I received this ARC in exchange for my honest review.

A fun second chance romance when the second chance is with the person you're already married to!

Flirting With Disaster is a delightful take on the beloved Reese Witherspoon classic “Sweet Home Alabama.” Naina Kumar offers a diverse, Indian perspective that’s both fresh and fabulously relatable.

The story explores the depth and nuance of a long-estranged couple who are finally forced to confront their complicated feelings for one another, while beautifully delving into the colorful chaos of the immigrant experience.

I loved that this novel gave me the opportunity to learn more about the unique pressures and expectations faced by first-generation immigrant children. Kumar flawlessly delivers deep and meaningful insights without ever missing a beat.

In short, this book is a charming blend of romance and cultural exploration that left me both entertained and enlightened.

Naina Kumar’s Flirting with Disaster, her second novel, didn’t quite hit the mark for me the way her debut, Say You’ll Be Mine, did. While I appreciated that the main characters were Indian—an ethnicity I don’t often see as protagonists in romance novels—the story itself felt a bit too drawn out. I found that it could have worked just as well, or maybe even better, as a short story without losing its charm.

That said, this is still a cute rom-com, perfect for unwinding at the end of a long day. The writing is easy to digest, and the novel has a breezy, calming quality. While I didn’t enjoy it as much as her first book, Flirting with Disaster is still an enjoyable read for fans of lighthearted romance.

Thank you to NetGalley and Random House Publishing Group - Ballantine, for an advanced readers copy so that I may give my honest feedback and review.

This review has been posted on Goodreads.

This book started right into the action of the hurricane. We learn about the characters and their history while the storm kicks up and passes. Second chance love set in Houston with nods to Texas in its good and bad ways! Nikhil is someone I would trust to get me through the storm with his prepping and handyman skills. Meena is driven. They both need to communicate, did I get frustrated because it’s my least favorite trope, of course. A couple giggles and moments of anxious for what happens next. Adorable neighbors, we need more Alan!

Naina Kumar’s found her lane in romance and girl, she is cruising. Say You’ll be Mine caught my eye earlier this year, but Flirting With Disaster…it’s fierce. Kumar’s an author I’ll be keeping an eye on for the foreseeable future.

I’ve never watched Sweet Home Alabama (please don’t judge me lol). For me, Flirting with Disaster is a redemptive romance. Meena and Nikhil are dealing with extensive external pressures that manifests into fears not shared with one another. They only truly address their concerns once forcibly confined to weather a hurricane (I know its extreme but listen to me: it totally works in the romance genre).

Just a quick overview: here are my favourite things: in politics some people talk about ‘the call to serve’ it’s what pushes someone to run for office. Naina highlights and breaks it down beautifully. The career and personal strains it takes to run for any office is filled with sacrifice, and to make it a central point of a romance, was surprising and unexpected. As a political girlie, I 100% LOVE IT.

Kumar also showcases a different family dynamic in South Asian households and I for one, welcome it. While there may be some inconsistencies present in timelines I can look past it to realize the bigger picture, sadly we don’t get to know Meena’s older sister’s name. Maybe there’s a potential book there?

Overall, this is the boost I needed. Thank you so much Dell Romance for the ARC. Y’all are the MVP’s.

This was the best book I’ve ever read 😭 I knew the second it was announced I was going to love it!! I loved Say You’ll Remember Me so much. And getting to read this early has honestly made my year! I LOVE a second chance so much. AND it’s based off Sweet Home Alabama?! I loved this book so much and I don’t quite know how to even put together words to convey how much???

For now just know that Meena and Nikhil are honestly so imperfectly perfect and I love them so much!!!

Thank you so much to Dell Romance for the ARC in exchange for an honest review!!!

Unfortunately I am disappointed in this story. As a South Asian American, there's something so special about reading stories written by other South Asians that you can relate to culturally. That's why I loved "Say You'll Be Mine" by Naina Kumar. It did such a good job of bringing in the Americanized characters but also showing the cultural aspect of Indian heritage. This book is a flop for me. I couldn't relate to the characters and it felt like Naina took every South Asian stereotype and flipped it, making the entire story unrelatable - divorce, zero sense of family combination and community, unexpected pregnancy of a sibling, and more. I'm not saying that none of this can't happen in South Asian stories, but it just reads like a very American story. I'm having a hard time appreciating the writing style, since we jump back and forth between past and present, making it extremely confusing with no notice. I spent majority of this story skimming it so I give it a DNF.

The most heart warming story with main characters you root for until the very end! Flirting With Disaster immediately sucks you into the story and take you through a whirlwind of emotions. Meena and Nikhil have a complex and strained relationship, and the author carefully unfolds the intricacies so by the end of the story no stone is left unturned. The writing was what I can only describe as beautiful. I was highlighting so many quotes! Truly could not recommend this book enough.

Thank you NetGalley, the publisher, and the author for an advanced copy of this book!

I am a huge fan of Naina's and this book felt like the most natural follow up to her stunning debut!

The Sweet Home Alabama vibes were strong, but it was also giving hints of Dawson's Creek and I AM NOT MAD ABOUT IT. I love second chance/marriage in trouble and this hit all the right notes. When I tell you I've been *waiting* for a hurricane book, and then here this one was? Hello destiny.

The hurricane stuff was spot on (the prep etc, I am a Florida native so I have BEEN THERE), It's very atmospheric, but the romance still shines. Single POV worked beautifully here.

Thank you so much to Random House/Dell for providing me with this arc to review!

Y'all, the amount this book surprised me completely. Flirting with Disaster followed Meena, a lawyer in D.C. as she attempts to finalize her divorce with her husband, Nikhil, after seven years of no contact. Of course, when Meena travels from D.C. to Houston to go see him in person, a massive hurricane hits forcing them to spend a little more time together.

This book has all my favorite things, forced proximity, second chance romance, and beautiful vulnerability from these characters. Getting to see Meena and Nikhil rediscover their connection and love for each other was so beautiful. Kumar does a fantastic job using the setting to really push the love story. I found myself genuinely surprised by the plot, which is not something I can always say with many of the new romance novels coming out.

While I would have loved a little more time at the beginning before getting into the central plot, I found the story super enjoyable, heart warming, and just so cute. I know this is going to be a huge hit when it comes out!

Thank you to NetGalley and Random House Publishing Group- Ballantine/Dell for this advanced reader copy. I adored Kumar's first book, Say You'll Be Mine, and I was so excited to preview this text.

Flirting with Disaster is a retelling of Sweet Home Alabama with a Houstonian hurricane spin on it. Meena is an ambitious, new graduated lawyer studying for the bar when she meets Nikhil, a kind and handsome construction worker. When the two get married on a whim in Vegas shortly into their courtship, they decide to make it work. But, less than a year in, Meena gets a big job in DC and leaves Nikhil behind.

Six years later, Meena is on the cusp. of running for a state senate seat in Maryland, but she needs to tie up this marriage. She sent Nikhil papers--but he doesn't respond. Meena, focused sigularly on her goals and not paying attention, shows up on his doorstep in the middle of a hurricane. Once the hurricane hits, they are forced into the same house until the flood waters pass.

This is a sweet second chance romance. It was nice to see how Meena and Nikhil both changed and communicated a better as the plot progressed. Overall it was very enjoyable, and I really enjoyed her portrayal of Houston and their neighborhood there. Personally, I enjoyed Say You'll Be Mine a bit more, but I really liked this one!

I typically don't like a miscommunication trope, but I fell in love with these characters right away and forgave them of anything that would typically bug me!

Naina Kumar’s Flirting with Disaster gave me Sweet Home Alabama and The Notebook vibes.

I was addicted from the first page.

Meena and Nikhil have both been through so much and even though they love each other they lacked the ability to communicate their feelings, which resulted in their separation and possible divorce. But maybe, just maybe, after getting stuck together during a hurricane, they will realize that they still love each other after all this time.

The relationship struggles that Meena and Nikhil experienced are things that I have struggled with before in relationships. They were relatable and by the time I was done with the book I was crying along with the characters.

There's something really special about being only a few paragraphs into a book, but already being fully immersed and invested. I'm not sure how Naina Kumar does this, but she did it with Say You'll Be Mine and she did it again with Flirting with Disaster!!! She establishes characters so naturally that they instantly feel real to me.

I read this book in one sitting, which is rare for me!! I kept telling myself "just one more chapter" but I just had to know what was going to happen next and before I knew it hours had passed. This book had a magical combination of tropes that I love (forced proximity, second chance romance, and more that I don't want to list because they feel like spoilers), and the best part was that none of them felt shoehorned into the story.

I loved Meena and Nikhil so much. THE CHEMISTRY? THE TENSION? my goodness!!! Also their growth??? It was all so good and so well written. And the miscommunication in this book actually made sense to me, it felt really realistic of young relationships and I loved seeing how they changed and grew the years they were apart. I also loved Naina's commentary on politics, community, and Texas.

The pace of this book felt really good to me, no brakes but flowed really well and not confusing. Also, while I do love single POV, I would do some unspeakable things for a Nikhil chapter (please Naina!!! a preorder incentive maybe???). ALSO, I love the side characters! Shake book when? or Ankita from Say You'll Be Mine???

Naina Kumar is truly an auto-read author for me and I can't wait to read anything she writes!

A fun read for fans of Sweet Honey Alabama (or second chance romances regularly)

Naina Kumar wrote a spin on some classic tropes (e.g., stuck together due to a hurricane, have to share a closet for a safe place to sleep, etc). She shows character growth throughout the seven years that the story jumps between. And she captures less savory emotions associated with love (e.g., sorrow when it fails, angst when you don’t know how to help your partner, etc). All of this comes together resulting in an enjoyable and easy to read story.

There are a few things I didn’t love. First and foremost, while Nikhil shows a lot of growth, Meena’s takes longer to happen. Instead, she comes across self absorbed in a lot of the story, unintentionally hurting her loved ones with her actions (e.g., Nikhil, Shake)

I also think the writing could have benefited from telling the story more clearly in two separate time frames and building out the memories some. As is, it could be confusing at times as we switched in time, and were left being told things vs living them with the characters.

Thank you to NetGalley, Naina Kumar, and Penguin Random House for providing me with an advanced reader copy.

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley!

This book follows Meena flying to Texas to get her husband to sign the divorce papers. She wants to move on with her boyfriend and the divorce will allow her to do so. However, seeing her husband, Nikhil, after so many years, may not have changed her feelings at all. I enjoyed this book. I read the author's debut novel and I jumped when I found her second book was out on NetGalley. The last 20% had me crying and I really enjoyed their love and story. Meena also explores certain aspects like work and her relationship to her sister and the rest of her family.

Thank you NetGalley for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

The beginning (30%) definitely caught and held my attention and I loved the Sweet Home Alabama inspiration!

The hurricane references were spot on - prep and supplies, what’s the weather saying, comparison to previous hurricanes - the author is definitely a Houstonian!

However, it started to read like a hurricane weather report and the focus seemed solely on the hurricane.

The author is great at intimate moments, but not necessarily the romance/flirty scenes - these moments felt abrupt and were a bit cringe at times.

This story gave such Sweet Home Alabama Vibes and I absolutely adored that aspect of it. I'm quite new to this author and was very impressed by her story telling. The two main characters were extremely likable and well developed, as well was the story.


Thank you to NetGalley and Dell for the eARC in exchange for an honest review.

As a rom-com movie enthusiast, I was over the moon excited when I heard Naina Kumar's sophomore romance had similar vibes to Sweet Home Alabama. Between the steamy tension, the small town vibes and the flashback scenes, Naina Kumar DELIVERS with this movie reimagining. Upon finishing this book, I immediately texted my friends for a girls night viewing :)

Meena is ready to take the next step in her political and love life by running for office with her significant other. The problem? She's still married. To a man she hasn't seen in years. She's sent Nikhil divorce papers several times, but each time they go unanswered. Meena knows that the only way she will get what she needs is by getting on a plane and asking him for a divorce in person.

When she drives up to the home they used to share, she is hit with memories of their life together as well as notifications that there is a hurricane forming in the Gulf, causing all flights to be grounded. She has no choice but to hunker down with Nikhil and ride out the storm together. As the days pass, Meena and Nikhil are forced to face the issues that drove them apart, get to know the people they have grown to be and struggle with the magnetic attraction that remains between them.

If you love the only one bed trope, buckle up! This book has a twist on it - the only one closet trope! Somehow, the only room in the entire house that is window-free and safe from the storm is the tiny closet that barely fits their two sleeping bags. As much as Meena fought sleeping in that closet, she eventually had to join Nikhil, and the conversation that flowed from that forced proximity....so very real. I loved watching our main characters reconcile the people they once were with the people they are now.

My only complaint about this book is that I wish that this book incorporated more of the characters' Indian American identity and culture. Naina Kumar's debut novel, Say You'll Be Mine, was steeped with Indian American culture, and it was what made the book so enjoyable for me. I was hoping to have more of this in her sophomore novel, especially given that the book description mentions "sharp observations about second chances at love, ambition and Indian American identity." If that line hadn't been in the description, I would have not expected this novel to incorporate it like her debut novel had.

Add this book to your TBR immediately if you are a fan of:
-Second chance romance
-Rom-coms
-Forced proximity
-He takes care of her
-Flashback scenes

I have posted a review to GoodReads, and I will share a review on my bookstagram @thecozybookgal closer to the publishing date!

flirting with disaster centers on meena, a hotshot lawyer aiming to run for congress, who also happens to be estranged from her husband for the past 6 years. she ends up in houston right as a hurricane hits the city, trying to get her husband, nikhil, to sign off on the divorce papers.

as a reader, I was somewhat disappointed by this book, as I had liked the author’s previous book, say you’ll be mine. my biggest issue with this story was the inconsistent characterizations of meena. as a thirty-something year old, you’d expect her to be more decisive yet she constantly flopped back and forward with her decisions and thoughts. a chapter would have her finally making a realization, and you’d think she was going to stick with it, before she quickly changed her mind again. it was frustrating to read and i struggled with how selfish she was at times, although she redeemed herself toward the end.
i did enjoy the commentary on shame and parental expectations that meena faced. nikhil was kind and honestly far better a person than who meena deserved. miscommunication trope was strong in this book, yet it somewhat made sense considering the situation that the main couple had gotten married in. I appreciate how real meena and nikhil both felt, their struggles and insecurities are ones that many people can relate to.

I was provided a copy of this book through NetGalley and the publisher.