Review: Are Arranged Marriages the Best Kind?
Rating: 3 out of 5
Date: 07 3, 2014
This is a romantic novel more for Young Adults who desire to learn more about the culture of Mumbai and India.  Sunita Risfi is twenty years old and wants to never marry as she doesn't desire to just remain a house wife and mother, subject to her husband's rule. This is what she sees in her home.  However, her parents, and especially her father Gokul Risfi are determined that she will marry, and soon, someone whom they will select for her.  Gokul makes arrangements with Raj Mahotra for Raj's son, Akshay, to marry Sunita.  Neither Sunita nor Akshay have met each other before.  Akshay is a sophisticated young man, who has been around a lot and is not prepared to get married at this time, at least as a member of an arranged marriage.After Sunita and Akshay separately have been told of their arranged marriage, and both are plotting as to how they can elude this, Akshay, who is described as a gorgeous hunk of man, manages to see Sunita without her knowing who he is, and he believes her to be the most beautiful woman he has ever seen.Sunita is portrayed as a young virgin with little sexual knowledge and no experience.  Akshay discovers this upon meeting her and entices her into signing a prenuptial contract so that if their marriage does not work out, they can part.  It is the only way he can convince her to enter into an arrangement marriage with him.The weakness in this writing is that several times the scenes are repetitious describing how Sunita appears to Akshay and he to her.  And the first few chapters of the book, American slang has been thrown in that takes away the beauty and mystique of India.  As the chapters progress, then more substance is added to the plot, although it still has the diction and emotions of teenagers.  That is why I am only giving it three stars and consider it YA genre.This book was given to me as a complimentary copy for an honest review.