I had the pleasure of seeing the lovely Sandhya Menon at a panel for the Texas Book Festival, where I first heard of her and her book When Dimple Met Rishi. She was such a delight in person that I made note to read her work. I’d remind myself to get on that every time I saw the book in store or advertised online, but I just never came around to it. Fast-forward to two years later, in quarantine, and needing a good, cheerful read to take my mind off things. This was definitely that. A good, cheerful time with two Indian-American teens navigating love for the first time. Dimple and Rishi’s pre-arranged marriage reminded me so much of the contract romance trope in k-dramas, which I just eat up. We got the hilarious first meeting, the strict friendship agreement, and the inevitable romantic tension (with a healthy dose of butterflies) — what more could ya ask for? There were some storylines thrown in that didn’t completely land for me, like a random talent show in the middle of the couple’s coding program. But the couple were so charming individually and together that I was able to look past the randomness and simply enjoy the ever-growing progress of their relationship. This is one OTP I won’t be forgetting anytime soon.
Rating: ★★★★☆
Sara Bechtol 