SAY YOU'LL BE MINE

An arranged meeting leads to a fake engagement leads to love for an Indian American couple.

Meghna Raman, 28, has been secretly in love with her college boyfriend, Seth Mitchell, for years. They only dated briefly before he relegated her to friend and writing partner, and she's been his best friend ever since, still weighing in on all his songs before he sells them. But after years of the same, three things happen in quick succession: Meghna gets an invitation to Seth's wedding, he calls and asks her to be his best man, and her mother begins to arrange rishtas for her—arranged dates that are the precursor to an arranged marriage. When Karthik Murthy, her first date, abruptly asks her to fake an engagement so he can stop spending so many weekends traveling to meet appropriate women his mother has found scattered across the country, Meghna decides to say yes. Karthik is handsome, appealing, and—best of all—can be her plus-one to Seth’s wedding. What follows is an excruciatingly painful, wonderful, realistic look at two people getting to know each other as they navigate what they think they want and what they secretly hope might be. Karthik is terrified of turning into his domineering father, desperate to make his mother happy, and frightened of his own feelings. Meghna is in love with Seth—but is she really? She realizes that she doesn’t quite know, and she's scared of making mistakes, sharing her emotions, and getting hurt. A delightful, layered book that addresses the frequent disconnect between what a person does, says, thinks they want, and actually wants—as individuals and within the context of their family, work, and community.

The end might be a given, but the emotional roller coaster of this journey is warm, engrossing, joyful—and nerve-wracking.