Unfortunately I DNFed this book about halfway through, it just wasn’t catching my attention and I put it down to read other books and never went back to it.

I enjoyed how the author mixed family, culture and friends. I was left wanting so much more about the friends with the Chai Masala Club. I got so excited whenever we focused on that group. But overall the main characters were fun to follow and their storyline made sense and didn’t feel like a reach.

dnf @ 46%

I tried very hard to like this but it just wasn't sitting well with me. I don't like the author's writing style at all. It's so immature. This really sucks because I love supporting South Asian women authors but this was so bad. Did no one proofread this? And God please save your ears, don't even bother picking up the audiobook for this. I don't think I have ever listened to an audiobook this terribly narrated. Also, why does the brown girl always have to be with the white guy?

A huge thank you to Net Galley and the publisher for providing me a copy of the audiobook in exchange for an honest review.

This story follows Kiran, who moved to America from India to go to school and fulfill the dreams of her parents, working hard for the life that they want for her. She's focused on her career and marrying well, to make her parents proud. She meets Nash, who comes from a troubled past and has trouble trusting that people will stick around. They navigate the union of their two worlds, unsure if they can find a future together against the odds.

I enjoyed learning about Indian culture and getting a glimpse into the expectations placed upon children. The food descriptions made my mouth water. I also especially enjoyed the tension and pure enjoyment and friendship that these two characters had on the page. It was rather wholesome, but nicely touched on the importance of family, and finding a balance between expectations and the pursuit of your own dreams.

I enjoyed the narration, but feel that Nash could have been better voiced by a male narrator. It was difficult to imagine Nash sometimes, with the female and accented voice. But I will say, the lovely lilting accent of the narrator was a joy!

I love audiobooks, especially for books about cultures different than. my own - I like hearing correct pronunciation for words I may not be as familiar with if I'm just reading them. I grew up with many Indian-American friends, so I love reading about the Indian-American diaspora experience and how American-born desis feel about their immigrant parents and their American and Indian identities.

I love when audiobook narrators bring to life a story with variations for voices and this narrator did just that. This story was quick and fun, but the narrator did well to express all of the story's nuances and themes. Well-done!

I adored this book. The juxtaposition between the two MCs was so good. While there was definitely room to grow, Sharma proves that there is the making for a phenomenal rom-com writer. I deeply appreciated the incorporation of her very close friend group as a stand in family as she sorted through he complicated family troubles.

Meh. I wanted to like this, but I could not get into it. I started and stopped this so many times. I don’t know if it was the audiobook narrators? Anyways, the rest of the book felt so cheesy. (Like the main character was Nash from Nashville. Dumb.) I loved that this was a diverse romance, and we got to meet Kiran’s friends, but it just didn’t work for me.

Thanks to @NetGalley and Sourcebooks Casablanca + Dreamscape Media for my ARC!

I really really enjoyed this book. I definitely listened to it though and forgot my review and completely forgot most of it. But I absolutely loved it

I went with the audiobook format of this book and I just don’t think it is the right format for me. I wasn’t the biggest fan of the narrator, especially since I listen to my audiobooks pretty fast and this just didn’t flow the way I enjoyed.

I also ended up DNF’ing this. I would still recommend if you’d like to give it a try, but I’m not sure I would even enjoy if I picked up the physical copy of the book and sat down to give it another try.

Now that I have taken it off my GR I’ve checked out some of the other reviews and other reviewers who happen to be desi had some very enlightening criticisms of the book which I think are important to listen to! Also.. all of the mention of Harry Potter and this book being post pandemic.. not the most fun to read if I’m being honest.

Kiran is almost 30 and has decided to revise her list of things to do before she turns 30 along with her friends. Nash just recently moved into her building and gets locked out on his first day if im not mistaken and Kiran invites him in for proper chai. At some point Nash ends up helping Kiran with her list and well isn't this how romance begins.
The problem is that Kiran is an Indian woman who moved to NY a few years ago and Nash is an American man. She cannot fall in love with an American man and make her parents go through history repeating themselves with an other daughter, not after everything they have done for Kiran to succeed in life.

Kiran has an amazing friend group that is so support! We all need a group like them. They are all honest respectful and caring. They are there for Kiran as she tries to decide what to do. They provide great feedback and although they never lived in India they understand her perspective more than Nash ever could.
Nash has a really great friend too, who is more like a brother honestly. He was great at calling Nash out and trying to get Nash to see Kiran's side of things while also reminding him that it is something he could never fully understand.

I think the way this book handled the plot of a romance between an Indian woman and an American man really well, coming form an American woman, it provided a lot of insight.

Kiran as a character is so sweet and I just want to wrap her in a hug and protect her at all costs. She has such pride in being Indian, such respect and love for her parents, respect for her culture. She is smart, generous, funny. When she hurt I hurt for her. This book made me care so much for her I wanted nothing but happiness for her. I love seeing her be brave, chose herself, be strong, while still always trying to be respectful to her parents and their opinions etc.

I would definitely read more from this author. I just don't know if audiobook is the way to go next time.

Love, Chai & Other Four Letter Words by Annika Sharma was such a lovely story about love, religion, finding your place and the weight of your family's expectations.

This is a 'forbidden' love story between a white American Nash Hawthorne who had a very traumatic childhood yet rises beyond his parentless existence and; Kiran Mathur, an Indian immigrant who had a very conservative upbringing and two parents who expect her to follow their rules.

After an unexpected cute meeting at the front of their apartment, they chat and bond over a cup of chai. The story then moves pretty quickly and the question we are left to examine is "will-they-or-wont-they".

I liked the story. I felt their love and relationship could use a little more spicing up but for the most part, i loved how we really got to know each character on their own, their back story and their 'why' behind wanting this epic love story.

I would give this 3.5-stars.
Annika Sharma did a great job of writing about friendship, family, and integrating cultures. I so enjoyed Kiran's journey of adaptation and trying to bring together family ideals with real life occurences.
My favourite thing about this book were the friendships. Kiran and the Chai Masala Club were fascinating. Sharma brought together such wonderful, funny, loving characters and their friendship was amazing. I actually wanted more of that. I feel like although I know this wasn't the point of the book, it should have been all about these friends. I wanted to see more scenes of them together. I wanted more of each of them and their life experiences.
Although I did enjoy Nash and Kiran's lovestory and thought it to be super realistic with two people falling in love with each other, only to have to navigate cultural differences that might tear them apart; I wasn't necessarily rooting for them. Individually, I liked them both. Their journey to falling in love, I enjoyed and thought it was a great addition to their life journey's; but to me Nash was a supporting character. Kiran and her friends were the main characters and Nash was just a part of HER story. I would have loved to see her meet other guys, maybe with her own background. I would have loved to see her date what would be an acceptable guy to her family, only to figure out that he wasn't the one and coming from the same background didn't make him "perfect."
Again, I just wasn't hooked by the love story but wanted to know more about Kiran and her friends adventures. Either way, well written and really enjoyed.

I enjoyed the audio version of this title-and it was lovely. The main characters were complex and the handling of multicultural relationships was dealt with in a way that felt tangible. There did not feel like there was any sugarcoating how culture clashes can occur, and at times as an American I wondered why a relationship could be complicated due to cultural differences. The author did a really good job with showing the the nuances of culture and how one might leave their country, but their culture stays. I was really glad for the ending and how the conflicts were resolved. It deepened my understanding of castes and gave me more empathy for cultures I don’t understand.

I received an ARC courtesy of NetGalley and the publisher. The opinions are my own.

It's no secret that relationships are hard work. So when you mix in two completely different cultures, relationship expectations, and family pressures it makes the relationship that more harder. In Love Chai and Other Four Letter Words readers will find love, romance, and a lot of cultural anxiety between living for the here and now or honouring family traditions,

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ 4 fun yet emotional stars for this 14+ Novel

Hello all! This is my first Netgalley review on Instagram, and I’m excited to be sharing the book Love, Chai, and Other Four Letter Words with you all! ❤️ ☕️ 📚

This was an adorable, sweet book about two characters who find love and friendship. Kiran is a bright, charming Indian girl who has come to the United States to make her family proud and help support their life in India. Nash is a kind, thoughtful guy from Tennessee who moves to New York in search of excitement and family. As the two meet and travel New York together, they form a powerful connection that leaves them both wondering what if…

I received a copy of this book from Netgalley to review, and all thoughts and reactions are my own.

I thought this was a cute love story between two people from incredibly opposite ends of the spectrum- Kiran who grew up in India and who is trying very hard to maintain her golden child status with her parents, and Nash- a psychologist who was neglected and abdandoned by his parents. Since they come from different cultures and have different reservations coming into their relationship, it makes for an intereesting story about the challenges they face both in their relationship with one another, and with their families. I thought the narrartor did a beautiful job of switching effortlessly between various accents and characters.

I only made it about 10% into this book before I had to give up. The characters aren't characters but more like character studies. The story is boring. The male lead is casually racist in a way that suggests to me the author has some internalized racism that she should perhaps look into. Not interested in spending any more time with any of the characters.

I couldn't really get into this book and I was very disappointed I gave it about 60% before I finally gave up feeling like I couldn't connect to the characters. It's not that it wasn't a good book it just wasn't for me and might have been my mood in that current moment.

I would highly recommend this book. It is such a cute love story. I liked how she talked about their culture and the struggles that each of them had. It felt like a 2021 version of friends. A feel good story about a group of friends living in NYC with a love story that develops. I love the friends to lovers archetype. I learned a lot about Indian culture, but I also related to a lot of their struggles as someone whose culture is different than the "norm". I love how this story was honest and real. I would totally read this book if you want a feel good romance story.