This book had me from the very beginning. The way the author drew me into the lives of both Meghna and Karthik and made me care for their personal struggles was perfect. I was cheering for them as individuals and as a couple. It was entertaining seeing them struggle against their obvious attraction and growing feelings. Every touch, every smile, hesitation, the looks they sent each other!! Such a well written fake engagement that in combination with the family dynamics, complicated feelings and the one bed situation made me a goner for their story.

I really enjoyed Say You'll be Mine - it falls into the fake relationships trope, which has been done a lot, but this one was so well written and the characters so likable and relatable that it felt new. Meghna is a single Indian-American woman, who has been in love with her white male best friend/ex-boyfriend since college. Her mother tries to fix her up, and she agrees. Karthik is a good looking man, but very career focused, and with a bad example from his father's marriage, he doesn't want to get married but agrees to the set up to appease his mother. Meghna and Karthik's relationship feels real, their growing friendship and attraction blossoms but they want different things and both have family and career issues they are dealing with too. Can't believe this is a debut author - I would definitely read her future books!

4.5 STARS

What a charming read! It's been awhile since I have enjoyed a romance novel and Say You'll Be Mine was so refreshing. It definitely brought to mind the romcom's of the 90s! So bravo! The characters were ones you rooted for and could relate with. The chemistry was compelling and it was simply sweet and wonderful.


Read if you like:
- When Harry Met Sally (who doesn't? Am I right?)
-Grumpy/Sunshine trope
- MC's that you like and can relate with
- Great chemistry

Thank you to Random House and Netgalley for the advanced copy!

This is a cute book that I would recommend. The main character will become one of your favorites! I kept going back to it whenever I would put it down!

I found this book to be a very fun romantic read. I do not know much about Indian culture, so I learned many things from this book. I know it's a romance so obviously they were going to get together, but I was so invested and was enamored with their story. Reading about the growth Meghna had throughout this book, what was brought on by her and what changes she made because Karthik showed her how she should be treated. He builds her confidence and always gives her credit where she should have it. Karthik is not your usual grump to sunshine trope, but I really like him because it's not that he even is a grump; he has more of a shy personality. I thought the romance was well paced as this book takes over the course of several months. Long distance is hard, but this novel wrote it so well. The connection that these two develop over time made me care about them more and the sweet moments they had a lot more than other books where it feels like they only knew each other a week. I really came to care for both Meghna and Karthik by the end of the book. My only problem was even though they do talk, and they do communicate with each other there was still some miscommunication. It's a part of the story and I don't think this story would be as good without it, but I still found it frustrating at time. I am very excited to share this with friends and think it will be perfect for those wanting to read something sweet and romantic around Valentines Day.

3.5 stars rounded up. This was a charming one-sit (!!) debut, but the pacing and miscommunication were off for me.

Say You'll Be Mine follows Meghna, an English teacher living in Dallas who is single and shocked to receive a wedding invitation (and an ask to be best man!) from her college best friend/boyfriend/writing partner (Seth) who she's kind of still in love with, and Karthik, a grumpy engineer living in New York whose parents have a broken relationship so he's sworn off ever being partnered, let alone being married. Their parents try to set them up, and they cook up a fake engagement scheme -- Meghna gets a date to Seth's wedding, Karthik demonstrates to his engineering firm that he can follow through on commitment, and both their parents lay off them for at least a little bit. Of course, the lines get blurry between fake engagement and real feelings.

I really liked the way that Meghna and Karthik started relying on one another as they got closer, even as they were denying their feelings for one another. And I loved the small details and snippets that Karthik paid so much attention to -- Meghna's Hindi joke tee shirts, Bombay toast, how much tea Meghna drinks. It was so clear how he was falling for her.

That said... there was so much miscommunication. The number of times when one of them would tentatively broach the conversation of their feelings being real, and the other one would be like "well I can tell they don't have feelings for me so I guess I'll lie and shut this down" was too high. And it was made more annoying, I think, by the fact that this was in 3rd person. So the inner monologue we got felt distant, as opposed to maybe understanding what Meghna and Karthik are feeling in a 1st person kind of way.

The timing also felt slightly off to me. Sometimes a couple of weeks would pass between chapters without knowing very much about what happened in that time. I think the book might have benefitted from a couple of additional chapters connecting, for example, when Meghna and Karthik agree to their fake engagement scheme and their first event together.

I also don't love reading about the I-am-broken-and-can't-ever-get-married MMC. It's such a flat response to whatever happened in their parents' marriage, and it's so inflexible and frustrating. Especially when all the MMC can say in response to "why don't you ever want to get married?" is just "no."

One more thing that I LOVED was that Meghna, as the best man in Seth's wedding, wore a fitted tux. I mean, 🥵

Thank you to NetGalley and Random House-Ballantine for providing me with an eARC of Say You'll Be Mine in exchange for my honest review.

Meghna and Karthik don’t have any plans to get married… but when an engagement will benefit them both, they decide to fake one.

Karthik never wants to be married. So when his mom negotiates for arranged marriage match-ups, he finds himself desperate to get out of the set-ups. When Meghna is one of those matches, he decides she’ll be his way out.
On the other hand, Meghna didn’t get a favorable first impression from him but when he proposes the arrangement, she needs a plus-one to her best friend’s wedding where she is best man (and in love with the groom).

There’s a lot of complicated feelings going on, and it certainly seems touch-and-go for our couple at times. At first they are strictly business, and Karthik is very clearly in denial about his feelings from the start. As with all the best romances though, readers know these two are meant for each other.

This story is very cute! Lots of moments that had my heart a-flutter. One funny thing of note is that there are many more engagements and proposals than I expected. And the language puns made me chuckle. Fun, sweet, and a great use of the fake dating trope, this romance is one you’ll want to read!

This was so good! I had a huge smile on my face while reading this and didn't want it to end. One of the best fake engagement/relationship romances I've read in awhile! I found the characters compelling and authentic and the storyline as plausible as it could be given the trope. Definitely add to your TBR!!

Say You'll Be Mine comes out next week on January 16, 2024, and you can purchase HERE!

Meghna blinked, completely stunned. She'd never agreed to anything like this before. In fact, it was rare that her parents ever brought up the topic of arranged marriage. They'd found love on their own and expected that she'd do the same. But after she'd turned twenty-eight earlier this year, they'd begun to dial up the pressure. Making comments about her dating life that they probably thought were subtle, but were just hurtful reminders that even though she wanted to find the right person, she hadn't managed it yet. But those small comments and hints were usually as far as her parents went. They had never seriously brought a rishta, a potential marriage proposal, to her.

Thank you to NetGalley, Random House Ballantine/Dell and Naina Kumar for an ARC of Say You'll Be Mine in exchange for an honest review.

Naina Kumar is not an author I was previously familiar with but this gorgeous, colorful cover art immediately grabbed my attention. And I needed a good romance in the middle of all the thrillers I had read recently.

This story was utterly charming! Meghna & Karthik were polar opposites as far as personality, but each of their situations with their parents wanting them to marry off presented an opportunity for each of them to benefit from a fake engagement. Meghna was open to the possibility of something more with Karthik, but having grown up around a toxic relationship of his father emotionally abusing his mother, Karthik vowed to never get married & was very adamant with Meghna that there would NEVER be anything more between them than a "one night stand" type relationship.

As you can guess, feelings start to get involved for both Meghna (not Meg) and Karthik, but Karthik still refuses to acknowledge the feelings on his end so it definitely makes for some difficulties & broken hearts in this fake relationship. I absolutely loved all of the characters. The characters as well as the entire book were very well written. I also love that the ending, while predictable, didn't follow the exact same formula as other stories with this same trope. We got it in the epilogue, but not immediately in the ending which was nice because it allowed the characters to stay true to themselves & what they wanted.

This was a solid 4-Star read that I will happily recommend!

sweet, cute, and utterly adorable. I LOVED this one, and I so felt for both our main protags. READ THIS my romance-loving friends! thanks for the arc

EEE this book was so delightful!! An excellent debut from Naina Kumar.

Fake dating is definitely my favorite trope, and Say You'll Be Mine delivered. Witty banter, perfect sexual and romantic tension, well developed family and side characters, characters following their dreams, it had it all! Fair warning, there is a good amount of miscommunication, so if that's not your trope, you may not love it as much, but it is still worth a try. I usually despise it, but it worked for me here for the most part.

Also Seth was such a mediocre white man and antagonist and I enjoyed the way that plot line progressed. Meghna is such a wonderful protagonist and I loved how she developed in her confidence, especially with Karthik's support.

This is a must read if you love swoony love stories and fake dating and romance that tackles real life issues!!

4.25/5

Thanks to NetGalley and Random House Publishing Group-Ballentine for an e-ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Also *spoiler-ish* but
***************************************************
Can we please get more men in romance novels who go to therapy?? I was 100% here for this!! We love healing and accountability!

Easily one of the cutest stories I’ve read recently! This had me squealing, kicking my feet, and smiling the whole time. While the story is lighthearted and an easy read, it touches on some tough subjects and just feels so real and honest. Genuinely cannot believe this is a debut novel — Naina’s writing is beautiful!

Thank you for allowing me to read this eARC!

Thanks to NetGalley and Random House Publishing Group - Ballantine for the E-ARC. I want to start of by saying that I stayed up waaay to late to finish this book and I have No Ragrets. I finished this story in a day. This was much more than the story of Meghna and Karthik. It showed us what happens when we stand up for ourselves, when we follow our dreams, and how to break those generational curses and I fell in love with it. for a debut novel it was very good. I cant wait to read more from this author

Thank you Random House Ballantine and PRH Audio for a charming and delightful rom com, a perfect beat the January funk read. Say You'll Be Mine by Naina Kumar is the exact kind of romcom romance I want to read: well developed characters who have identities outside of a relationship, thoughtful secondary themes on family and friends, and a solid slow burn romance with likable characters. I loved Meghna's and Karthik's story, well stories because they each have their own stories that connect to their relationship, their voices, the way they grew as individuals throughout the story, and how their relationship story was used to explore a range of bigger challenges and themes they faced.

Are there tropes? Heck yes but that's the fun.... a fake dating/fake fiancee theme, some one bed only scenes, some miscommunication (not too bad though as I think many of us find that can be off putting!). What added some nice depth was the cultural exploration on arranged marriage as well as a general focus on Indian culture; I also valued the exploration of the different family, work, friend themes associated with Meghna's and Karthik's lives and how this wove into their fake dating arrangement, feelings about marriage, and how their relationship unfolded.

I loved this one so much that I stayed up late reading it and then, when my eyes got tired, I listened to some of the audiobook (nicely narrated by Soneela Nankini who added a resonance to the cultural themes that I appreciated). This was fun, engaging, even sweet and charming without being cloying or tiresome, and I am adding this author to my "look forward to what they write next" list.

SAY YOU'LL BE MINE - NAINA KUMAR

4⭐

PLOT -
Meghana Raman finds out via mail invitation about her BF cum ex's wedding and on top she agrees to be his Best Man. She is determined to move on Nd agrees to meet a potential match her parents find.
Karthik Murthy agrees to her mother's wishes and meets potential match to appease her but has no intention to marry anyone untill he meets Meghna . Though he doesn't want marriage he proposes fake relationship mutually benefitting both .
But spending time they start liking each other but can their expectations and insecurities hamper their HEA.

MY THOUGHTS -
I couldn't put down this book. It was a sweet story with a lot of learnings for both MC. The Indian immigrant facing arrange marriage situation the expectations esp career related with their parents this resulting in fake relationship between MCs.
I was irritated with both MCs inability to communicate but I really liked how it ends.
Looking forward to more work by Naina

Thank you publishers and netgalley for this arc in exchange for my honest opinion.

If you're a fan of the movie The Proposal- this is a book for you! What a cute and cozy story that I couldn't put down after I started! I enjoyed getting to watch Meghna and Karthik's relationship grow and develop while they both navigated their own professional and familiar pressures (we love a man who can admit they need therapy). Both main characters were a little messy at times (which I LOVE) and it makes them seem like friends you know in your own life. This was a very strong debut novel, and I'm looking forward to reading more from Naina in the future!

Thank you NetGalley and Random House Publishing Group-Ballantine for the advanced copy in exchange for my honest review.

What it’s about:
Meghna is an English teacher struggling to find love/move on from her college boyfriend. When she gets an invite to his wedding, she decides to open up herself to the idea of an arranged marriage. Karthik is a grumpy New Yorker who agrees to the idea an arranged marriage for his mom but doesn’t plan on ever following through. Yet, as soon as he meets Meghna, he can’t stay away and proposes a fake engagement.

The dialogue is top-notch with Meghna’s characterization in particular, excellent. As she works through figuring out her career goals, uncovering the truth behind the relationship she once felt solid, and strengthening her voice, you can’t help but root for her.

If you like rom-coms, you’ll like this debut from Naina Kumar! A real slow burn between the two main characters in this fake engagement story. The characters are well developed and the writing is great. There’s also a lot of culture weaved into the story which is always fun (to me at least). recommend!

Gah! I really enjoyed this book. I have always liked books with South Asian characters because the family dynamics play such an important role in the story.

This is the story of Meghna and Karthik, who have been introduced to each other by their parents in the hopes of making an arranged marriage. They immediately know it's a no, but realize they can use each other to help get through some awkward social events coming up.

Fake engagement it is!

I'm not going to say more because you're going to want to read this book. I promise you.

Say You'll Be Mine by Naina Kumar ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐

What a great debut novel. Looking forward to reading what she does next.

Characters are from India, Where parents set up dates to find partners for their kids. I loved learning about their cultures. And even their foods. Can't wait to try making and eating some new dishes.
I'm also glad that my kindle has a dictionary, many words I had to look up. Which was fun as well.

Strangers to lover
Fake Engagement

Lots of wonderful experiences happen between the characters that neither of them saw coming.

Thank you NetGalley for an advanced copy to review for you. Hope you will pick up a copy to read when it releases on Jan 16th.