Sara Desai

“This novel has all the funny banter and sexy feels you could want in a romantic comedy.”–NPR A high stakes wager pits an aspiring entrepreneur against a ruthless CEO in this sexy romantic comedy. After her life falls apart, recruitment consultant Layla Patel returns home to her family in San Francisco. But in the eyes of her father, who runs a Michelin starred restaurant, she can do no wrong. He would do anything to see her smile again. With the best intentions in mind, he offers her the office upstairs to start her new business and creates a profile on an online dating site to find her a man. She doesn’t know he’s arranged a series of blind dates until the first one comes knocking on her door… As CEO of a corporate downsizing company Sam Mehta is more used to conflict than calm. In search of a quiet new office, he finds the perfect space above a cozy Indian restaurant that smells like home. But when communication goes awry, he's forced to share his space with the owner's beautiful yet infuriating daughter Layla, her crazy family, and a parade of hopeful suitors, all of whom threaten to disrupt his carefully ordered life. As they face off in close quarters, the sarcasm and sparks fly. But when the battle for the office becomes a battle of the heart, Sam and Layla have to decide if this is love or just a game.

The Marriage Game

Layla is the child of immigrants from India. Her parents hold a traditional belief in the benefit of arranged marriages, leading her father to start setting up dates without telling her. Sam is a self-made CEO. Also the child of first-generation immigrants, his family treated him like a prince. But his sister's marital experience has taught him that parents don't always know what's best and arranged marriages don't always end well. When life throws Layla and Sam into close quarters, neither can deny the chemistry building between them and wonder if they should make an arrangement of their own.

Joan 

Are you a good girl, Layla? You seem very bad to me. If you need a husband who can keep you in line, you’ll have to up your game.” Sam could almost feel Layla’s furious gaze boring through his skull. He couldn’t remember the last time he’d had so much fun.

Is this a sales technique?” he whispered in her ear. “A little demonstration for Hassan about what he can expect in bed? Or is it just for me? Because, sweetheart, if he doesn’t marry you after this, I  will.” Her nostrils flared, and she pulled away. “I wouldn’t marry you even if you got down on your knees and begged.” “When I’m with a woman, it’s not me doing the begging.”

He was pushing it, he knew, but he couldn’t help himself. Her passionate response to his teasing set his blood on fire.

Keira 💫

Bria

** spoiler alert **
           Layla is too forgiving bc I would’ve never talked to Sam again. What do you mean you knew and just got drunk and holed up in a room with a stripper instead of running to tell me?

Catarina Silva

2,5⭐ rounded up 

Sam can go and be an ass somewhere else, please.

Before we get into the book itself can we just take a moment to appreciate how stunning this cover is?? This will definetely be claiming a display spot on my bookshelf!!!

From the moment that Layla and Sam met, you just know that there is an undeniable attraction between them. The tropes used in this book explored their romance so well and had me hooked. Enemies to lovers and forced proximity undoubtedly created tension between them. I won’t lie, at times I felt like screaming at the pages just to get them to see what was right in front of them, but that somehow made it all the more enjoyable.

This book hit all the right spots for me. I cannot express how important representation is. From Layla’s family and even just reading the references to food in this added something to the story that I rarely find anywhere else. There is no one way to be someone of South Asian heritage living in a western country, and I think Sarah Desai encapsulated that so well through Layla and Sam who are so different culturally.

The wittiness intertwined with some Bollywood style drama and passion truly makes this book a favourite of mine. I can’t wait to read more of Sarah Desai’s work! 100% recommend!!

Before we get into the book itself can we just take a moment to appreciate how stunning this cover is?? This will definetely be claiming a display spot on my bookshelf!!!

From the moment that Layla and Sam met, you just know that there is an undeniable attraction between them. The tropes used in this book explored their romance so well and had me hooked. Enemies to lovers and forced proximity undoubtedly created tension between them. I won’t lie, at times I felt like screaming at the pages just to get them to see what was right in front of them, but that somehow made it all the more enjoyable.

This book hit all the right spots for me. I cannot express how important representation is. From Layla’s family and even just reading the references to food in this added something to the story that I rarely find anywhere else. There is no one way to be someone of South Asian heritage living in a western country, and I think Sarah Desai encapsulated that so well through Layla and Sam who are so different culturally.

The wittiness intertwined with some Bollywood style drama and passion truly makes this book a favourite of mine. I can’t wait to read more of Sarah Desai’s work! 100% recommend!!

Kelsey Joëlle

I revived this book from NetGalley in return for my honest opinion 

Actual rating: 3,5 stars

I liked the book, but I feel like I missed a lot of good things because I didn’t understand the culture fully. I did like Sam and Layla, they were Rey cute, but I need to say that I expected some more depth into their romance dialogue. I liked the idea of a marriage game. It was fun to see Layla go on a ‘date’ with all the suitors. (Except a few). I need to say that the book had a lot of quirky and funny Layla one-liners.

I thought this book was good until the last 25%. 

Sam did some horrible things to Layla. Getting drunk and trashing the office they worked in, bringing drugs into the building her family owned, letting his coworker buy the building out from under them and evict them, go into a bathroom with a stripper... all because he wanted to break into confidential files at the hospital to get the doctor who hurt his sister fired. I could overlook all this if there was a conversation between Sam and Layla about it... but it was like it was glossed over and it was never actually discussed between them. After everything Layla went through with her ex, you would think she would need more from him.

Alison James

I thought this book was good until the last 25%. 

Sam did some horrible things to Layla. Getting drunk and trashing the office they worked in, bringing drugs into the building her family owned, letting his coworker buy the building out from under them and evict them, go into a bathroom with a stripper... all because he wanted to break into confidential files at the hospital to get the doctor who hurt his sister fired. I could overlook all this if there was a conversation between Sam and Layla about it... but it was like it was glossed over and it was never actually discussed between them. After everything Layla went through with her ex, you would think she would need more from him.

Hannah Grace

I originally bought this book because of the beautiful cover. I REALLY wanted to love it, and even bought the two sequels because I was confident I would. I struggled through the first eight chapters questioning if I needed to DNF it, before finally starting to enjoy the story. I loved Layla's relationship with her family (particularly her dad) and I found her funny and endearing. I also really loved the premise of the story and still think it's original and fun.

Sadly, it all went downhill toward the end of the book. I found myself questioning if I was even reading about the same characters, particularly Sam, who did something very hurtful and weird with apparently no desire to apologise? 

I haven't started Daisy's book yet and I'm not sure if I will. If the last 30% of the book was different I'd be giving the book a higher rating. I understand that characters make mistakes and that's what drives plots and makes them realistic, but I didn't feel like it fit with the book or was fully explored/resolved before the book had it's happy ending.

ingrid

i had sooo much fun reading this book! the banter between sam and layla was so funny and i liked the way their relationship developed. also, the relationship between layla and her dad was so sweet. overall, a really cute and fun book!

Vedha N

I LOVED THIS BOOK. i cant even begin to talk about how much i enjoyed reading it. the entire time, i was completely hooked in and i loved layla’s character. she was very relatable and modern, but also super witty and confident. the plot itself i loved, as a traditional enemies to lovers, but i also liked how their relationship had a lot of bumps. the aspect of sam’s relationship with his own masculinity and culture was interesting as well, and provided a new angle to him. overall, i really really liked this book. the romance was adorable, the characters were well-written, it had humor, and above all, the cultural aspect of the book really did it for me. totally recommend!

Jordan /

Larisa Nicolcea

Shruthi Krish

Let me just say it is REFRESHING to see South Asian representation in romance novels! This has to be the first I have read that is set in America. I don’t think I in any way relate to the characters in this novel other than being South Asian, but it was fun to get a forced proximity novel peppered with familiar terms and Bollywood references.

I am giving The Marriage Game 4/5 stars. I docked 1 star because it took me a while to get drawn into the book and I still don’t really feel for Layla as a main character. Likewise, I didn’t love that Sam was so driven by a need for revenge and that he was partying it up with a stripper before meeting Layla’s family, despite supposedly feeling bad about it. There were also a few parts of the story line where I felt there were holes and some unnecessary drama. There were too many potential husbands to squeeze into a ~350 page book so it did feel a little rushed and it kind of felt like there wasn’t enough time to see Layla and Sam’s relationship grow.

I will be reading the Dating Plan soon and I am excited to see what Daisy’s story is!

Pauline J

3.9 ⭐️

tons of humor, romcom, kind of chaotic. the family is adorable—it’s my second novel from sara desai so i was familiar with the other characters from the dating game which i read in january. layla is daisy’s cousin.

good start to the book, found myself not wanting to put it down. some dull parts, but i pushed through it. the banter was great! i felt their connection, there was a pretty good build up between them. the dialogue made me laugh and the characters were likable (sometimes)

BUT there were parts that i just—🙄

first of all: SAM. described as cocky, arrogant, God’s gift to mankind. personally, i do love arrogant characters like him, especially when they have soft sides. but my issue with him is that he was kind of... annoying? not the entire time, but there were several times i rolled my eyes HARD at him. his whole mission to avenge his sister was touching. i understood why he turned his back on his culture and family because he felt unworthy, but he did seem to have tunnel vision.

layla and sam’s relationship was littered with misunderstandings and jumping to conclusions. ALSO sam does something that i literally was like DUDE WHAT THE FUCK. and i hated that layla let him off under the guise of “he tried to do what was best”—i expected him to BEG for her forgiveness. and beg he did not do 😤

overall, i really enjoyed their love story!! the ending was cute, somewhat cringe. the best parts were when he accompanied her on dates (and obviously, they got to know each other that way)—something about wanting someone you can’t have and watching them date other people just really gets me going 🤪

Love a good enemies to lovers trope. Great character development. Had some funny scenes. Sex scenes were 🌶 and didn’t leave any romance off the page. 

This book was good. But I think it missed groveling. I’m a sucker for women who make men grovel and I don’t know… I think I would’ve enjoyed seeing more groveling. Although, I loved Layla and Sam. I loved how they were pure Indians honestly. It makes me miss the best aspects of India and not the shitty parts of that country. I can’t wait to read Daisy’s story. I’m kind of obsessed with her. 

Lauren Attaway

The Marriage Game was slow to start for me but then I was tearing through chapters! Top Notch Banner and reading about two intelligent people who can hold each other accountable and still fall in love! More romance with people willing to work on themselves please!

I also have to acknowledge their shared cultural references and how much it enriched their love story. I love reading books that give new perspectives without sounding like a classroom. This book had so much heart.

Sahi K

I’m hedging between a 2 and a 2.5.

There were times it was fun but from the beginning, it just wasn’t what I expected. However, I also can’t specifically articulate why I didn’t like it. I skim read parts of it because I was bored and but wanted to finish because I don’t like DNFng desi romances.

Laura Yaneth Martinez

I loved this. It was really refreshing to have strong characters. I really enjoyed the female lead. She was driven, independent, and confident. Enemies to lovers is probably my favorite trope & within this work it worked beautifully and in a new way. There was point where there was some miscommunication that could have led to a big fight but surprisingly that didn’t happen— they just talked it out & believed one another!! That was sweet since most books exaggerate moments to build conflict but here it was done really well! Can’t wait to read this authors other books

Rochelle Ferguson

DNF at 60%
I was just bored by the end of it and could not be bothered to continue. This was a disappointing read, I couldn't care about the characters or the romance at all.

Kayla 

It’s been a minute since I’ve laughed out loud, swooned and cried over a book! 
.
.
The Marriage Game by @saradesaiwrites is the perfect enemies-to-lovers romcom you’ll want to fall in love with this summer! 
.
.
Layla is moving home after a disastrous breakup/firing that went viral. She decides she will work in the office space above her family restaurant, only issue is that her father had agreed to lease it out to another tenant and was not able to cancel the lease. Layla meet Sam, who runs a company that fires people and is in no way looking for or wanting to share his office. 
.
.
Before a family emergency, Layla’s father had set up an online profile for his 26 year old daughter in order to find her a suitable husband. When Layla finds the list she decides to take on the bachelors and find a husband. She makes Sam a deal, interview the candidates with her, help her find a husband and she will leave the office and not bother him again. Game on....
.
.
The banter between these two was so good! I was laughing at all the sarcasm and witty remarks. The tension was building and I actually screamed “they finally kissed” out loud...my fiancé was confused lol. I even cried at the end, Oh my that ending, I can’t even remember the last time I cried over a romance! 
.
.
This is for sure a ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ ah I am absolutely buying a physical copy!

Megan Lapides

I enjoyed the storyline a lot! And I think Layla was an awesome main character. It was nice to read about a character who thought she knew what she wanted, but not completely, and definitely knew what she didn't want. However, I absolutely hated Sam. I thought he was ignorant and selfish and the more I read the worse he got. He had very little character development and was not a very good person, especially towards Layla. Layla deserved a better love interest. But overall, I enjoyed the story and the writing style and thought the book was laugh out loud hilarious.

Anna Wilson

A very frustrating read! 😫 I loved Layla, she’s outgoing and fun but Sam I can’t stand! His jealousy and overprotectiveness was something I just can’t get past. Literally they get into the tow truck with the guy towing their car, and he gets mad bc the drivers leg TOUCHES Layla. 😳

Amanda J 

Lisa W.

I barely made it to 56% reading this book. I can’t imagine what I would be feeling if I made it to the 75% mark everyone keeps referencing in their reviews. This is one of those situations when you’ve gotta know when to hold em and when to fold em. Personally I hate stopping in the middle but I just couldn’t go any further. 

I disliked both main characters. To be quite honest the only character remotely worth my time was Daisy. However I wouldn’t pick up a book about her either in fear that it may ruin my image of her. 

Layla was childish and unremarkable as a main character. The tried to make her “blue fury” video such a big thing but I can imagine women who encounter their boyfriend in the situation she did would do far worse. Just everything about her as a character rubbed me the wrong way. 

As for Sam.... ugh. What a tool. First off you are around other tools. You objectify women but when someone else does it you try to act as if you are the world’s most upstanding gentleman. You choose to be her chaperone and get your panties in a bunch but can’t seem to man up and tell her how you feel. Also you are a horrible sex partner. Who needs all that damn talking? I swear the author could have spared us that elevator/apartment scene. It did more harm than good. 

Also the amount of misogyny in this book just grinds my gears. 

What a let down.

The Marriage Game

Reviews

Highlights