The Singles Table

Starred review from July 26, 2021
Desai does it again in her latest San Francisco–set rom-com starring the lively, eccentric Patel family (after The Dating Plan). Zara Patel, an impulsive, celebrity-obsessed personal injury lawyer with a penchant for playing matchmaker, loves romance—for other people. Her parents’ devastating divorce has made her both crave intimacy and flee from it. So when she finds herself powerfully attracted to Jay Dayal, a rigid Air Force veteran, at a mutual friend’s joint bachelor-bachelorette paintball party, her response is to shoot him in the butt. As an apology, she offers to matchmake for Jay, who agrees, wanting to please his single mother, who’s urging him to date more—but the strong chemistry between Zara and Jay quickly leads them to abandon this plan in favor of sizzling-hot sex. However, when Zara’s first celebrity client demands she go after Jay’s security startup for failing to protect him from a threat, the clash of professional and personal ambitions threatens the relationship neither of them claim to want but both desperately need. Zara and Jay are a refreshingly self-aware pair, and it’s eminently satisfying to see them not just address their business conflicts but seek professional psychological help, Zara for her fear of abandonment and Jay for PTSD. Desai’s fans will be delighted. Agent: Laura Bradford, Bradford Literary.

September 1, 2021

Jay Dayal is a stern ex-military workaholic with his own security firm, while Zara Patel is an entertainment lawyer and a whirlwind of chaos. When they meet at a bachelor/bachelorette paintball game, Jay is fascinated by Zara, despite the fact that she shot him in the behind with her paintball gun--or maybe because of it. Zara can feel the chemistry too, but she has sworn off relationships, so instead of acting on the attraction, she makes Jay a deal: she'll find him a match and he'll introduce her to potential celebrity clients. Their deal requires spending time together, getting to know one another, and fighting an attraction that keeps growing stronger. This well-written, fast-paced romantic comedy is filled with likable characters who have relatable emotional hang-ups and relationship issues. Slapstick scenes, banter-filled dialogue, and quirky secondary characters--in particular a trio of meddlesome matchmaking aunties--add plenty of hilarity. VERDICT This third novel in Desai's "Marriage" series (after The Dating Plan) can be read as a standalone. Recommended for all public library collections.--Heather Miller Cover, Homewood P.L., AL

Copyright 2021 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

Starred review from October 15, 2021
A fun-loving lawyer promises to play matchmaker for a surly (but smoking-hot) businessman. It's wedding season, and Zara Patel is getting used to her seat at the singles table. Although her aunties are always trying to set her up with eligible bachelors, she'd rather focus on her own successful matchmaking efforts. Helping other people find their happily-ever-afters is a lot easier than attempting a relationship herself, especially since Zara thinks she's "too much" for most men. Fellow singles table resident Jay Dayal, an Air Force veteran and current security company owner, immediately knows that Zara isn't the woman for him (not that he's even looking for a woman). She's loud, impulsive, and so klutzy she often ends up in the ER. However, neither of them can deny the sparks that fly between them when they meet during a bachelor/bachelorette party paintball game and Zara shoots him in the butt. When Jay's mother begs him to find a partner, Zara agrees to use her matchmaking skills to set him up with someone if he promises to use his business to help her struggling law firm find clients. As they spend more time together, though, their chemistry becomes impossible to ignore, and their deal turns into a no-strings-attached relationship. But between Zara's reluctance to fall in love and Jay's inability to open up, things are more complicated than they expected. Can they let their walls down and see that the perfect match might be right in front of them? Desai creates a romantic comedy that has both genuine laugh-out-loud moments (usually because of Zara's antics) and quieter, more emotional scenes (including Jay's struggle to tell Zara about his combat-related PTSD and Zara's deep wounds from her parents' acrimonious divorce). Zara and Jay both feel like real people with believable flaws, and their relationship plays out in a way that feels earned, with plenty of steamy moments along the journey. A beautifully told rom-com that's full of laughs, heart, and scorching sexual tension.

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Starred review from September 15, 2021
Opposites attract with hilarious, delicious consequences in Desai's latest romcom, following The Dating Plan (2021). Jay and Zara meet on the paintball battlefield, where she leaves him humiliated and with a bruised butt, even though they were on the same team. As they run into each other over and over at their friends' wedding celebrations, Jay can't help but be fascinated by this messy, bright ball of energy who is his opposite in every way. Zara has had good luck at matchmaking and offers to help him as they become friendly until she realizes that she doesn't want him to be with someone else. Zara's law career at a firm with a tiger on its business card makes for lots of funny scenes as security specialist Jay tries to help her find celebrity clients. Jay struggles with PTSD from his time in the military, and Zara fears commitment with good reasons, but their steamy courtship is helped by nosy family and friends. Fans of Susan Elizabeth Phillips will enjoy Desai's memorable romance.

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