Little does she know that she’ll also run into Emmitt again. Should she rekindle her romance with him? Or choose this gynecologist her mother picked out?

The Wedding Setup is a heavier and more emotional story than I expected from such a short page length. Sonali Dev packs a lot of heart in, focusing on Ayesha’s grief, indecisiveness, and loss of self. Ayesha is in denial about a lot of things, and is unwilling or unable to face her own fears. Instead of following her own dreams, she’s fallen into a habit of just trying to please her mother: work at her restaurant, marry the man she chooses, and be the gentle daughter she’d always wanted.

More than a cheery romance, in The Wedding Setup, we see how someone who truly loves you can help in your darkest moments. Though I haven’t yet read any of Sonali Dev’s other books, it seems that she’s known for weaving tougher themes into her romances. It can also be compared to Helen Hoang’s latest novel, The Heart Principle.

The Wedding Setup is an emotional story in which love – both romantic and familial – can be what helps a person find herself again. It’s sweet and succinct, and by its end, we see how Ayesha is ready to rediscover who she is, what she wants in life, and who she wants in it. It’s a lovely and quick read with a depth that will stay with you.

Though only a short story, The Wedding Setup leaves an impact. It’s a great introduction to Sonali Dev and makes me even more eager to read her other books, includes her Rages series and her Bollywood series.

this was very short but full of emotions from start to finish. ayesha seeing emmitt again after seven years, her relationship with her mother, everything was described in detail and in depth in a way that made it easy to connect with the characters and it was well developed despite the shortness of the story.

e-arc provided by netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

Thank you to Amazon Original Stories and Netgalley for the Advanced Reader's Copy!

Available Jan 11th

Beautifully romantic, Sonali Dev's Wedding Planner is the short novella to cap off your weekend reading binge. As Ayesha grapples with the loss of her brother, she is shocked to reconnect with her old flame, Emmitt. Yet she is not the same Ayesha as before - in the absence of her brother, she has been working hard to become the perfect daughter. What did she lose in the process? Dev paints a stirring and gorgeous portrait of modern Indian American life and the close ties between mother and daughter.

A quick read about first love and how so much of what our parents want for us can affect our happiness. Ayesha is the main character. She gives in to the pressure from her mother 7 years earlier and sacrifices her first love, Emmitt whom she asks to leave. Her world is never the same. Seven years later Emmitt is back, surprised to find that Ayesha is no longer the same fiery young woman he knew. The story addresses parental expectations, grief and marriage outside of Ayesha's community. The author does a good job of writing and developing the pressure/tension Ayesha feels. A good short read!

*I received an Advance Reader Copy (ARC) in exchange for my honest review.

3.5★s

The Wedding Set-up is a short story by Indian-born American author, Sonali Dev. Ayesha Shetty attends the wedding of her best friend, Bela Gupte, where mothers and aunties have set her up to meet a real catch: Dr Samrat Hegde is a gynaecologist, an ideal partner for the good daughter that Ayesha has become over the last seven years.

It was her brother, Ajay’s tragic accidental death that brought her home and curbed her wild behaviour, determined to spare her widowed mother any more heartache. But not everyone believes that’s the best outcome: Emmitt Hughes, the man she sent away seven years ago, is also a wedding guest, and it’s clear from the moment they see each other, that none of the fire between them has gone. And a certain father ensures a close encounter…

A predictable little dose of romance that will appeal to fans of swooning love stories with an Indian flavour.
This unbiased review is from an uncorrected proof copy provided by NetGalley and Amazon Original Stories.

Despite being a short story, I really enjoyed this and was left feeling fulfilled like I would be with a full length read.

I love Sonali Dev and was so excited to get my hands on one of her stories!

This packed a lot of emotional depth into a short story and the author does a fantastic job perfecting the second chance romance/brothers best friend trope.

I personally loved Ayesha and her mothers relationship and to see that explored in such an emotional way.

I’ll read anything that has a character processing their grief and this left so many beautiful messages about grief and how we cope with it.

Would definitely recommend.

Thank you to NetGalley for the chance to read and give an honest review

3.5/5 stars

This is my first ever review here and my first book from the author. This is also the first book I have read with Indian characters, and it was fun and educational for me to read about them, traditions, and cultures.

in a way, I can say I can relate to Ayesha when it comes to change. While I might have not experienced any death of a close family member yet, I have also gone some changes as I age and faced more responsibilities in life. I completely understand her desire to continue being there for her mother, even though she's changing herself, because of her fear for her. I also love how her mother has loved Ayesha in her own ways throughout the years, even if their communication was minimal.

When it comes to the love story, it was a cute "I-never-stopped-loving-you-after-all-these-years" but I feel like the story development was kinda rushed since this is just a short story. I think there is more to unfold for them and what happened to them during their seven year gap. But overall, I love how it ended for them.

Other comments:
- There were times when I was confused with the dialogues
- It would be great if this was longer
- I didn't feel much some characters, like the doctor.

Overall, I enjoyed this and it's a quick read that I can recommend for everyone to try in between. Thank you, NetGalley, for my first ever ARC!

This might be a short story but it is filled with lots of feelings. Ayesha was a feisty friend and daughter but when her brother dies 7 years ago she repressed her wild side to become an obedient daughter thinking that it was what her mother wanted. Emmitt had been her brother's best friend and her lover but when her brother died she sent him away because she thought her mother disapproved.
Seven years later they meet again and the sparks are still there. Little does she know that this meeting was a setup but everyone who loves her to bring back her joy. Beware, there may be some tears ahead.
I received an advanced copy of this book in return for an honest review.

This sumptuous second chance romance short story is a little nugget of perfect sexual and romantic tension. Despite remaining closed door, Sonali Dev delivers the blistering pining and infatuation that I've come to expect. An absolute treat.

TO TEACH? 🍎
Is it weird to say maybe? Teaching genre through romance (among others) is always one of my favourite times of the year! I know a lot of teachers who avoid romance when teaching genre, but I have trouble understanding this as anything more than snobbery because it is truly a delight. (Also anecdotally, yes, you can get the boys on board. Teenage boys have hearts too!) There are some sweet YA romance short stories around which work well, but I love how unapologetically Indian American Sonali Dev's work is. My school has a high percentage of South Asian kids, and I'd love to diversify my reading list for genre fiction further.