This is such a fun premise and was executed well! I enjoyed the combination of mystery and romance, and the setting was top notch. This is a great beach read!

I was hooked from the beginning!!
It was amazing and engaging.
I was instantly sucked in by the atmosphere and writing style.
The characters were all very well developed .
The writing is exceptional and I was hooked after the first sentence.

3.5 stars. This was a quick read that I really enjoyed! The characters were all so interesting - Nura especially - that I couldn’t help but become engrossed in their world.

I do think some parts of this were weak - Nura’s inner monologue got repetitive at times, and I think her relationships with Khala & Nina could’ve been fleshed out a bit more. But overall I really enjoyed it! The stakes were high, for sure, but the pacing was steady throughout and I rooted for Nura the whole way.

Thank you to NetGalley, Aisha Saeed, and Bantam Books for an advanced copy in exchange for an honest review.

The Matchmaker by Aisha Saeed offers a light and cozy read with a unique twist on the matchmaking business. Nura's dedication to her agency and its clients is endearing, but when a scandalous rumor and other mishaps threaten to unravel her success, she rushes to find out who is behind the attempt to sabotage her business and the pairs she's matched. Even though the suspense is mild I still appreciated the exploration of Nura's personal and professional challenges. The story was a little light in the romance department. I think fans of cozy mysteries will likely appreciate it most.

Bantam eARC
This was fine. I really liked the matchmaking aspect of the story. It was fun to spend time with Nura as she worked to make the best matches possible for her clients. I also liked the intergenerational business here, and I thought the exploration of her and her family added such great depth to the story. My issue was with some of the pacing. I wanted the romance a bit longer, and I wanted the danger to build slower and for a longer time. I think it was working really well until the 60%ish mark, and it fell apart for me. While I didn't love it, I will definitely try this author again in the future.

Reading The Matchmaker was such an enjoyable experience for me! It was not exactly what I expected when I picked up the book, but I loved what I ended up with!

Nura is now running her family’s elite matchmaking business on her own after her aunt who raised her has retired due to her dementia diagnosis. Everything seems to be running without a hitch until two of her client’s weddings that Nura attends end up being sabotaged and Nura find herself being sallee both in person and online. It seems that everything has to be connected somehow, but how?

I feel like there is so much to unpack in this book! The love story, the mystery, and the family and cultural dynamics. The story kept me hooked, wanting to know more and becoming invested in the characters. It lost a star because I saw the plot twist at the end coming, so it lost the shock factor for me. I loved this read though and definitely recommend!

The Matchmaker is an entertaining mystery that is combined with romance. Nura Khan is an ultra successful matchmaker who runs Piyar's personalized matchmaking agency and a popular app. Nura hasn't found her perfect match, but her handsome best friend accompanies her to her client's elaborate weddings. When Nura finds herself the subject of a negative podcast, she tries not to be too concerned. However, when bad things happen to Nura's clients she has to dig deeper. The Matchmaker is the perfect read for any romance fan who loves a good mystery.

This book was part mystery, part thriller, with a dash of romance. Nura is a matchmaker in Atlanta Georgia but someone is extremely upset with her and is determined to ruin her business and her life. On top of that, she herself has no love life as she is in love with her best friend but he is not interested in her that way. Things go from bad to worse when angry podcasts start airing, weddings disintegrate, her friends, and family are threatened, and then Nura's own life is in danger. Excited to see more from this author!

*Special thanks to NetGalley and Bantam for this digital e-arc.*

A story of a matchmaker is usually a big hit, and this story by Aisha Saeed delivers. Nura is the third in her family of matchmakers, and she is highly successful except in her own life. Enter her best friend, whom she secretly adores, and the "fake" relationship they play during her matches weddings. Then everything implodes and the thrills and mystery begin.

I enjoyed how Saeed took a cutesy type love story and made it into an action adventure. There is mystery but also a focus on the importance of family and friendship. This is something that would make for very great TV. The flow of the story keeps your interest from page one. A quick and entertaining read, I look forward to checking out more from Aisha Saeed.

Thank you to Random House Publishing Group - Ballantine | Bantam and NetGalley for the ARC. I received a complimentary copy of this book. Opinions expressed in this review are completely my own.

A fun heartwarming read about friendship and mistaken love. Matchmaking is Nura’s profession, but all is not as it seems as damaging reviews and a few scares to her business are unraveled. Armed with her faithful staff and her best friend who she is slowly falling in love with… Nura is determined to save her family business and find her true love.
Thank you to Net Galley for allowing me this early read. A joy!

This book truly had a little bit of everything! Nura is a third generation matchmaker raised by her aunt at a bit of a crossroad in her life. She's a matchmaker who's well not matched and using her friend Azar (whom she has harbored feelings for,forever) as a stand-in for weddings is not sustainable. When rumors and strange things begin occurring with successfully matched clients along with negative reviews from clients her firm has never taken on our plot thickens. Rumors turn into so much more and Nura must work with her friends and staff to figure this out and not let her Aunt's business fail.

We receive a well paced story of the struggle of making family proud, grasping on to love, knowing when to ask for help and trusting people we thought were friends.

I particularly enjoyed hearing more about Desi culture and weddings. If you are looking for something fun and different in a great way, I strongly suggest picking this one up.

Nura comes from a family of matchmakers, and she currently runs the family business with the help of her team. However, someone is trying to ruin her reputation, along with her business. She loves to attend successful weddings, but what happens when the antagonist also starts ruining those? Can she let her family know what is happening? Her teammate, Darcy, is also in the throes of wedding planning. Nura has been in love with her best friend, Azar, for years, but he recently started a new relationship; can she still lean on him? What happens when she begins to doubt her team when the threats ramp up? I do have to say I guessed who the antagonist was, but it was a captivating read.

✩3

✦What to Expect✦
•Matchmaker
•Mystery
•Desi Rep
•Childhood friends

✦Characters✦
•Nura Khan
•Nina
•Khala
•Azar
•Darcy

✦Fav Quotes✦
Because sooner or later, you’re going to have to wrap your head around the fact that tonight, Nura Khan, you will die.

However I could be in your life, I’d take it.

✦Thoughts✦
This was such a fun read! I was on the edge of my seat trying to guess what was going on and who was behind all the crazy things happening.

Did not see that ending coming at all!

I was so worried about what was going to happen with Nura’s relationship with Azar too!

This is a quick and easy read that is more mystery than romance, so I wouldn’t label it as romantic suspense imo.

Super readable! This is definitely the kind of book you binge-read. It has lots of action and a compelling plot that keeps you reading to find out just how everything will shake out. There is a friends-to-lovers romance that will have you rooting hard for a happy resolution, although it is more of a side plot than the main story. My only complaint is that this book suffers from trying to do too much. I think the idea was to plant some read herrings to throw us off the scent of the ultimate bad guy, but I had the main antagonist clocked pretty early on and felt that the side trips got a little messy (i.e. her mother's death, father's family). Overall, a very enjoyable adult debut reminiscent of Dial A for Aunties.

4 out of 5 Stars!

Nura Khan is a third-generation matchmaker in Atlanta. Not just any matchmaker, but an exclusive one with a long history of perfect couples. Even though Nura can match up people perfectly, she is unable to find one for herself. So, her childhood best friend Azar pretends to be her fiancé at her client’s wedding. This is the perfect setup, as long as Nura can hide her true feelings about Azar. One wedding they attend is like no other, before it implodes before it even starts. As the matchmaker who set this couple up, Nura takes the hit on her business. But as more situations start to implode, Nura is starting to wonder if these are all a coincidence. Or, if someone is trying to get her.

Wow! “The Matchmaker” by Aisha Saeed is a romantic comedy mixed with mystery. In the mystery/thriller genre, this book really stood out by having romance intertwined throughout and for its cultural interest. This book was fast-paced, with a main character you will love and multiple twists you won’t see coming.

The first half of this book really caught my attention. We get introduced to Nura and her business, and are thrown right away in the mystery. We build up this twist until a bomb drops halfway. I will admit, I was like, where will this book go now that we have figured everything out? But little did I know, we were just starting to unravel a bigger story. Personally, I liked the first half more than I liked the rest. The first half really had me guessing what was going to happen, whereas the second half had some twists that I saw coming.

One thing unique about “The Matchmaker” was all the cultural information packed into this book. We learn a lot about Nura’s cultural traditions, especially surrounding weddings. It was so interesting to learn about other cultures throughout this mystery! Also, another fun aspect was about family. This novel had themes of family and dementia. If you feel like that could impact you, I suggest looking up triggers prior to reading. Again, I felt like this book was so much more than just a mystery and thriller. Saeed did an amazing job at combining these themes. They seemed effortless.

I really loved the main character, Nura. She was so empathic, kind, and determined. She really seemed like an amazing matchmaker, who took pride in her work. So when that was being threatened, she really shined. I thought she was really smart about figuring out the mystery alongside saving her business. Really, all the characters seemed so bright and bubbly, like I wanted to meet them in real life.

If you are a fan of mysteries and thrillers, like myself, and want something fun, I would recommend “The Matchmaker” by Aisha Saeed. It is coming out on April 8th, 2025!

Thank you to Random House Publishing Group - Ballantine, Bantam, Aisha Saeed, and Netgalley for a digital ARC of this novel in exchange for my honest review.

Nura Khan is a third-generation matchmaker in Atlanta, and owner of an uber successful Desi matchmaking service. She is very selective about her clientele, and she has an entire team designated to do deep dives on clients and their potential matches. Nura’s childhood best friend, Azar, is willing to double as her pretend fiancé at her clients’ weddings—even though Nura’s feelings for him might not be so pretend. She is not about to tell him her true feelings, though. While it’s not uncommon to get the occasional hate mail from rejected prospective clients, Nura is blindsided after a couple’s carefully planned wedding implodes, the first in a series of suspicious and increasingly terrifying events. Someone is taking things too far, and with Azar and her matchmaking team by her side, Nura embarks on a dangerous cat-and-mouse game that threatens not only her safety but everything she’s worked so hard to build.

I love the show Indian Matchmaking on Netflix, so I was excited to read ths. This was like a combination of that show plus a mystery that kept me guessing until almost the very end. There were twists and turns, and lots of drama, and tension, even a few nail-biting moments. I loved Nura, and I kept hoping she and Azar would finally admit their feelings for one another because they were so perfect together. I thoroughly enjoyed this, and I think you will too.

The Matchmaker is such an engaging blend of slow burn romance and mystery/thriller. Adding matchmaker culture to the mix is so fascinating and adds another element to hook the reader. I read the Matchmaker in 24 hours, once you start, it's hard to put down- this is a great weekend away read.
Thanks to #NetGalley and #Random House Publishing Group - Ballantine for the ARC.

The Matchmaker is a gripping cozy mystery with a hint of romance. I was quickly absorbed in this story. There was no obvious answer to who could be terrorizing Nura Khan, but I did have some hunches. This story was new and fresh— not something I have read before. It was highly entertaining without too much excitement or anxiety surrounding the mystery.

I would recommend this book to anyone who is a fan of cozy mysteries. I would not categorize this book as a thriller or a romance, but it does have aspects of both.

Overall, I really enjoyed reading this book. Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for an advanced copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

📖arc review: the matchmaker by aisha saeed
⭐️rating: 3/5
🌿genre: mystery / romance

💌my thoughts: thank you so much to bantam publishing & aisha saeed for this ARC via netgalley!

so this one definitely took me a bit to get into — it was slow at the beginning at took until about 30% in for me to be fully immersed. once it picked up though it read easily and kept me intrigued, though it did slow at some parts.

the two main issues i had were that for being marketed as a “mystery romance” i truly don’t feel like the romance was that big of plot point or fleshed out enough, which i totally fine because i still enjoyed it as a mystery but just a heads up if you go in wanting a lot of romance! the second was that i felt like there was almost too much going on so nothing had as much depth as i wanted and seemed one dimensional at times.

for what i loved — being from atlanta i loved the setting! i also really enjoyed seeing bits and pieces of desi culture and all of the weddings was super interesting! and finally i did not guess any of the twists or turns so that definitely kept me engaged!

overall, if your looking for an interesting mystery with a little sprinkle of love, you should check out the matchmaker when it releases tomorrow, april 8, 2025❤️

This book was great! I loved the FMC and the slow introduction to her life & those in it. She had great energy & was mature. The plot twist is what got me because I would have never expected it to be the way it ended! Great read!