As someone who's never read a romance/love story set in the Indian culture, I found this book fascinating. However, beyond the interesting details of traditional Indian weddings and culture meeting modern day, the characterization is first rate. Raina is an idiot initially, but she's an idiot in a way that we can all relate to and have probably done ourselves at some point in the past. Still, she works through it, very believably, and comes to a better place in the end.

In the end, this is a book about family and growing up to be yourself. Highly recommended.

This was a cute romance, but the main character made some truly baffling choices. Also, there was a weird offhand jab at "thai ladyboys." That was so tonally wrong, such a mismatch with the rest of the book, it was startling. Why include that? Truly bizarre, ESPECIALLY in a book that includes some LGBTQIA themes. Why do that???

I am always on board with romantic comedies especially those starting a nonwhite protagonist, but this one didn't quite do it for me. It dragged in a lot of places and ultimately I found myself perplexed by the man she ultimately chose. I felt that it was too rushed with little build up (ironically)

This book was as fun I had hoped it would be! The main character Rains is multi-dimensional and flawed, and the supporting cast is loveable and real. I am always on the hunt for realistic and diverse romances, so I'm happy to add this one to my list ☺

If I were to change the book in any way, I would have developed the lead up to the HEA/romance in a more detailed way. Regardless, I can't wait to purchase this for my library and talk it up to patrons!

Any time I hear about a brown romance author coming up with a new romance read, I am more than excited. As a brown woman, the feelings that I get seeing someone like myself being represented in a book with a happily ever after are just magical. I have been excited for The Matchmaker's List for precisely that reason since early last year. I wanted so much out of this book and ultimately, these expectations wound up being crushed.

A big part of why this book didn't click for me was my expectations. I went into The Matchmaker's List thinking that it was going to be a romantic comedy of sort. I would hardly categorize this book as such having now read it. It was actually angstier and a little bit darker than I was expecting it to be. Right off the bat, I was thrown off by this. Regardless, I decided to pause my reading for a bit and came back to it with a fresh perspective. Still though, there was just something preventing me from completely enjoying the story. I soon found out that it was the main character, Raina. I wanted to love Raina, but she wasn't my type of heroine. I understood her struggles and why she felt so much pressure from her Nani, her grandmother, wanting her to urgently get married. She often made questionable decisions and I found it hard to connect with her. Becky described her as a hot mess and I think that's a perfect description of Raina. I don't mind reading about hot-mess heroines, but I found that Raina took things too far. [Spoiler: Highlight to read] I absolutely hated that she pretended to be gay to get her Nani off her back. It wasn't a white lie, and it affected and hurt so many people around her. Perhaps if we had seen her working towards fixing this lie sooner I would have grown to care for her, but she dragged it and I thought she got off really easily at the end.

The whole matchmaking process and romances were also emotionally draining for me. I think that was the whole point with the matchmaking process at least, but I don't quite think the author intended for the romances to come across as tedious. So we know that Raina is hung up on this guy that she met and fell in love with while she was in London years ago. She goes on these dates with the guys that her grandmother suggests, but she is undeniably still in love with Dev. When Dev comes back into the picture things get really complicated for Raina. I think I'm going to sound like a broken record but Raina's romantic drama was just too much for me. I didn't like or care for any of the guys that were introduced, mostly because they were one-dimensional and there were so many of them that there was hardly enough time to get to know them. I genuinely disliked Dev as a person and couldn't see what Raina ever even saw in him. When she finally "picked" a guy at the end of the book, I was surprised by how quickly declarations of love came to be. I was honestly even surprised that the person was even a contender. I didn't dislike everything about The Matchmaker's List. There were some elements I really enjoyed - I thought the discussions of culture, dating, and arranged marriage were thought-provoking. I also adored Raina's Nani, who obviously deeply cared for her granddaughter, but wanted the best for her future. Lalli's writing is also strong, which is why I read the book to completion.

My advice to readers going into The Matchmaker's List is to go into it not expecting a contemporary romance, but more of a women's fiction read. I am sad that this didn't work for me, but I do hope that it works for other readers.

Perfect for fans of Bridget Jones’ Diary. She clearly shows the joys and challenges of being a first generation Indian in a tight-knit immigrant community where the pressure on the adult children to marry "right" is intense. A lovely romantic comedy about navigating the matchmaking world.

Raina has grown up with her Nana and Nani, strict Indian grandparents, but she has always done what they wanted. As she approaches thirty, Nani is trying to arrange a match, which leads to a series of dates which are both funny and touching at times. Although on the lighter side, the book is based on themes of acceptance and friendship between cultures and within the Indian culture itself. I recommend as a peek into the customs and conflicts between generations

Writing: 4/5 Plot: 3.5/5 Characters; 4/5

Women’s fiction pairing romcom humor with a smart, capable, protagonist. Complex themes with authentic resolutions. Multi-cultural and sexual diversity interest.

29 year-old Raina Anand is under constant pressure from her beloved Nani to get married. Her best friend is about the tie the knot and the close knit Indian community in her Toronto suburb is all geared up to help her follow suit. However, Raina is keeping a shameful secret — she is still in love with the man she left (in another country) 2 years ago. In order to protect this secret, she allows her Nani to believe she is gay — with broad and surprising consequences.

This is not your typical romcom. There are no firemen, no Fabios flexing muscles, and no ditzy but lovable blondes prepared to make some man very happy. The story continually veers off into unexpected territory and allows the main character to experience real emotional growth while trying to find her way in the world. Opening on Raina’s 29th birthday, the narrative carries through to her 30th, interspersed with reverse-order flashbacks to previous memorable birthdays. Her family is not typical (is anyone’s?). Half Indian, half caucasian, she was raised by her grandparents and only rarely saw her mother who bore her when only 16. But even this is not exactly as it seems — there is depth and nuance in this story.

There is a strong theme of sexual orientation diversity — portrayed in an interesting way because while our first person narrative protagonist is not gay herself, this “small” white lie highlights the clash of tradition and modernism simmering beneath the surface of her small, tight-knit, community.

Fun, witty, writing. Well structured with good messages about diversity, values, and the danger of letting shame drive you into making bad decisions.

The Matchmaker's List is a delightful read! The flashbacks build suspense. And the main character is likable. I was rooting for her the whole time.

Raina Anand turns twenty nine and contemplates her future. After her mother's wild youth leaving her to be raised by her mother Raina is the "good" granddaughter to her grandmother, she's got the good job and after a devastating heartbreak is willing to let her grandmother matchmake for her. I really enjoyed this book. It gave great insight into the Indian community , the tradition of the old mixed with the progress of the new. I loved Nani Raina's grandmother, she was so loving and open minded which if anyone knows anything about Indian grannies is in quite short supply not the loving part but the open minded bit. Raina's search for love is sometimes amusing, sometimes interesting, sometimes heartbreaking and through it all it's about a woman coming to terms with herself and her community.

Raina Anand is your typical nearly 30 metropolitan business woman. She works too many hours, drinks too much, still has feelings for her toxic ex and all of her friends are starting to settle down. Add to all of her modern issues the fact that she comes from a traditional Indian home. Raina's grandmother raised her to respect her upbringing which means she wants her married in a traditional wedding to a doctor with two children before her eggs are hard-boiled. Let's just say time is running out.

While Raina works her way through the list of eligible Indian bachelor's her grandmother has made, she meets Asher, a former nomad/high school teacher. Through series of events they become frenemies and then friends and maybe something more if Raina doesn't ruin it all first. Believe me, she tries to ruin it.

I enjoyed this modern story of self-discovery, bridging the gap between cultures, and yes, even love.

I told myself I was going to make myself finish this book tonight. I lost that battle.

This book had so much potential! It just ended up being soooo boring. The story was a almost 30 year old woman had promised her Nani that if she wasn't married by thirty that she would let her help her "find a mate"..and it could have worked. Nani's character sorta tried to bridge the gap of being a modern woman with her Indian heritage. Her- I tried to like. I just felt that enough time was not given to flesh out her character. Bummer

Then the main character Raina..she just got on my dang nerves. At the point where I gave up the ghost on the book she was back to mooning over the guy that dumped her years ago. He refused to meet her family and this girl was old school with her Nani and we were supposed to buy that? Not. Plus, he treated her like poo but of course that was the guy of her dreams. He lurrrrvvved her. *gag*

She reads as so immature for a almost thirty year old woman. I went into this book wanting a rom-com that touched on some subjects that haven't been done to death..such as arranged marriages. I didn't get that.

My head hurts.



Booksource: Netgalley in exchange for review

A good book. I was rooting for Raina even when I felt she wasn’t rooting for herself. I’m really happy with the way things worked out!

This book is amazing by making me not hate the main character no matter how stupid she becomes in the middle part. Altogether the book is about a second generation Indian-Canadian trying to reconcile who she is by the influences of her Indian grandma and her Indian-Canadian mother who rebelled heavily against the grandma. Very interesting and helped me continue reading when Raina decides to let her grandma think she's gay. That was painful but at least, as opposed to most woman's fiction, this was not portrayed as cute but heavily messed up and wrong of her.

Sonya Lalli's The Matchmaker's List was a refreshing surprise. I read it on a whim, mostly because it was compared to The Wedding Date, which hit a tender part of my heart I didn't even know existed. The initial conceit is that the narrator, Raina, while still heartbroken over an ex, has to manage her grandmother's expectation that she settle down and marry a nice Indian boy sooner rather than later. I was expecting it to be a series of charmingly terrible bad dates that would end in a Happily Ever After with both Raina and her Nani perfectly content. What I got was so much more complicated. The Matchmaker's List takes on generational trauma, complicated female friendships, tradition, sexuality, cultural identity, and the murky line between what we want and what we have been told to want. But, there are still charmingly bad dates.

I recommend it for people who love a good breezy read about a woman looking for love, but want something a little more nuanced than your traditionally structured romance.