One of my guilty pleasures is to watch television dramas. Even though most are dramatic with plenty of cliches, I still find myself enjoying (most) of them and just wanted more. I’ve always wanted to try some Bollywood movies, but never knew where to start. MY SO-CALLED BOLLYWOOD LIFE is a great introduction to the world of Bollywood, mixed in with kismet and a dose of friendship and family life.
My So-Called Bollywood Life
Author: Nisha Sharma
Series: None
Genre: Young Adult, Contemporary, Romance
Release Date: May 15, 2018
Publisher: Crown BFYR
Summary:
Winnie Mehta was never really convinced that Raj was her soul mate, but their love was written in the stars. Literally, a pandit predicted Winnie would find the love of her life before her eighteenth birthday, and Raj meets all the qualifications. Which is why Winnie is shocked when she returns from her summer at film camp to find her boyfriend of three years hooking up with Jenny Dickens. As a self-proclaimed Bollywood expert, Winnie knows this is not how her perfect ending is scripted.
Then there’s Dev, a fellow film geek and one of the few people Winnie can count on. Dev is smart and charming, and he challenges Winnie to look beyond her horoscope and find someone she’d pick for herself. But does falling for Dev mean giving up on her prophecy and her chance to live happily ever after? To find her perfect ending, Winnie will need a little bit of help from fate, family, and of course, a Bollywood movie star.
I received a copy of the book from the publisher in exchange for a honest review. All opinions are my own and I was not compensated for this review.
What I Liked
One of the reasons why I picked up My So-Called Bollywood Life was the fact that the main character, Winnie, reviews Bollywood movies on her blog (just like how us book bloggers review books we’ve read on our blogs). Although there aren’t any scenes where Winnie actually sits down and writes her reviews, My So-Called Bollywood Life includes snippets of her reviews at the beginning of every chapter. There’s also a list of Bollywood movies at the end of the book, which is absolutely perfect for me as part of the reason why I picked up My So-Called Bollywood Life was to hopefully get some great Bollywood movie suggestions. Lets hope I can find subtitles with the Bollywood movies Nisha Sharma recommends – I can’t wait to start watching them.
My So-Called Bollywood Life focuses on two main topics: film (obviously) and the idea of kismet, or destiny. I enjoy reading about destiny and why people either believe it or don’t believe it. It was interesting diving into Winnie’s thoughts and seeing how much she believed in kismet and how much her culture influenced her opinion on kismet. The plotline regarding kismet was ultimately predictable, yet satisfying to read.
What I Didn’t Like
When I read, I want to be surprised – that’s why I love it when books have a really good plot twist. However, My So-Called Bollywood Life was dreadfully predictable. Anyone can easily predict the ending one-fourth into the book. There are a few predictable books that I do enjoy reading if they manage to capture and maintain my attention throughout the book despite its predictability, but sadly My So-Called Bollywood Life wasn’t one of them. There was nothing to really draw me in after I predicted what would happen in the last third of the book.
Overall
If you’re looking for a cute, fluffy contemporary about Bollywood films and kismet with a dose of friendship and family life, My So-Called Bollywood Life is definitely the book for you.
Nisha credits her father for her multiple graduate degrees, and her mother for her love of Shah Rukh Khan and Jane Austen. She lives in Pennsylvania with her cat Lizzie Bennett and her dog Nancey Drew.
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