When Dimple Met Rishi // great representation but not so great a story

I was looking for a cute summery read to get me out of my reading slump, and after hearing so much love for When Dimple Met Rishi, I thought this would be the book to do it. But maybe my slump or my inexperience with entirely romance centred novels got in the way, because I don't think this book was for me.

The book had a really promising start. I struggled to get into the writing style for the first couple of chapters, and I have to admit that there continued to be something about it that never fully clicked with me throughout. But I was excited by what the book promised: an #ownvoices representation of South Asian people. 

In the first few chapters alone we see the different relationships the two focal characters have with their families, as well as the relationship they each had with their culture. I think the book did a great job of showing that arranged marriages aren't necessarily forced and that they don't have to be oppressive or anti-feminist as history often suggests they are. And it was awesome to have the dual perspective on the idea - with Dimple being wholly against the tradition and Rishi strongly believing in it and finding true love.

The book was cute and funny to start with, and it being set in the summer after high school felt refreshingly different to the typical YA set up. But it quickly lost its shine for me, and I couldn't help but find it a little insta-lovey. Maybe it was just me, but I expected a slower burning romance rather than going from dislike to friendship to kissing all within a few days of knowing each other. I know the story is set over a few weeks, but because the romance was so focal, it felt like there was little in-between for the pair to be kissing by halfway through the book.

It did feel for the most part that there was no plot other than the romance. There is some talk about the app Dimple is designing, but it takes up so little focus that the story felt like it was moving very slowly for me. BUT I know this is a romance novel and I think I'm starting to realise the genre isn't really for me so this is a very 'it's me not you' thing. 

There was some stuff going on other than Dimple and Rishi's love for each other, like the storylines for Celia and Ashish. But honestly I didn't really care for what happened to them at all and I found the side story kind of boring. 

Again, maybe I'm in a reading slump where I'm bound to hate every book I touch and maybe I should just steer clear of contemporary romances. But from what I've heard the rep in this book is solid, and even though I didn't enjoy When Dimple Met Rishi I hope that some kids will be able to find themselves in their story.

Diversity Note: Indian-American protagonists

An ebook copy of this book was provided to me in exchange for an honest review.