It’s been awhile since I’ve read something cover to cover in a day but this boon was IT! First, it’s the perfect Shakespearean homage with a sizzling enemies to lovers romance (seriously I’m blushing…) and a mysterious nefarious enemy to boot! I loved how this juxtaposed the pressures of family with the support in the found family you make. Like just riveting and fun and A+!

Wedding planner Bobbi Kaur has one mission- to plan the most fabulous wedding possible for her best friend, while simultaneously showing her boss (and uncle) that she's ready to take the reins of the wedding planning business she's helped him to build. Unfortunately for her, there are major obstacles in her way: someone is trying their best to sabotage the wedding, and having to deal with the groom's best friend and celebrity chef (also Bobbi's personal nemesis) Benjamin Padda. Can Bobbi and Benjamin put aside their dislike and pull off their best friends wedding? And will they discover they have more similarities than differences before it's too late?
A steamy enemies to lovers romance, I thoroughly enjoyed this book!

A fun read, the story of Bobbi and Benjamin. They clash from their first meeting, but will these enemies become lovers? I liked how it was told from both points of view.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the eARC! All thoughts and opinions are my own.

Having read several of Nisha Sharma's works, including the first book in this series (Dating Dr. Dil), I was pretty excited to learn that I'd been approved for this ARC. I'm happy to say, I think it improves upon its predecessor! The relationship between the protagonists develops well, and I liked that they explored certain aspects that I haven't previously seen in South Asian literature. I also thought the comedy in this novel was a significant step up from the first book in the series. And of course, I just love reading about Desi communities and relationships in general :). Overall a fun read, and I'm excited for the next book in the series!

This was incredible. This was my first Nisha Sharma book- and will not be my last. I was so captivated by the culture- the language- everything. I was googling everything and just learning so much more. BENJAMIN AKA BUNTY?! I love him. I need him. He is hot, sexy, and has mouth on him. I loved Bobbi's confidence and how she was unapologetically herself. How she stands up for herself and doesn't take less than she deserves. THE SPICE IN THIS BOOK!? I did not see it coming but best believe I was LIVING for it. I need more of Nisha Sharma's writing. I will read anything she writes. This book hit it off for me- and I will never not recommend it.

Tastes Like Shakkar
⭐️⭐️⭐️.5
Author: Nisha Sharma

I requested a digital advanced readers copy from NetGalley and Avon and providing my opinion voluntarily and unbiased.

Synopsis: Bobbi Kaur is determined to plan a celebration to remember for her best friend’s wedding. But she has two problems that are getting in her way:

1. The egotistical, and irritatingly sexy, chef Benjamin “Bunty” Padda is supposed to help her with the menu since he’s the groom’s best friend, and

2. Someone is trying to sabotage the wedding.

With aspirations of taking over her family’s event planning business, Bobbi knows that one misstep in managing the Kareena Mann and Prem Verma (#Vermann) party, along with the other weddings on her plate, will only give her uncle another reason not to promote her. That means Kareena’s big day and Bobbi's future career are on the line.

Bunty will do anything for his best friend, even though he has his hands full in finding a new location for his next restaurant while also playing mediator between his brother and father, the celebrated Naan King. When Prem asks Bunty to help with the wedding menu, he agrees, especially since it puts him in close proximity to the delicious Bobbi Kaur. When a mystery shaadi saboteur starts leaving threatening notes, and cancelling cake orders, Bunty and Bobbi have no choice but to call a truce and face the volatile attraction they have for each other.

Through masquerade fundraisers and a joint bachelor-bachelorette trip to Vegas, this chef and wedding planner explore their growing connection all while trying to plan a wedding at Messina Vineyards in a time crunch. But once the shaadi saboteur is caught and the wedding is over, will their love story have a happily ever after?

My Thoughts: This is book no. two in If Shakespeare Was an Auntie series. Bobbi Kaur is a wedding planner and a workaholic. She is aiming for a promotion and the only way to do that is through the Mann/Verma wedding. Benjamin Panta, known as “Bunty” is doing his best friend a favor by being the chef for this wedding as he has his hands full with his family and trying to open a restaurant. When Bobbi and Bunty met initially, outside the professional world, it was not under the best of circumstances, which left a bad taste for Bobbi. Then they are thrown together in the professional world. At first archenemies, then when someone is trying to sabotage the wedding, they join forces, will those professional forces encroach into romantic territory? This follows the tropes of enemies to lovers and opposite attract, with a touch of mystery thrown in.

The author does such an amazing job with body positivity with this novel. Bobbi is loyal to her job, a bit of a workaholic, she is controlling with almost every aspect of her life, caring, and gives 100%. Bunty is charming, loyal, confident, and in the middle of family drama. The characters were written well with depth, witty banter, chemistry, and intriguing. The author’s writing style was creative, humorous, swoony, steamy/spicy, and engaging. My holdback is the first together encounter was bondage, and almost demeaning bondage, I think the first scene should have been come together in quick passion, and then the next time we introduce bondage. I adored the auntie antics in this book just as much as the first book, their meddling is always a joy to watch.

At parts, the book moved slow. It was paced well in the beginning but over halfway through, it slowed down, and then at the end the pacing returned. Overall, this was a great read that I did enjoy. I recommend reading both books in the series as you will get a true inside to the Mann/Verma wedding party.

I loved the authors previous book, Dating Dr. Dil, so I was really looking forward to this one;however, it just didn't work for me. I read 50% of the book and ended up DNFing unfortunately. The main characters were pretty boring in my opinion and the only thing I found interesting was the mouthwatering food that the male MC, Bunty, a chef was always making. I also did love the body positivity exuded by Bobbi, the female MC, a workaholic wedding planner. I wish I had loved it more! I'll definitely read more by Nisha Sharma and do encourage you to give this one a try as there are tons of 4 and 5 star reviews for it---it could be a case of it's me and not the book!

Thank you NetGalley and Harper/Avon Books for the ARC in exchange for my honest review. All opinions are my own.

A story about learning to ask for help, dealing with family expectations, and accepting the love that you actually deserve!

This book was very cute and I really enjoyed it.
It had some spice to it!

It’s an enemies to lovers trope

I didn’t find the drama at the end to be believable. Overall, a very cute book and I’d recommend it. .

Rating: 4.25/5 ⭐️

It’s no secret that I LOVED Dating Dr. Dil so I couldn’t wait to read Tastes Like Shakkar, the second book in Nisha Sharma’s ‘If Shakespeare Was an Auntie’ series. And once again, I was not disappointed!

TLS is a modern retelling of Much Ado About Nothing and tells Bobbi and Benjamin’s (aka Bunty) story. If you enjoy enemies to lovers, forced proximity, a whodunit mystery, and TSwift references, and panty dropping spice then I definitely recommend Tastes Like Shakkar!

Like Dating Dr. Dil, I loved that Nisha Sharma’s characters are unapologetic about their Indian heritage and culture. Sharma tackles a number of tough subjects from racism and the dynamics of second generation children of immigrants to body positivity, and I really enjoyed the consistent self-love and self-confidence displayed by Bobbi and Bunty in dealing with these topics.

TLS turned up the spiciness and I LOVED it! Bobbi and Bunty are kinky! No body parts were named and the spice *chefs kiss*

⚠️ Spoilers Ahead ⚠️

My only complaint was that I wanted more Bobbi and Bunty after their 3rd act break up. The focus was so much on the whodunit mystery that the relationship took somewhat of a backseat. As a result, I felt like the story moved on to introducing book 3 before we got to enjoy Bobbi and Bunty being together.

⚠️ End of Spoilers ⚠️

Overall: While I didn’t love it as much as Dating Dr. Dil, TLS is another hit for me and I cannot wait for the next book!

LIKES:
👥 Dual POV (Bobbi & Bunty)
⚔️ Enemies to lovers
🔗 Forced Proximity
🇮🇳 Indian American MCs
🔍 Whodunit mystery
🌶️ Spicy!
🩷 Exploration of Family Dynamics
🫶🏽 Body positivity

This book was so good! VERY VERY spicy so if that's not your jam don't pick this up. There are scenes involving bondage, so just FYI.

The union of two friends' wedding brings two "enemies" together as they work on getting things ready for the big day. They have a constant back and forth but it's SO hot. They also feel very real challenges like familial expectations, living on opposite coasts, anxiety, body shaming, and other things.

In the meantime, someone is determined to sabotage their friends' wedding and they are having to figure this out while dealing with their own struggles.

I really loved this one. I learned so much about Desi culture and traditions, and of course the beautiful weddings.

Highly recommend this one.

What a great story. If you read and enjoyed Much Ado About Nothing then you will know and appreciate this story. The whole idea is such fun and I can’t wait to read more by this author.

This was a surprise and a delight. Perfect Indian representation. Loved the details about the wedding and the wonderful aunties. Although I had not read the first book in the connected trilogy (Dating Dr. Dill), it was easy enough to catch on to this cast of characters. And the spice... that was a surprise because it brought way more spice than I thought!
The banter between the two main characters was fun and witty. I loved the scenes with them together because of their dialogue.
Appreciated the plus size rep of the MFC. Well done by the author.
This trilogy has a Shakespearian connection, but you do not have to be familiar with Shakespeare's work to understand the story.
Now to go back and read book one and anxiously await the next book!

Nisha Sharma charms readers with a classic enemies to lovers tale loosely based on Much Ado About Nothing. Bobbi Kaur is an exceptional wedding planner and eager to give her best friend, Kareena, the wedding of her dreams. However, she's forced to collaborate with the groom's best friend and famous chef, Benjamin Padda, to create a menu for the wedding. Unfortunately, Bobbi's reputation with her boss/uncle is strained, and she blames Benjamin. Bobbi has no room for error as she manages multiple weddings and her best friend's wedding. But a wedding saboteur works diligently to thwart Kareena's wedding. Tastes Like Shakkar is a great read if you like some spice, overly involved aunties, and family drama.

dnf 34%. It has taken me over three weeks to make it 34% of the way through this book. I'm not connecting with the characters and the story isn't keeping me interested enough to want to read (I actually broke an almost 300 day reading streak because I did not want to pick this book back up). I need to move on and give other books a chance to be my focus. I may return to it in the future but I'm done for the foreseeable future. There was nothing offensive or anything particular that turned me off the book. it just didn't work for me.

5 STARS!!!!!!!!!!

I LOVE NISHA SHARMA SO FREAKING MUCH. She absolutely outdid herself with the fabulous, steamy, swoony "Tastes Like Shakkar." I loved Bobbi and Benjamin (Bunty)'s story so, so much. Their off-the-charts hate-to-love chemistry and pining really made this book unputdownable. Their personalities clashed in a way that made me fall for them even more. Benjamin is an egotistical, devastatingly handsome chef who goofed up his chance with Bobbi over a year ago. Bobbi is a curvaceous, loyal, commanding, in-control wedding planner. They hate each other based on one very bad interaction they had over a year ago...but they can't stop thinking about each other and how they drive each other crazy. I loved the vivacious, expansive family dynamics, including the meddling Aunties, who are always good for a laugh and work more efficiently than the FBI. I appreciated the heck out of the Indian culture that shines through on each and every page here. I found myself so immersed in the culture of this story that I was googling phrases and events and words as I was reading to get a fuller picture and imagery of the lavish and intricate wedding clothes and events and foods. I loved the plus-size representation of Bobbi, and I love her assuredness in herself. I enjoyed the wedding sabotage aspects and think that they served to move the plot along quickly and efficiently. I loved the SPICE. OMGOMGOMG. My jaw DROPPED reading some of the scenes! Get me a fan because it is hot in here!! This book is fun, cute, sexy... you will not be able to put it down. I devoured it. The amount of love I have for this book (and Nisha Sharma!) is immeasurable. PLEASE GO READ IT ASAP!!!

Thank you to NetGalley, Nisha Sharma, Avon, and Harper Voyager for the complimentary ARC of this book. All opinions are my own. I was not compensated for this review.

I recently read Dating Dr. Dil and I fell in love with the author and her writing style. I loved the twists that she has created on Shakespeare’s plays. Taking them putting a contemporary twist with an Indian twist as well. So when I was on Netgalley browsing as I shouldn’t have done, I came across the second book in the series. I requested then kept my fingers crossed and hoped I would get approved. I was thrilled when I got that approval email.

Bobbi is an event planner. While she does it all she does Indian weddings the most. She is very good at it. When her best friend is getting married and then drops the bomb on her that they are getting married sooner than Bobbi was aware of, she has to jump into action to get it all done in time. With that, she is tossed into a partnership of sorts with her arch-nemesis Bunty (Benjamin). He is a well know Indian chef and her friends want him to do the food. When things start to heat up between them what will happen with their so-called fighting? This book is steamy….and kinky (finding kinks I didn’t know I had)…. However, the beginning is a slow burn. So don’t give up on it. It’s well worth the wait. MY dingus self pre-ordered this book from Barnes and Noble and then also requested it as an ARC but that is ok I will just add it to my collection.

Holy moly this book has made me so hungry for Indian food. Furiously googling Indian restaurants near me and discovering since I live in Northern Michigan the nearest one to me is a 1.5 hour drive away. I love the banter that these two main characters had with each other. It just built upon their relationship, they may have been enemies of some sort but that was just a base upon which they created their relationship. The descriptions that the author wrote in this book had me visualizing everything. The detail she provides helped me to see everything she was describing. The writing style flows well and doesn’t leave you wondering what she meant, only thing I wish was that the epilogue was something more. I wanted to know what happened with Bunty and Bobbi. Do they get married do they get engaged? Hopefully, we get more in the next book. I cannot wait for the next book in the series, I can only assume that it will be about the last friend in the girl’s friend group, can’t wait to see what Shakespeare play it will be. I have another one of the author’s books on my shelf at home and will be moving it closer to the top of my pile.

REVIEW FOR TASTES LIKE SHAKKAR

4.5 Stars

Thank you to Netgalley, Avon and Harper Voyager for the gifted copy!

So, I was NOT a fan of Dr. Dil. I really liked Kareena but I could not STAND Prem, like at all. I also wanted more from the aunties. But Tastes Like Shakkar? Delivered on all fronts! I loved Bunty and Bobbi. Their tension-filled, enemies to lovers story was ::chefs kiss::. Bunty was the perfect balance of sugar and spice, and Bobbi was such a badass!

The aunties also had more scenes in this story, which I loved. I think they are so funny and unique to Desi culture, and I love having more of that representation.

The only thing I feel could have been done a bit better is, I'm tired of the stories being centered around a specific ancillary character. I think the shaadi sabetour, while a funny storyline, ended up being annoying as I feel like we can't get beyond that one character and their family.

Overall, I loved it so much! Would highly recommend adding it to your TBR!

This books is delicious. Nisha Sharma is officially one of my fav romance writers. I loved how this is the perfect mix of fun, sexy, smart, silly and moreover, has had all the entertaining and fun side characters too. Couldn’t recommend it enough!

This book was a page turner from the start. A fun and emotional retelling of Much Ado About Nothing - this book never left me wanting more. I felt sufficiently satisfied. I'd go as far to say that i enjoyed this than the 1st book. Bobbi is an instant favorite and matches perfectly with Bunty.
Now I can't want to read Veera's romance.

Thanks for the arc netgalley

If you loved Dating Dr. Dil as much as I did then you don’t want to miss Tastes Like Shakkar by @nishawrites

Bobbi Kaur is determined to plan a celebration to remember for her best friend’s wedding. But she has two problems that are getting in her way:

1. The egotistical, and irritatingly sexy, chef Benjamin “Bunty” Padda is supposed to help her with the menu since he’s the groom’s best friend, and

2. Someone is trying to sabotage the wedding.

I love me some enemies to lovers romance with a side of spice 🥵🔥
The chemistry between Bobbi and Benjamin is perfection. I enjoyed learning about Indian Weddings and the food descriptions will leave you hungry. Add some fun Hangover type Las Vegas Antics and you’ll be chuckling throughout this story.