The food! The romance! And all the amazing culture that shone through!! It was a fun easy romance and Reena and her new neighbor Nadim have sparks from their first meeting. Come to find out, her father is planning an arranged marriage between them, which turns her off from romance with him but they stay friends. After losing her job Reena is spiraling. But when a night of cooking and alcohol ends up with them submitting a video to a cooking show and they actually get accepted, Reena realizes this could be her chance to succeed, the catch? She has to pretend that she and Nadim are a couple. Their chemistry becomes more and more evident as they work together. A fun book with some enjoyable side characters and did I mention the FOOD. It was horrible having to read this and be hungry, I wanted to eat the food she was making. I will say I don’t know how I feel about the Muslim representation. I will state that I am NOT a Muslim and so can’t really speak for them, can only relate to the Desi part of the book. But I don’t know if the Muslim representation is something that was okay. I know people can be non practicing Muslims, but for this book to be marketed to Muslims and then have the characters be like anti everything Muslim felt kind of off to me. I don’t know. Again I don’t want to speak for Muslims but that’s just what I was thinking. And her overbearing family was kind of dramatically written. Still it was an easy read and liked parts of it.

Really enjoyed this story. Fake dating is such a hard trope to make believable, and it was done in such a fun way here! Made me sooo hungry too!

This book was so cute. The main characters Reena and Nadim are Indians and Muslim who are arranged to marry. Reena is in finance and she loves to bake bread while Nadim moved to Canada to work as a manager in Reena's father's real estate business. They join a food contest as an engaged couple even if they weren't yet so Reena could win a breadmaking course in a famous institute. I love all the food references in this book and it definitely made me hungry. This book is about Indian and Muslim traditions, desi weddings, family meddling, family secrets, career prospects, and lots of cooking. The characters are absolutely lovable. It's nice to take a glimpse of other another culture. I also liked reading Reena's personal growth and maturity throughout the book and how her family makes amends with each other.

Have you ever read a good book during a bad reading slump? That's what happened to me with this book. I first started reading my NetGalley copy of this book back in February in preparation for its release, but then a slump took hold. I was really enjoying myself, but it was difficult for me to continue as the slump took away all my interest in reading for a long while. However, before the slump hit, I had requested a physical copy of the book as well, and to my great delight, the lovely people at Forever sent one to me. Unfortunately, not even the physical book was holding my interest at the time. BUT THEN! Just a few weeks ago, I picked this book up again. I started from the beginning since it had been about 6 months and I absolutely adored it! I had liked what I had read the first time, but the second time, without a slump to cloud my feelings, I just had the best time reading!

Now that you had an explanation for why it took me so long to read and review this book, I think it's about time I tell you what the book is actually about! Accidentally Engaged follows Reena Manji, who's sick and tired of her parents setting her up with random men. She just wants to be left alone to bake some bread in peace. So when she finds out that Nadim, the hot neighbor she just met, is actually someone that her parents intend for her to marry, she loses all interest in dating him. However, when Reena wants to enter a cooking competition that requires couples, Nadim is the perfect choice. But is all his on camera flirting really fake?

To start with, Reena and Nadim are just so much fun to read about. I love how complicated their relationship was, yet how simple it was for them to be friends and have fun with one another. These two were there for one another when they were down, frequently gave one another gifts, and helped each other out regardless of what needed to be done. Their relationship developed so organically and wonderfully. It was so easy to see what their hesitations were about entering a relationship, but it was also quite easy to see why they would make such a great couple.

But the romantic relationship wasn't the only one I enjoyed! Reena has some great friends that help her out, and in fact are the ones that introduce her to the cooking competition. She also has a best friend that recently moved away, but despite that distance, the two remain as close as ever. And then of course we have all the familial relationships. I really appreciated the balance between how exasperated Reena was with her family with how much she loved her family. Family interactions can be complex and I loved that we got to see both the good and bad in equal measure. I especially thought that the evolution of Reena's relationship with her sister was fantastic.

There were also so many little lines, comments, and scenes in this book that I adored but I think it's best to experience those for yourself. From discussions about culture, to musings on the impact of bread, this book does a fantastic job of taking the little things and giving them time to shine and get their moment in the spotlight. This isn't a super plot heavy book, but I appreciated how that gave us time to really understand the characters and everything they valued. That's what made the book so wonderful for me. Also, I don't want to say too much for fear of spoilers, but I really enjoyed how Reena and Nadim's story ended. I found it to be a nice, unexpected twist that worked so well to show how much growth these characters had gone through. I don't tend to pay much mind to most romance endings, but this one felt super sweet to me in a way I hadn't experienced in a while

In the end I gave this book 4.5 stars, because of how intricate all of the relationships in this book were. Even Reena's relationship with baking bread was amazing! This book captured my interest from start to finish, and I'm so glad that I picked it up again when I was ready to enjoy this story to its fullest!

This is a great book where they fake being a couple in order to win a contest. It was funny and heartfelt at the same time and I thoroughly enjoyed it.

Possibly my favorite book of the year. A delightful fake dating rom com, with main characters struggling to find their place in the world. I couldn't help but root for them. Lots of themes of managing family expectations when you're the family fuck-up. I really appreciated the nuanced and sympathetic way arranged marriage was handled. No South Asian stereotypes here!

I also loved the food politics and social commentary on immigrants and food. This could be a companion piece for Padma Lakshmi's Taste the Nation.

This was a very good book. As a minority, I appreciated the nod to Multi-culturalism. It was in your face, without being overwhelming. It was very good balance. As a American I also appreciated the "Canadian" aspect of the story also. My only gripe is the story seemed to move a little too fast. Numerous times I had to remind myself that this was taking place over a period of a few weeks rather than months. I was also disappointed with the epilogue, however I feel like the author is potentially setting us up for a 2nd book, perhaps surrounding the main family creation? All in all, this was a good quick read, and I could find myself re-reading it.

An absolutely wonderful rom com that makes you want to eat bread. Meddling family, cooking and romance are the best mixture. Loved the characters and the writing. One of my most anticipated reads of the year.

Other than a few too many side stories (some of which I don't think ever get resolved, and if they do, it's not on the page), I really loved this book! Let's start with the food porn. The heroine names her sourdough starters, for goodness sake. How precious is that? On top of that, the scenes with the hero and heroine cooking together are some of my favorite foodie scenes in romance. AND, the author included recipes at the end of the book, so color me happy (and hungry).

Even better... the hero has an unabashed foot fetish. 😍 The sex scenes aren't exactly what I would call "closed door". More like "door ajar with chain attached". Overall, if you're interested in a sweet love story, plus a little extra spice both in and out of the kitchen, then this is a great read.

⭐⭐⭐⭐ 1./2

I didn’t like this book at all. I had a hard time getting through it. I was very disappointed because I was super excited for this one.

A predictable plot of a young lady who bakes bread and dreams of winning a cooking contest to get a scholarship to culinary school. The only problem is that it is a couples contest and Reena is very single. Her parents have found another match for her, but she is not having it. Until she finds out that this match is her very handsome next door neighbor. So she asks his to pretend that they are engaged to enter the contest. You know what happens.

I’m probably in the minority but I just couldn’t connect with these characters. I know others loved this book, but it wasn’t a favorite for me,

Caution: this book will make you want to create a sourdough starter! I really enjoyed the baking subplot of this book and getting a glimpse into Indian culture. However, the story also felt like it was reaching for motifs and deeper meanings that didn’t full play out. I didn’t feel attached to the characters throughout, and I wish the resolution tied up all the loose ends better. I still smiled at the ending and enjoyed the nearly-guaranteed “happy ever after” contemporary romances are known for.

Thank you so much for the copy and opportunity to read this book. I read this within a few days it was so cute!! It was literally one of my favorite fake romance books that has been published in a while. The trope is what makes this book along with the characters. They become friends and then it just makes my heart melt but really it makes it warm and fuzzy too. I think the traditions and the way it was described helped educate readers who aren’t aware of how important these traditions are. Super cute and would for sure want more of this lovely couple.

I loved this book! I mean it has its predictable moments because it's a romcom but I absolutely loved where the story went. The sourdough starter plot line had me cracking up! Especially since so many of my friends started that hobby last year, it really made me giggle. I loved the added element of the cooking competition and how naturally the relationship started building. Overall, this was a fun book that I read very fast. The writing was very good and kept me purposely engaged the whole time (see what I did there?).

I liked this book for the most part. But I felt it dragged a bit in certain points. I also felt that the author went a little overboard with the secrets, it was like three too many for me. I found it very problematic that every moment in the story was driven or hindered or complicated by information that is withheld or its forced revelation.

Thank you so much for sending me this book and the opportunity to read and review! This was the perfect book to read in March and I cannot wait to read more by this author!

This was kinda amazing??? sweet and fulfilling in the classic romance novel sense, but made me very hungry

I loved this book!!! Both of the Mcs were wonderful and I adore the fake dating trope. I loved getting to know the different personalities of everyone and the food descriptions made me so hungry and inspired to make sourdough!! They both have such incredible chemistry and I already want to reread this one!

This was such a good read! I loved the characters and really enjoyed the romance and steam in this one! Also there was a lot about culture and family that was written well. There was one section thrown in about mental health that didn't really seem necessary but I know authors are working hard to bring topics to light that might help or reach a reader. I would recommend this one!