Alisha Rai

Alisha’s romance novels have a special place in my heart, so I was already excited for the release of this trilogy finale. And then when I got the opportunity to be a part of the blog tour, I was ecstatic. And this book lived up to all my expectations.

Jia is such a wonderful character. As a South Asian woman, I personally know how hard it is to defy our parents’ expectations from us and carve our own path, so Jia choosing to be a beauty influencer with an ambition to do more is really show more very admirable in my eyes. Dev on the other hand is an Indian soap opera star trying his hand in American television, but I loved how down to earth he is and knows what his priorities are. Even though their relationship takes a very unique and slightly unconventional path, I loved the bond they formed with each other and they just felt perfect for each other. Her impulsive nature and his steady supportive calm are great complements and i thorough enjoyed reading about them.

The friendships that have developed throughout this series and fully in display again and I can’t describe how much I love all these brilliant strong women Alisha has created. We get to see some fascinating older women too in the form of Jia’s mom and Dev’s grandma, and it was such an overall excellent ensemble. The plot is entertaining and sweet, the pacing is just fast enough for us to want to know what’s gonna happen next already, and the characters are so lovable. I also loved that Alisha decided not to go with unnecessary break up/make up subplot because I was really dreading that third act which has become so predictable. But Alisha never disappoints and I should have just trusted her writing.

In conclusion, this is a very lovely romance with a sweet couple and full cast of supportive side characters. If you have enjoyed any of Alisha’s novels previously or just like romance novels with smart heroines and nice heroes, this one is perfect for you. I can’t believe this series is already over and I can’t wait to see if Alisha will write a spin-off with Lakshmi’s story next. show less

I really enjoyed this forced proximity road trip romance! Lots of fun tropes to choose from, and I loved Sejal and Krish's black cat/golden retriever energy (although Krish is probably more of a cinnamon roll wrapped in a borderline bad-ass persona). There was instant attraction and a very quick ramp up to a relationship, but it worked as an organic part of the plot. We met a lot of supporting characters in this book, and here's where I admit that I didn't know it was the second in a series show more when I started reading. Even though I hadn't read the first book, this one wasn't too hard to follow but I do think reading that first book would have enhanced my reading experience. The author does a good job of giving background information without being exposition-y, and ultimately this book worked just fine as a standalone. I enjoy this author's voice, she writes with a dry wit, and I loved Sejal's snark and Krish's flashes of humor. I am going to go back and read the first in the series, and I hope there's a third book on the horizon! This review was based on a complimentary copy of the book, all opinions are my own. show less

First sentence: The main character? Not me, not in real life. That's what my daydreams were for. At some point, the disappointment of crashing back to earth might teach me to stop engaging in said daydreams.

Premise/plot: Long story short...While You Were Dreaming is a YA spin on the classic film While You Were Sleeping. Sonia Patil, our protagonist, is seriously crushing on James, a classmate, and when she witnesses him falling into the canal, she jumps in to save him. (She just happens to show more be cosplaying at the time.) She doesn't stay on the scene--reasons, reasons, more reasons--but she does care what happens to him. She's mistaken as James' girlfriend when she drops by his house--she's there to deliver notes/homework as they share class(es). His family loves her because she is not James' normal 'type' (mean, and, well, b*tch*y). Liam, James' brother, finds himself drawn to her...and it's mutual. The misunderstanding is cleared up much, much, much earlier in this one. But essentially, it's a spin on that story. Sonia's reasons for not wanting to be KNOWN or seen is that her mom was recently deported and her sister who is undocumented risks deportation as well.

My thoughts: I enjoyed this one. While You Were Sleeping is a favorite of mine. I'm not sure if it's equally beloved by the book's target audience. But regardless of how much you love/like the movie...this one offers a twist on the traditional love triangle. I like how Sonia realizes the dangers of insta-love, or, putting too much faith in insta-lust or insta-attraction. Just because she daydreams about James non-stop doesn't mean that she knows him at all--like at all at all. I also like that this one doesn't stay strictly focused on romance. Other relationships matter too.

I LOVED James and Liam's family. show less

I enjoyed reading this romance about a woman who suffers from panic attacks but I felt some things were resolved a bit too easily. Katrina is horrified when a conversation she has with a man in a café is overheard, twisted into a romance, documented on Twitter -- and goes viral. Her bodyguard offers his family’s farm as a safe retreat.

This is genre-romance and by the final act, its priorities had diverged somewhat from mine. It wants to get to its happily-ever ending, whereas I thought show more it had raised interesting issues worthy of further exploration and slower, more complex solutions. Online posts that describe-but-don’t-explicitly-identify someone can have the power to threaten that person’s safety and invade their privacy, and once something has gone viral, it is challenging to contain the story without revealing further identifying information. Katrina and Jas both have mental health struggles due (to traumatic experiences) that affect their relationships with others. They also have to renegotiate boundaries of their relationship with each other as Jas becomes a boyfriend rather than a bodyguard.

I wanted a happy ending, too, but I wanted more story first. show less