Penina is a twenty-nine year old single, virgin stuck dating a slew of subpar suitors in attempt to find her husband. Because she's unable to have her own children, she believes she has to settle on a frog instead of waiting for her Prince Charming. She also works in a jewelry store. She believes that she has to fix everyone's problems and make their lives better. She is also an Orthodox Jew and that is where I had major issues in this enemies-to-lovers, workplace romance love story.

As black and white as Orthodox Judaism may appear to the outside world, there are so many gray areas and spectrums of religious practice all within halacha (Jewish law). I'm unsure if the author had a few sensitivity readers, but as an Orthodox Jew I was disappointed that information was written as all or nothing at times (a scene about adoption or not being in a locked room with someone of the opposite gender) and that in general these aspects of Jewish life were used as ploys to move forward plot. I'm all for educating the outside world more about our practices, but did a reader need to know about family purity? It's such an intricate aspect of our life that to just put it out there carte blanche makes us look like we're crazy zealots. The not being able to touch an adopted child after age 9 was infuriating because again, spectrum. Oh, but her skirt is riding way up her thighs and she's okay staying at work wearing it. Most Orthodox girls wouldn't be and would go home and change. Very inconsistent where Penina was strict with her practice and where she wasn't. Also, why did her dates have to be so awful?

I could keep going with my examples, but inherently, the story was a big no for me and at times quite cringy. Oh, and Penina and Sam's love story was unbelievable. I barely understood their attraction to each other and it isn't so simple to just leave to London for a few months to become religious. It's a nuanced religion and the author didn't take the care to acknowledge that.

Thanks to NetGalley for the advance copy in exchange for a review.

This is the second book I have read in the space of a year that has had an Orthodox Jewish woman as the main character. I felt that this book was better at explaining the intricacies of being Orthodox than the previous book I read, which as someone who isn't that familiar with Judaism, I appreciated.

I did feel that once the story found its groove, it flowed great. I did feel like the ending into epilogue felt like it was trying to cram in too much too quickly.

It was a sweet read.

Our heroine Penina comes from a community of modern Orthodox Jews, where marriage at a young age and having lots of children is highly prized. As an infertile woman, finding a marriage match has not come easily to her, and a traditional shadchan is heroically making a last ditch effort into finding a mate for Penina. Meanwhile, she spends her days volunteering in a local hospital's NICU, working her jewelry shop job, maintaining her social media presence as a frum fashionista, and going on hotel lobby dates with unsuitable men. When her boss goes out on medical leave and his attractive (secular) son takes over the jewelry store, sparks fly, but handsome Sam annoys the heck out of her,and somehow, their bodies keep colliding in ways that are against the strict rules around unmarried, unrelated male and female proximity. Penina's sister is in danger of losing her home due to her husband;s failed businesses, and Penina becomes determined not just to marry, but to marry wealthy; when Sam learns she's become engaged and will settle for a marriage in name only, he has some opinions.

This is a wonderfully authentic portrayal of navigating a complex culture. So many details ring true, from festival observances to the love and obligations of family politics to the Israeli-accented English of Penina's sister. Shertok tells Penina's story with a lot of humor and honesty and never devolves to deprecation. The writing is descriptive (the clothing descriptions are amazing!) and evocative, and characters and situations relatable whatever your religious or cultural affiliations.

I received an advance reader's copy of #UnorthodoxLove from #NetGalley.

I was really looking forward to this book but there was so much mishagosh(crazy) going on I had a hard time with it. Very disappointing to say the least.

This book was such a fun, insightful and heart warming read.

Penina is a 29 year old Orthodox Jew looking to find a husband. Not only is she searching for love, she’s also taking on the burdens of her family and helping anyone she can.

We follow Penina as she continues her search whilst also trying to keep her family safe and happy; whilst remaining impeccably well dressed.

I love this book so much. There were so many heart warming characters and the insight into Orthodox Judaism was so enlightening. It really added such a fantastic layer to the story. I can’t wait to read Shertok’s next novel.

Thank you NetGalley for the ARC.

I really liked learning about the Jewish religion and customs. I've never read a book with this kind of representation, so I thought it was a great experience to be introduced to. While this is an easy read, The decision for the main character comes down to, does she marry for love or to help her family.

There were some odd things in the book that I thought might have been a mistake, but after looking at some of the reviews, I realize they were intended, such as G-d being censored, but other words weren't. As I said, I'm not familiar with the Jewish religion but I wasn't sure why it was written like that.

It was also frustrating to see how she did have her life together but what would make her seen as put together to her family is being married with kids.

While I liked the premise of the story, the issues Penina had to deal with/sort through, and learning about the Jewish culture/religion, I just had issues with how Penina was represented as a woman.

This was a good easy read. It was very funny at times. Although a 29-year-old Virgin seems a bit unrealistic to me. The characters did not ring true.

I was really eager to read a romance with an explicitly observant Jewish leading character - it seems that the few Jewish characters we get in romance (particularly with contemporary romance) are entirely secular, and while those stories are important, they also don't represent a lot of Jewish people.
(And, of course, there's Sam, who is secular, whose Jewishness is never diminished or portrayed as less-than.)

I'm not Orthodox myself, but I am familiar with Orthodox customs and traditions, so it was fun to see those portrayed in the book. It was nice to see Jewish holidays that gentiles have never heard of celebrated in full (and I wish more books with Reform or Conservative Jewish characters would do the same thing, but that's an essay for another time).
Penina is a very engaging main character, and I loved her friendship with Maya and her relationship with her sisters. I loved how kind she was, how she went out of her way to help people and make them feel comfortable, no matter how inconvenient it might have been for her.
I also loved Sam, who starts off a bit hot and cold, but slowly starts to open himself up to Penina. They have a ton of chemistry from the start, and it only builds as the book goes on. The ending was also very sweet - I think it shows a lot of character development for both of them.
Special mentions for Zevi and Freydie, who were also delightful. I'm still not sure how I feel about the B-plot with Zevi, but I am glad of the resolution, and I hope he remains a good friend for Penina. Freydie, for her part, provided a lot of comic relief, but also depth to Penina's character.

I had one major qualm with the book: honestly, I'm just really, really, really tired of novels about infertile women who desperately want children. It made sense for Penina, who is Orthodox and grew up believing that part of her purpose as a woman was to be fruitful and multiply, but as a trend, I am just sick of it. For once, can we have an infertile woman who isn't ruffled by this? Who doesn't want children? It seems every story about an infertile woman features a lot of "oh but I want a baby!!!" when in truth a lot of infertile women do not actually feel that way.

Couldn't resist this one even though it's not the typical genre I enjoy. Thank you Netgalley for the chance to read it.

Our story begins with Penina, a single 29 year old Orthodox Jew (who has barely been touched by a man let alone kissed or more). All the romantic tropes are brought out...enemies to lovers, friends to lovers, frantic airport chase, grumpy man....but I'm getting ahead of myself.

Penina can't have biological children, so finding a match has been difficult in her community that values fertility. She resigns herself to marrying a man who also can't find a "proper" match in the Orthodox community but there is only friendship between them. Penina is really in love/lust with her more secular Jewish boss, Sam.

This is a pretty predictable love story but I thought the author did a nice job of showing her readers well rounded out characters who aren't stereotypes. Three stars. Not a ton of real spice since Penina can't touch a man until after marriage, but she does have some hotter fantasies.

It’s been so long since a book made me laugh aloud like this one!

Penina is the perfect protagonist. I was gutted that Sam wasn’t Zevi in disguise, but the actual situation was even crazier! Being raised a reform Jew, it was interesting to see the differences in Penina’s life being raised orthodox.

This was such a light and easy read, the dialogue and characters were all believable. I suffer from PCOS and while having children in the future isn’t completely off the table for me, I appreciated the way Shertok handled Penina’s condition and her struggle with infertility.

This was such a beautiful story to read, but also funny and enlightening. I can’t wait to read more of Shertok’s work in the future

I did not post this publicly because unfortunately I stopped reading when I was 11% of the way through.

As a jew, I was so happy to see a story about a Jewish woman, but had I realized it was about a 29 year old virgin, I wouldn't have requested to read it. The character feels juvenile because of her lack at life experience at such an old age.

It's hugely problematic for me that there's a 29 year old woman who has a life that seems like it would be a better fit for a 65 year old, only absolute losers are willing to date her, and she has zero physical affection from anyone, all because of infertility issues, yet there's no mention of how oppressive her culture can be to women, or even questioning of her own beliefs.

Also why have a character that's constantly using "the lord's name in vain" yet spell it like G-D. If you're comfortable having the character say it so casually then I don't see how writing it is worse?

Sorry to be negative, but I thought a feminist perspective might be helpful when marketing. You really need to make sure you get the right readers for this one.

When reading the excerpt for this book, it said it was for fans of Sophie Kinsella and Ali Hazelwood, so sign me up! This was a great romance book with good representation. I really enjoyed the banter and issues that were brought up!

A charming and fun romance, which an engaging main character, Pennina, who is looking for love. Her wacky family and coworkers add the the story in meaningful and entertaining ways. Always happy to see Jewish representation in popular fiction!

I am always happy to see positive representation of Jewish people in literature and I really appreciate a modern romance that features a Jewish person for whom their Judaism is important. I do wish that it was more clear to readers that there is a range of what is considered Modern Orthodox Judaism, and that there are many modern Orthodox people whose practice might not be as strict as what is described here (I know plenty of people who keep Shabbat, keep kosher, etc. but definitely have no issue being alone in a room with a person of a different gender, or who wear less modest clothing, for example).

That said, I hope this reaches a mainstream audience and not just considered relevant to a small niche of Jewish readers. A story of balancing family obligations and pressures with one's romantic desires is universal and I think this book can be appreciated by a general readership.

NOTE: Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for an advance reader copy in exchange for an honest review.

I thoroughly enjoyed this book and how the Orthodox Jewish traditions were explained and followed.

This is a story about Penina, a 29 year old Orthodox Jewish woman who happens to be infertile, and her journey to finding a husband. Since Penina can't have children, she has taken on the role of protector for her sisters.
Penina agrees to a fake marriage (to save her sister's house) with Zevi but has secret (or not so secret) feelings for her boss, Sam. Sam is also Jewish but not an Orthodox Jew. Sam is battling his feelings for Penina.

The book takes you on a journey through Penina and Sam's relationship. It is heartwarming and funny. I really liked how the book stayed true to the Orthodox Jewish traditions. It is a really nice, feel good, Rom-Com. Thank you to Alcove Press and NetGalley for the ARC for my honest review.

I really love this book. It was cute and funny. I think that this was a perfect book to read curled up on the couch.
I just reviewed Unorthodox Love by Heidi Shertok. #UnorthodoxLove #NetGalley
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Penina has a lot of balls in the air: her sister is having some, let’s say, cash fluidity problems, her dating life (at the ripe old age of…older than 19) leaves much to be desired, and her new boss at the jewelry store is rougher around the edges than an unpolished diamond. This contemporary romance about an Orthodox Jewish woman addresses so many issues, include infertility and loving your children for who they are, in a sweet and humorous way that made me laugh out loud many times (Prude and Sordid, IYKYK).

I’ve been reading a lot if Emma e lately and have to know the genre well - the tropes, which techniques work, and whose technic is unique to whom. I really struggled to get through this ARC from NetGalley. It was so cliched and overwrought, trying too hard to be cutesy. I found it imitates other writers too much, as well, specifically Sally Thorne’s Hating Game. I’m sorry to say that I won’t be recommending this at all.

Penina is about to meet someone who has the most unique offer for her which could be everything she’s ever wanted, this has such mix emotions of comedy and little laugh out loud moments, this is such a easy read that you possible couldn’t resist!

This was a solid read just a bit slow. I struggled a bit getting into this one. But overall it was an interesting story.