Well, firstly, I will blame Priyanka Taslim for putting a certain Bollywood song in my head, all about how to say I Love You in various Indian languages, including Bengali! (IYKYK) Honestly, I've been singing that classic since I finished the book!
Secondly, I LOVED the book.
Being a person of colour myself and a writer of desi fiction, I am thrilled to read books that show characters from more relatable backgrounds. Even though I am not from Bangladesh or Muslim, there are plenty of parallels that can be made between the characters in The Love Match and the lives of your average Asian person.
A girl with aspirations that she already knows won't ever be reached.
The responsibility of doing right by her family.
The reflection of her behaviour upon everyone else in her family.
Wanting to make her own choices but not being able to.
Zahra Khan is a fantastic main character, with all the above in her mind as she goes about her daily life, achieving excellent grades and working full time after high school to help her widowed mother make ends meet, as well as helping to look after her younger siblings. She has dreams of going to college, just like her best friends; however, that is not a financial priority right now. Neither is her passion for writing, which her mother and most of the adults around her don't know about or wouldn't understand.
Then throw into the mix the Aunties, who watch and know everything, passing comments on their WhatsApp groups.
Obviously, the answer to the family's prayers is for her to be paired off with a boy from an affluent family, so she can live in comfort, and that comfort and respect can be passed on to her own family.
But when you have another interest in mind, these arranged things can go a bit awry.
And all this at eighteen!
I loved it. The story was peppered with Bengali phrases, which meant I learned more as I read, and added words like saa, meaning chai or tea, and shona (darling?) to my very tiny repertoire of Bengali, which previously consisted of hume tumake balo baashi, (I love you) from the lyrics of the afore-mentioned song!
Okay, I am off to go and sing again, but definitely, it's one to read!
Many thanks to NetGalley and Simon and Schuster Children's Publishing for an ARC in exchange for an honest opinion.

I got to interview Priyanka on my podcast, Raise Your Words. I have Bengali relatives (brother's wife) and this was so much fun to read. It has a halal romance and IS SO SATISFYING. I legit read this in ONE day. I will promote the hell out of this book. Zahra is an incredible protagonist and I loved the two main leads. There's a lot of banter and family drama in this.

I very much enjoyed this book! The angst and tension were definitely there, and reading about Zahra's experiences was so relatable. The pressures of being the oldest daughter are so real, and while I haven't experienced what Zahra did, I understood how she felt towards her siblings and mom and grandmother. Zahra's hopes and dreams and her morals and values were well developed throughout the book The romance in this book was great, and not predictable in a very fun way. While I don't usually enjoy love triangles, this one pulled me in. Harun and Nayim made interesting characters and their involvements with Zahra created a very interesting plotline. This book is definitely worth reading when it comes out!

I first learned of The Love Match when Priyanka Taslim first announced its publication in 2020. After hearing it would be a YA rom-com with Bangladeshi characters, I was so excited and waited (impatiently) over the next couple of years for its release and after having finished the ARC, I can definitely say that it was worth the wait. I plan to write a longer review closer to pub date, but this story is so joyful, romantic, and heartwarming. It captures the true nature of Bangali culture beautifully, while delving into other contemporary issues such as parental expectations, classism among South Asian communities, friendship, and more. The comedic aspect of this rom-com was fantastic as well--the hijinks that the characters get up to in this novel felt straight out of a Bangali natok, as Priyanka promised, and I found myself laughing out loud numerous times throughout the story.

If you're a fan of the dramatic flair that typically comes with deshi stories, commentary on the dynamics of South Asian communities, and the tropes found in the best romance media throughout history, you'll love The Love Match!