Destination Wedding

pan

I really wanted to like this one- I certainly had high hopes for it. I‘ve been to Indian weddings in America, but was excited to read about one in India! But this is less about the wedding itself and focuses more on a jumble of romantic entanglements. Between the constant head-hopping and lengthy sentences, I very nearly bailed on it. I wish there had been more about the culture and less about superficial details. #PanAsianAuthor #Booked2020

Cinfhen, BarbaraTheBibliophage, robinb, alisiakae

robinb Very well-said. I totally agree with your review. 😔 4y

TorieStorieS Thanks, @robinb - I wish I had bailed rather than plod through it!! 4y

robinb @TorieStorieS I know what you mean. It felt like a waste of time to me. 4y

BarbaraTheBibliophage Too bad it wasn‘t what you hoped for. Still, a chance to check off the prompt! 4y

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robinb

Destination Wedding | Diksha Basu

pan

The premise was a good one. Tina Das, a 32-year-old Indian American, has never felt entirely Indian or American but more like “other”. She is also unfulfilled in her job as she struggles to implement reality-type tv shows set in India…while living in Brooklyn. Hmmm.

My problem with this book was two-fold, and I almost gave up on it. First, it needs a good editor. The writing was frankly a mess…run-ons, POV from characters who make one-second

robinb pit-stops in the narrative, very abrupt changes in location/POV, etc. Secondly, the potential for a narrative about finding oneself within different ethnic cultures through growth and experience was wasted. Instead, it seemed as if it was trying to be the screenplay for a New Delhi version of Crazy Rich Asians (no, I haven‘t read that book but saw the movie). 🔻 (edited) 4y

robinb Tina, her best friend Marianne, her dad, her mom and her mom‘s boyfriend travel to New Delhi for a week to attend her cousin‘s lavish, over-the-top wedding. While there, she pushes herself to find an Indian boyfriend (Sid is a struggling personal trainer/drummer that she met on a previous trip and auditioned for a now defunct show) to become more of her “authentic” self. 🔻 4y

robinb The narrative (as highlighted by Sid) takes a detour to showcase the socio-economic discrepancies in Indian society. But there is no redeeming of these self-absorbed, two-dimensional characters. In the end, while Tina did finally make a decision about her future, I felt no real growth or maturity on her part (or any of the characters for that matter). 🔻 4y

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robinb Honestly, I came away not invested in the story or the characters at all and feeling rather cheated, which was disappointing with such potential. 1/5 ⭐️ 4y

TheAromaofBooks Great review! I get SO frustrated when potential is wasted like this. I remember reading China Dolls, anticipating really getting some looks into the Chinese-American culture in California just before and during WWII... and instead got a book whose characters could have been anyone, not because they were highlighting universal truths, but because the author was apparently too lazy to bother making her characters & their culture feel authentic. 4y

robinb @TheAromaofBooks Exactly, Sarah. I felt like there was opportunity lost here. While there was some narrative about socio-economic issues, it felt haphazardly placed without much forethought or reason. Unfortunately this book just didn‘t deliver on several levels. 🤷🏻‍♀️ 4y

TorieStorieS Great review!!! 😃The head-hopping POV is driving me crazy!! I‘m not even 10% in and seriously considering bailing... your review is making me think that would be the best thing... 4y

robinb @TorieStorieS it just had too many issues for me...POV whiplash, characters I didn‘t care about, lackluster writing, etc. TBH, I felt I wasted my time. 4y

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