Book Review: The Design of Us by Sajni Patel

Title: The Design of Us
Author: Sajni Patel
Pages: 368
Publication Date: July 16, 2024
Publisher: Berkley
Genres: Fiction / Romance / Contemporary
Synopsis:

One impulsive lie leads to a weeklong adventure of fake dating for two bickering coworkers in this swoony destination wedding rom-com by Sajni Patel, author of The Trouble with Hating You .

Sunshine incarnate Bhanu brings big UX energy to whatever she does, including going for the promotion where her only serious competition is her work nemesis, AKA Sunny, the grump with the Denzel voice. She expected to get a reprieve from him while visiting her family in Hawai’i, but the universe has other plans. When Bhanu runs into Sunny at the hotel and witnesses his ex criticizing him about being single, Bhanu does the first thing that comes to she impetuously claims to be Sunny’s girlfriend just to get some peace and quiet. Except Sunny is on island for a friend’s wedding and his ex has already texted the entire wedding party about this mysterious girlfriend.

Bhanu truly is the bane of Sunny’s existence. But the last thing he wants to do is cause tension during his friend’s wedding festivities, much less be the object of their pity. He has no choice except to play along, if only he and Bhanu can put aside their quarreling and act like a real couple.

Between Bhanu’s hilariously meddling family and Sunny’s ecstatic friends, the two are pushed closer together, even as stress mounts over the impending promotion.

They say what happens on island, stays on island. But as Sunny and Bhanu let their guards down, will either of them be able to resist this romantic getaway without crossing the line?

LINKS: Goodreads | BookBub | Amazon | Bookshop.org

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When Sunny vacations in Hawaii to visit her sister, the last thing she expects is to bump into her work nemesis. And when Bhanu pretends to be Sunny’s girlfriend to get him away from his ex, they’re forced to act as a couple on a bunch of different activities for the wedding Sunny’s there for.

I really enjoyed this book. It’s an easy and fun summer beach read with a gorgeous setting and a slow-burn love story. Bhanu and Sunny have a great enemies-to-lovers, fake dating romance! They work together, don’t like each other, and are competing for the same promotion, so there’s a lot of tension between the two. The banter, the humor, and the way they slowly grow closer in a super romantic location made my heart melt.

I also love how understanding and supportive both Bhanu and Sunny were with each other’s boundaries and mental health. I totally related to Bhanu and her anxiety. And when Sunny ignores his own fears to help Bhanu? Whew, I kind of fell in love with him. I think, deep down, they really cared about each other for far longer than they realized. Plus, how can you resist a man with a Denzel voice? Impossible! lol

The dual perspectives are also great, as you get to understand both characters’ thoughts and feelings. I also liked the secondary characters as well as the food, culture, and messages about tourism and respecting the places you travel. Overall, it’s a cute and fun rom-com and one I’d recommend to romance readers. Special thanks to Berkley for providing me with a copy of the book. All thoughts are my own.

• The romance.

• The setting.

• The characters.

• workplace romance
• fake dating
• rivals to lovers
• grumpy sunshine

Sajni Patel is an award-winning author of women’s fiction and young adult books. Her works have appeared on numerous Best of the Year and Must Read lists from Cosmo, Teen Vogue, Apple Books, Audiofile, Tribeza, Austin Woman, NBC, The Insider, and many others.

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