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The Singles Table Book Review

Sara Desai's third novel, The Singles Table, is just as much a fun, light read as its predecessor. Utilizing new tropes and very personable characters, The Singles Table—and surely all of Desai's works—are a must-read for all lovers of contemporary romance.

Sara Desai has been a lawyer, radio DJ, marathon runner, historian, bouncer, and librarian. She lives on Vancouver Island with her husband, kids, and an assortment of forest creatures who think they are pets. Sara writes sexy romantic comedy and contemporary romance with a multicultural twist. When not laughing at her own jokes, Sara can be found eating nachos. You can find her online at SaraDesai.com. You can find more of my reviews of Sara's works here.

After a devastating breakup, celebrity-obsessed lawyer Zara Patel is determined never to open her heart again. She puts her energy into building her career and helping her friends find their happily ever afters. She's never faced a guest at the singles table she couldn't match—until she crosses paths with the sinfully sexy Jay Dayal. Former military security specialist Jay has no time for love. His life is about working hard, staying focused, and winning at all costs. When charismatic Zara crashes into his life, he's thrown into close contact with exactly the kind of chaos he wants to avoid. Worse, they're stuck together for the entire wedding season. So they make a deal. She'll find his special someone if he introduces her to his celebrity clients. But when their arrangement brings them together in ways they never expected, they realize that the perfect match might just be their own. 

Sara Desai's books are such an easy, light read. I loved The Singles Table because it was a quick read, while also hitting the high notes of contemporary romance—you have tropes, you have dates, you have a breakup and a makeup, all rolled up in an easily digestible writing style in under 320 pages. This one is a crowd pleaser, for sure!

I enjoyed how this one utilized the grumpy x sunshine trope, although maybe not to as great an extent as The Love Hypothesis. Zara is definitely outgoing, where Jay is much more reserved, and Zara is able to show Jay the potential of life whereas Jay is the protector of it. The difference between their personalities is also shown in the writing of their different perspectives. Desai did a great job balancing between two very different characters.

For me, the only reason this wasn't as much a favorite as The Dating Plan, is because I wasn't entirely sold on Zara's voice and personality 100% of the time. Maybe it's because I've never met or seen anyone like her, or because I identify maybe a little too much with Jay, that just made her voice a little hard for me to digest. That, coupled with the repetition of the plot twist from The Dating Plan (re: motorcycle) makes me a little hesitant to give it those full five stars.

Regardless, Desai has me completely sold on her ability to craft a well-balanced, hilarious, refreshing contemporary romance, and I love her writing style. I am certainly excited to see where her writing career takes her next. Until then, you can find her online at SaraDesai.com. You can find more of my reviews of Sara's works here.

*This review can also be found on my Goodreads page*

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