Once I read the dedication of Marriage & Masti by Nisha Sharma, addressing third wheelers (Hiiiiii) of their friend groups, I knew this book was for me. Of course, I’ve never run off internationally when I heard my unrequited crush was engaged, but we all handle devastating news differently. And when a yacht-wreck causes Veera Mathur and her twin sister Sana to lose all of their belongings, Deepak Datta, the estranged friend and crush comes to their aid. He’s escaping a problem of his own. The influencer he was set to marry that would secure his bid for CEO breaks up with him in a GRWM video.

Reunited and drinking, Veera and Deepak do a practice run of a marriage ceremony for a couple they meet on the beach, and while it’s not legally official, it’s religiously binding, and being fake married could benefit both of their careers — he’ll be CEO, and she gets capital to open an ethical lending business. Being Deepak’s “wifey” is Veera’s dream and nightmare. How can she protect her heart while being fake married to the person she’s loved all along?

I really felt for Veera. Her dad doesn’t see her value, she’s pining for a friend who hasn’t noticed her romantically (yet), her sister abandons their business plan, and she’s feeling secluded from her two best friends now that they’re partnered up. She’s going through it! And while none of this is magically fixed by being in a fake marriage, with Deepak’s support, Veera finally has someone in her corner that is rooted in friendship and becomes romantic.

And once Deepak decides to romance her, WHEW! He buys her custom-fitted pantsuits, he fasts with her to bless their marriage when he doesn’t have to, there are several MY WIFE moments plus he BEGS ON HIS KNEES for Veera not to leave him. I loved this so much, especially learning about Hindu post-wedding rituals and events. *swoon*

This book was written for:
- The 30 something singles “on the shelf” of Desi society
- The Bollywood girlies
- The perpetual third wheelers
- The strong educated women fighting for space in male dominated rooms
This book was written for girls like me.

Inspired by the Twelfth Night, Marriage & Masti is the final installment in Nisha Sharma’s “If Shakespeare were Aunties” Series.

It’s been a tough year for our girl Veera. After getting fired from her family business (by her dad no less) and finding out the man she’s secretly been in love with is engaged, Veera feels a bit lost and unmoored. But when Veera gets stranded after a literal shipwreck it’s Deepak who swoops in to save the day. Deepak has also had a pretty rough time. From trying to secure his position as CEO and getting dumped on the internet all he really wants is answers as to why his best friend has been avoiding him for the last 8 months. So when Veera calls of course he hops on a plane to rescue her. One daaru filled night later Deepak and Veera find themselves accidentally married and now the have to fake it and convince everyone it’s the real thing...except maybe they’ve just been fooling themselves this whole time.

We often talk about romantic love but to me the greatest love story at the heart this series is friendship.
What I love most about Nisha’s work is the focus she puts on friendship in all its various forms. One of the most meaningful parts of this book for me was watching Veera and the girls grapple with the ways their friendship has changed and how they navigate forward.

Deepak and Veera’s relationship is grounded in their friendship and trust. They never doubted their confidence in each other as people or as leaders.
This was the best way to close out the trilogy and it’s bittersweet to say goodbye to this group.

Thank you Nisha, Kareena, Bobbi, Veera, Prem, Bunty, and Deepak; you will always hold a special place in my heart.

Thank you to Nisha Sharma's street team and William and Morrow books for the eARC in exchange for my honest review.

This is a series that has touched my life in an indescribable way, and seeing it come to an end is incredibly bittersweet. That ending coming in the form of Deepak and Veera’s Twelfth Night retelling was perfection in all of its forms.

Nisha’s writing consistently demonstrates the meaning of love, of laughter, and of the importance of community. She shows how much we need each other and how letting people in, being part of something bigger than the self, makes life better in every way. The Aunties may have been known to meddle, but they brought this group of friends turned family together in a way that seemed integral to the definition of joy. Deepak and Veera were two incredibly strong characters, and had been throughout the entirely of the Of Shakespeare Was an Auntie series. They were soft in how they cared for everyone around them, intelligent in how they conducted the business that was so important to them, and loving in the way they put their friendship and each other’s well being above all else. Their love was one that was present from the beginning, and I loved seeing how they (read: my sweet, not so innocent baby Deepak) slowly came to that realization as the story unfolded. Nisha has left a permanent stamp on my heart with this group of friends, and I absolutely cannot wait to see what’s next 💜

This is the third book in the series and we finally get Verra and Deepak’s story. The stories inspired by 12th night, therefore there are misunderstandings schemes and in the case of the main characters and accidental marriage. Veera Is trying to recover from the fact that she was fired by her father and that her two best friends are in love while she feels adrift The book is trying to salvage being appointed to the head of the family company after this who was engaged to four business purposes is done with the relationship. The way Veera and Deepak keep up the idea that they eloped because even as friends they had feelings, actually ends up becoming their truth at one point. it’s a fun and emotional story from start to finish. I love how Deepak is the one who starts to fall harder for her first. I love how the romance is kept upfront while still confronting messy family relationships. I love seeing all of my favorite characters, especially the aunties return to make this , actually now my favorite in this series where I have loved every single book

This was a cute Desi romance, and my second Nisha Sharma novel. While I enjoyed the sexy banter and family antics, both MCs just didn’t do it for me. There were times when I didn’t like either one of them. I had some issues with Sharma’s MCs in Dating Dr. Dil, so I guess it’s a “me” thing. Other than thinking the MCs were kinda jerk-ish to each other at times, this is a solid romance with fun, Indian culture and a sexy story!

I have enjoyed each book in the If Shakespeare Were an Auntie series more than the one before and this one was by far my favorite! I really enjoyed Veera and Deepak's friends to lovers dynamic and the fakeish marriage was a fun twist!

I really enjoyed watching Veera find her direction and liked how much Deepak supported her. They were so much alike and I bought into their connection right away. I loved that Deepak supported Veera's dreams and saw her value.

I also found Veera's experience with being married making her feel more a part of her community really interesting. I think it's something a lot of woman will relate to regardless of religion. It can be easy to feel like you get left out when your friends have partners and you are single. I also loved reading about the Punjabi marriage rituals.

If you like fake dating or a marriage of convenience I highly recommend this one! It is definitely one where it will be a better read if you have read the others in the series.

Thank you NetGalley and Avon and Harper Voyager for the ARC. This was my first time reading Nisha Sharma and it did not disappoint at all! I can't wait to read more! There's so much banter in this book. It's a great friends to lovers, and it had me kicking my feet so much! I loved it!

Marriage & Masti is book three in the If Shakespeare Was an Auntie series by Nisha Sharma.
I just obsessed with this series.
It’s always fun when I find myself diving head first into the pages of a perfect modern Indian retelling of Shakespeare's comedic masterpiece, "Much Ado About Nothing."
Nisha had me rolling with all of the meddling antics and swooning romance.
This continues to be a great series and I really enjoy this author's characters and overall writing.

Thank You NetGalley and Avon for your generosity and gifting me a copy of this amazing eARC!

4.5 stars

Thank you NetGalley and Avon and Harper Voyager for the ARC. Much love to Nisha Sharma, as well. I was so excited when I received the ARC. I SCREAMED.

I love Nisha Sharma's books so much. I'm really going to miss the 'If Shakespeare was an Auntie' series so much. I loved the first and second books in the series so much; honestly, 'Marriage & Masti' is the perfect book to end the series.

There's so much banter in this book. It's charming, funny, romantic, spicy and romantic all around. Always trust Nisha Sharma to create sizzling chemistry between her romantic leads. One of my favourite tropes is friends-to-lovers. This is honestly one of the best books I've ever read that features this trope.

Nisha Sharma, I just want to say thank you so much for writing these characters. I can't wait to read what you publish next.

The last book in the Shakespeare inspired rom com trilogy featuring two best friends, one fake marriage, and a chance at falling in love! Veera has been through a lot in the last year: fired from her job, her best friends are both married now, and the guy she has a crush on is engaged to someone else... and to top it off her twin sister decides to tell her that she's opting out of their business plan right as they get off a boat accident and has lost both their wallets leaving them stranded without any cash.... and now Veera has to call the one guy she wanted to avoid to ask for help, the guy who broke her heart, Deepak. Deepak has only one goal in his life: to become the CEO to his family's business. He entered into an arranged marriage as a business deal to secure more votes to get him the seat on the board that he needed to get the CEO vote. Yet when his fiancee breaks up with him on the internet the only person he wants to talk to is Veera, his best friend and the only person who gets him... who suddenly asked for space. Yet when she calls asking for help Deepak is more than happy to get away from his PR nightmare of a breakup with his ex and see the one woman who makes him feel safe and happy. Yet when he arrives one thing leads to the next and suddenly they are drunkenly helping out at a wedding and perform a fake marriage ceremony that might actually be very real as they followed through with all the religious steps and now in the eyes of their community and religion are very much married. Deepak realizes one thing: he is very much in love with Veera and wants a real marriage with her and he can't believe all the time he's lost not seeing her... if only he could convince her that he means it and that their fake marriage isn't fake to him at all. Veera is determined to keep her space and doesn't want to open her heart to heartbreak again but Deepak is getting harder and harder to resist. With both their reputations and jobs on the line, their families scrutiny, and their hearts... can they find a way through this fake marriage? I absolutely adored this one, it's such a sweet read and I loved how down bad Deepak was for Veera. Its a really cute read and the spice was fun. The characters are enjoyable and I loved seeing the other characters from the previous books in this one. It's a delightful series and one I'd recommend for anyone who enjoys a great rom com!

Release Date: August 27,2024

Publication/Blog: Ash and Books (ash-and-books.tumblr.com)

*Thanks Netgalley and Avon and Harper Voyager | Avon for sending me an arc in exchange for an honest review*

Like the two books that came before it, Marriage & Masti is fully of genuine laughs and love. A romcom through and through, no one does funny banter like Nisha Sharma.

Oh, I’m so sad to see the If Shakespeare was An Auntie series come to a close! But what a satisfying, spectacular end. Veera has been traveling for eight months with her twin, Sana, after they were both fired from the family business and it was taken over by the family of her once-best friend, Deepak, due to a merger. Deepak isn’t sure why Veera hasn’t talked to him since the merger and his business-focused engagement to influencer Olivia. A series of events (including a yacht-wreck and a GRWM so I can break up with my fiancé video) pushes these two back together - and into an accidental wedding. Maybe this is just what they need to get their careers back on track…

Veera and Deepak and so perfect together, I adored reading them figure out married life - and Deepak finally realizing what was right in front of him all this time. Their partnership was full of respect, admiration, and love. And I loved the whole friend group, the Aunties, the family (not Veera’s dad). This is a well-woven take on Twelfth Night and I will continue to recommend this series to basically everyone. Read it! I Received an advanced reading copy, receipt of which did not impact my review.

After a year of heartbreak and career setbacks, Veera is adrift. Deepak, facing a marriage of convenience to secure his CEO position, is equally desperate after his fiancée calls it off. A series of mishaps leads Veera and Deepak to take vows in a drunken wedding on the beach. Now, they must convince the world their marriage is genuine, even as their feelings for each other blur the lines between fake and real.

This is a beautifully crafted, heartwarming, and entertaining rom com. Veera and Deepak are both strong and determined, yet left untethered by all the changes in their lives. Their friendship and growing romance provides healing and helps them forge a new future together. The intimate scenes are tasteful and very hot.

Thanks, NetGalley, for the ARC I received. This is my honest and voluntary review.

When I got an ARC of Marriage & Masti, I literally screamed. It was my most anticipated romance of 2024 and it completely lived up to the hype. I have been waiting for Veera and Deepak‘s story since Dating Dr. Dil. This series, If Shakespeare Was an Auntie is my go to recommendation to friends and family. It has everything I want in a book -female friendship, male friendship, excellent chemistry, spicy romance, and delightful secondary characters. Please do yourself a favor and read this amazing series!

On a deeper level too, there is so much beauty to be written about the Indian-American culture. There is no better feeling than where you’re enjoying a book and actually learning the intricacies of another cultural group. There is so much that we have in common, but there’s so much we can learn for each others unique cultural identities.

Also I want to really hype up an excellent writer Nisha Sharma is!!! She just writes such beautiful stories.

Thank you #Netgalley for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

this is a bittersweet goodbye to a series that started with a bang and slowly descend into a downfall for me. but no matter what happened I will forever love this series for the representation it provided

I was very excited to read M&M after the epilogue of TLS. deepak and veera’s love story was a long time coming. and what better thing to provide angst than friends to lovers with a fake marriage added to the mix… but just TLS I ended up not being that on board with the romance

I might have been very excited and happy the first 20% of the book romance-wise but I rapidly lost interest. one thing about nisha, I feel like is that she tries to put spice as an marketing tool to make people read her books. which I can’t condemn bc the industry is ruthless to women of color and their stories. (no thanks to white supremacy and colonialism). but bc of this presence of spice, it counterbalance the romance. she centered their romance on their seggsual attraction and want of each other and didn’t developed the emotional connection both characters shared by being best friends. the spice was done in such rushed way, the first time they initiated they didn’t even talked about sexual boundaries or anything. and the more the spice came the more it solidified my belief that it was there for the reader better than the story and that really cheapened the romance to me, so much that ended up not even caring for their relationship

BUT, as much as I didn’t particularly enjoy the romance, one thing nisha knows how to do it’s implementing representation and diversity conversation in her stories and she does it well and I loved that in her story more than any romance parts. they are 4 focus points I absolutely loved in M&M

1. the fake marriage thing. it was so focused on the spiritual and cultural meaning and I LOVED THAT. it was so different from the usual white take we have on this trope. for many of us, marriage is a spiritual journey, it means a lot to our family and to our culture yes but it’s much more than that. it’s a personal journey to love, fate and evolution. and that was celebrated just so wonderfully in the book!

2. the generation trauma and generational sexist beliefs. it is known that a lot of BIPOC cultures are embedded in patriarchy no matter how spiritual they are. and as a MENA, I can attest that and I could see that too. in this book it was acknowledged, pushed back and opening a very sensible and interesting conversation about it all. it dismantled the idea that respect to your elders has to be at all costs. and showed that you should hold your stance and your boundaries no matter how close that person is to you

3. being a woman of color and being nice, caring and sweet makes you weak. that such a lame societal belief and veera shows her how it is the opposite. and as someone who tried everyday to be as lovely and respectful as I can, it was a great thing to witness. veera held herself with charisma, kindness, cleverness and shattered this stupid idea and I loved seeing her do that

4. single and married pees disconnecting as they go into their 30’s. losing friendship and communication as we move through life and lose each other’s pace is such a real thing and to see it on page validated this situation so much and I loved seeing how the girls navigated this spiky situation !

so yes, the romance part was not the thing that sold me this last book, but no matter what I will forever love the conversations nisha’s opened with the books in this series. maybe I’ll continue reading her books maybe I won’t but I would recommend them especially for BIPOC women. maybe I am too specific and critic with my romances but maybe you are not and you shouldn’t take my opinion too seriously and lose the opportunity to meet characters that could represent you and make you feel seen!

ratings:
overall: 2.75⭐️
spice: 3🌶️
tension: 3⚡️

💍𝐀𝐜𝐜𝐢𝐝𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐚𝐥 𝐌𝐚𝐫𝐫𝐢𝐚𝐠𝐞
🩵𝐃𝐞𝐬𝐢 𝐑𝐨𝐦𝐚𝐧𝐜𝐞
💍𝐅𝐫𝐢𝐞𝐧𝐝𝐬-𝐭𝐨-𝐥𝐨𝐯𝐞𝐫𝐬

❤︎︎ Veera and Deepak's story has been brewing behind the scenes for quite a while. Our initial encounter with them was in "Dating Dr. Dil," where the seeds of their friendship were sown. And let me assure you, the wait was definitely worthwhile!

♡︎ Veera and Deepak shared a beautiful bond that was evident to their friends and family. Veera was deeply hurt when Deepak announced his engagement. He had taken their friendship for granted, but it only took one Hindu ceremony to make him realize that he yearned to be with her, even if it meant risking his CEO position.

❤︎︎ From the start, Veera had fallen head over heels for Deepak. It took him some time to comprehend his own feelings, but once he did, he made it his mission to win his wife's heart. Their love story was truly remarkable as they both encouraged and supported each other.

♡︎ Their chemistry was effortlessly electric, igniting some very intense and steamy scenes that genuinely left me in awe. I'm going to miss all these extraordinary characters brought to life by Nisha Sharma's amazing writing.

❤︎︎ All in all, if you enjoy the fake marriage trope, this is the perfect book to read! In fact you have to read the whole If Shakespeare Was An Auntie series!

Thank you Avon and HarperVoyager for the eARC in exchange for an honest review!

This book follows our two main characters, Deepak and Veera, after a night of drinks and a spontaneous wedding. They decide to keep up the marriage, as it could benefit both of them. As always, a romance ensues where they least expect it.

I really liked the other two books in this series, however, I think that this book is the weakest book in this trilogy. However, there are some things that I did like about this story. I liked the fact that it was friends to lovers. I liked that we saw their connection deepen throughout the novel. I also liked the communication that the couple had, like arguments and betrayals were prevented because they communicated with each other. A third good thing was that there was no third act break up! Which was great!

There are some things that I did not like about this book, however. I think that Deepak had a slight character change from the first two books. Some of his interests were left in the first two books, and I would have liked to see them in this book. This book did lose me in certain parts because of how much everything was, like how, I don't know how else to put it, not fleshed out and unrealistic some things were.

Overall, I would recommend this book for a no thoughts just vibes read!

“Sometimes the people we love can hurt us the most.”

Listen, I do not know how Nisha Sharma has gotten me so invested in this series. I have loved it the entire way through and I’m so incredibly sad that it’s over. This was one of my most anticipated reads of the year, and it absolutely did not disappoint.

Veera and Deepak. MY GOD. I’m obsessed with the friends to lovers trope where she falls first, but then he falls harder. Their chemistry just flies off the page. I loved the way their relationship goes from fake to real. It feels realistic and there is never a moment where it feels far-fetched. We don’t get a pile of miscommunication. Instead, they act like the adults they are and they communicate. It's really refreshing to see romance books without the third-act breakup. Even though that is such staple in romances, it feels more realistic for the couple to discuss what they've heard that could cause an issue in the relationship and resolve it together.

I particularly loved Veera’s arc, especially when she feels left out now that Kareena and Bobbi have partners. She feels like she’s looking in from the outside. It’s clearly hard for her to feel like she can’t go to her best friends, and I think that’s so relatable. Vera has been through so much and seeing her build herself back up is so satisfying. Her relationship with her father is strained and I loved that she holds her ground. She doesn't give him an easy out.

And Deepak! Even though his marriage to Veera is only supposed to help his career, the moment he realizes how much time he’s wasted by being engaged to someone else only as a formality made me absolutely giddy. I always love when a romance provides dual points-of-view and anytime we were with Deepak, I was swooning. His determination to not only stay married to Vera but also to help her get her business off the ground is amazing. He sees how smart she is and wants everyone around him, especially her father, to know it.

This series has gotten better with each book, which is not an easy feat.

4.5 Stars I'm so sad that the If Shakespeare Was an Auntie series is over, but I absolutely loved the third and final book, Marriage & Masti!

It's been eight months since Veera Mathur's best friends found their soul mates, the man she fell in love with got engaged to another woman, and her father fired her before merging the family business with another. And now that her twin sister, Sana, has gone back on her word about them starting a business together, Veera is stuck. Deepak Datta can't help but feel relieved when his fiancée announces their separation on social media, though it leaves him in a bad position as he tries to secure enough votes from the board of his family's company to succeed his father as CEO. Suddenly reunited with his best friend, Veera, and celebrating their misfortunes with lots of alcohol, the two end up accidentally married on a beach. But this may not be the disaster Veera thinks it is--it could be the solution to all their career problems. Veera knows it will be tough to be fake married to the man she really loves, but the two will fake it so the board votes Deepak in and Veera can start her own company. As Deepak realizes that his feeling for Veera are more than friendly, the line between fake and real begins to blur.

Veera is definitely my fave FMC from this series. She is an absolute BOSS, fiercely independent, whip smart, and a wonderful friend to all who love her. While it takes Deepak a while to realize his feelings for Veera and vice versa, he eventually gets there 😅 Deepak is adorable and supportive; a perfect partner for Veera with a strong foundation of friendship for their marriage. I wished we had had more of the aunties and their meddling, they are too funny!

Thank you Avon and Nisha Sharma for the ARC!

After reading Tastes like Shakkar, I could not wait to read more about Veera and Deepak! So when I got a chance to read the ARC, I stayed up as late as I could to finish it.
I think this might be my favourite of the trilogy.
Things I loved:
He has money BUT SO DOES SHE! I hate it when books are all about MMCs rescuing the FMC by giving them their black Amex cards.
Veera is smart, independent and a boss AND she is a finance girlie!
Veera has a personality! I hate it when the FMC’s only real character traits are that she’s pretty and quirky :/
Deepak is all of the above too and he is adorable.
They make a great team.
Their friendship is so sweet!
She falls first but he falls harder.


Things that could have been better:
I wish we had more of the aunties lol
I wish we learned more about Deepak and what drives him.

Overall, this book was a 5/5 for me. I could not put it down.

Thank you Nisha Sharma, NetGalley and Avon books for the ARC!