Tea for Two
So, how do I review the book I read last, I wonder. It's a love story, alright. Yet, it's not. It's much more. And, much better.
It's not really a lovey-dovey, mushy-mushy, he-gives-red-roses-she-goes-awww, sweet and gooey type of romance. (Had it been, I wouldn't have crossed even a few pages.) Yet, the story touches all chords of a soulful romance.
Tania Sharma, a software geek from Mumbai, lands in Houston for a short work assignment. The very first day in a new place goes all wrong. She gets stranded on her way back from the workplace, under a thundering night-sky, totally lost and clueless. When she blames the Universe to have conspired against her, little does she know that the Universe is only trying to say 'Everything happens for a reason.’
Timely help arrives in the form of 2 bikers with one of them being our tall and handsome hero, Jack Sherman. A wonderful person as well, as she gathers later through the many incidents where destiny puts them in together. He tries to rescue the damsel in distress but our Desi heroine is all set to attack him with her pointed heels. The man simply rolls his eyes, grabs them, and walks to the bike as if to reply, "Well, lady, I'm just trying to help you with a ride. Take it or chuck it."
That's when the first moment of attraction happens for both as he removes his helmet; him to her feisty spirit and her to his...well...Greek God looks!
And, the romance takes off. Riding high and low, making wild twists and sharp turns and finally knocking off the heroine with an epiphany of "My goodness, I have fallen for this man. Why, Universe, why? Why him?" Because, Jack, in whose hotel Tania stays as a guest during her assignment, is someone who runs away from love and is afraid of a lifetime commitment to a relationship.
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Quoted from the book:-
"If I had any control over it (falling in love), you would be the last person I'd have wanted to fall for." She declares at a point.
While he thinks, "You wrecked my world from the day I met you!"
Another line that stood out for me in the book as the protagonists discuss their losses- "We think our parents would live forever. We never really believe that they would leave us. In a way, it's like taking them for granted. Forgetting that they are as human as we are."
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A love story is quite incomplete without best friends playing a role in it. Here we have got Jonita and Neiman as their common friends who help them out at every odd situation.
How do the friends help? Will the leads' conflicting emotions pave way for love? Or, does it end with a heartbreak?
The author has deftly carried them all through the entire book.
What I loved:
- The Desi touch to the story. The author has meticulously sketched the character of the Indian girl.
- A love story across the oceans. It was a refreshing change from the usual stereotypes.
- The slow burn romance that's totally pragmatic and not fairytale-ish.
- The protagonists’ conversations are a joy to read. Wry humour at its best.
- The seamless voice changes of the two protagonists throughout the book so that a reader gets a vivid picture of their state of minds. I found that absolutely indulging.
- And, finally, the male lead, Jack Sherman, who stole the show, according to me. Characterisation perfectly done.