It’s been a bit since I read a Sara Desai book, but I’m back! I thoroughly enjoyed The Singles Table even if it took me a while to fall in love with Jay. Zara, however, was an instant win! Keep reading this book review for my full thoughts.
Summary
After a devastating break-up, celebrity-obsessed lawyer Zara Patel is determined never to open her heart again. She puts her energy into building her career and helping her friends find romance through the wedding season. She’s never faced a guest at the singles table she couldn’t match, until she crosses paths with the sinfully sexy Jay Donovan.
Former military security specialist Jay has no time for love. His life is about working hard, staying focused, and winning at all costs. When charismatic Zara crashes into his life, he’s thrown into close contact with exactly the kind of chaos he wants to avoid. Worse, they’re stuck together for the entire wedding season.
So they make a deal. She’ll find his special someone if he introduces her to his celebrity clients. But when their arrangement brings them together in ways they never expected, they realize that the perfect match might just be their own.
Review
(Disclaimer: I received this book from Netgalley. This has not impacted my review which is unbiased and honest.)
TW: panic attack
I fell in love with the concept of The Singles Table immediately. There’s this delightful, electric, almost sizzling chemistry and tension from the beginning. How it seems, on paper, that Zara and Jay couldn’t be more opposite. Their push and pull dynamic is sure to cause sparks – but maybe not all good? In The Singles Table we are able to see through both perspectives. While that normally makes it much easier to fall in love with the characters, it took me until about 50% to love Jay.
At the beginning, he was standoffish and guarded. Only through getting to know Jay, did I realize what he was hiding behind his defenses. He doesn’t like to be vulnerable – although who does? – but because of that, we see, at the beginning, only their differences. However, as you continue to read, you’ll get to know Jay and see his own sense of vulnerability. Zara, on the other hand, was an instant win. She’s passionate, almost like a whirlwind, and say hello to denial!
The Singles Table‘s strength are the characters. Both Jay and Zara worm their way into your heart, charming you with their mistakes and quirks. And as we continue to read, we see what lies behind their resumes. At its heart, The Singles Table is also about trusting people to be strong enough to handle us at our worst. If you love books where the main characters deny their feels – this has to be for you! It’s also about finding people who truly see us amidst all the noise.
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This was my first book by this author and I loved it! I need to go back and read her other ones. Great review!
oohhh yeah I missed out on #2 so now I gotta go back lol