The Marriage Game
By:Sara Desai
Published Year: 2020
Publisher: Berkley
Pages: 304
I received a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. This in no way shape or form influenced my opinion.
Summary (Provided by Goodreads): A high stakes wager pits an aspiring entrepreneur against a ruthless CEO in this sexy romantic comedy.
After her life falls apart, recruitment consultant Layla Patel returns home to her family in San Francisco. But in the eyes of her father, who runs a Michelin starred restaurant, she can do no wrong. He would do anything to see her smile again. With the best intentions in mind, he offers her the office upstairs to start her new business and creates a profile on an online dating site to find her a man. She doesn’t know he’s arranged a series of blind dates until the first one comes knocking on her door…
As CEO of a corporate downsizing company Sam Mehta is more used to conflict than calm. In search of a quiet new office, he finds the perfect space above a cozy Indian restaurant that smells like home. But when communication goes awry, he's forced to share his space with the owner's beautiful yet infuriating daughter Layla, her crazy family, and a parade of hopeful suitors, all of whom threaten to disrupt his carefully ordered life.
As they face off in close quarters, the sarcasm and sparks fly. But when the battle for the office becomes a battle of the heart, Sam and Layla have to decide if this is love or just a game.
First Impressions
Love the cover, love the title, love the summary. This one hit it out of the park on first impressions. I am a sucker for a hate to love romance and if you throw in a bet, you will have me hooked.
What I thought
This book was so delightful.
Layla moves back home with her parents after a bad breakup and getting fired from her job. She decides to start her own business in the office above her parents’ restaurant, but she runs into a snag when she finds out that her dad has already rented it out to Sam. When Layla’s dad has a heart attack before he can cancel Sam’s lease, Layla is left having to fight Sam for the space. After finding out that Layla’s dad had put her on a marriage website, they make a bet that if Layla doesn’t find a husband, then she gets to keep the office.
Layla and Sam hooked me from the start. There was an immediate attraction and I loved that their dislike for one another wasn’t really character based but situation based. Their banter was a delight. I also really liked that the chapters were written in alternate perspectives. You don’t often get to see both perspectives when romance is involved, so I really appreciated that. It allowed you to understand both sides of the story and not get too angry at either character.
One of the other fun aspects of this book was Layla’s family. Her parents, aunties and cousin were a riot. They each had their own personalities and you could see how much they loved and cared for each other. I did find it hilarious that given how thoroughly Layla’s dad supposedly vetted these marriage candidates they are truly terrible.
Sam’s character arc was also well developed. I got very irritated with him a lot of the book, but never to the point where I disliked him. Just to the point where I wanted to smack him upside the head from time to time.
This book had all of the elements I love in a romance novel. Likeable characters, fun banter, and delightful side characters. I would gladly read a sequel about Layla’s cousin Daisy. This does fall more on the contemporary fiction with a splash of romance side of romance novels, so if you get nervous hearing me call it a “romance novel” you have nothing to worry about. This book is such a light and I think it’s something we could all use right about now.