Incense and sensibility A novel

Sonali Dev

Book - 2021

"Yash Raje, California's first Indian-American gubernatorial candidate, has always known exactly what he wants-and how to use his privileged background to get it. He attributes his success to a simple mantra: control your feelings and you can control the world. But when a hate crime at a rally critically injures his friend, Yash's easy life suddenly feels like a lie, his control an illusion. When he tries to get back on the campaign trail, he blacks out with panic. Desperate to keep Yash's condition from leaking to the media, his family turns to the one person they trust-his sister's best friend, India Dashwood, California's foremost stress management coach ... Yash has spent a lifetime repressing everything to... succeed, including their one magical night ten years ago-a too brief, too bright passion that if rekindled threatens to destroy the dream he's willingly shouldered for his family and community ... until now"--

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Subjects
Genres
Romance fiction
Novels
Published
New York, NY : William Morrow, an imprint of HarperCollinsPublishers [2021]
Language
English
Main Author
Sonali Dev (author)
Edition
First edition
Item Description
Includes Reading group guide.
Sequel to: Recipe for persuasion.
Series information from author's website, https://sonalidev.com/books/
Physical Description
382, 10 pages ; 21 cm
ISBN
9780063051805
Contents unavailable.
Review by Booklist Review

Dev continues her charming Jane Austen-inspired Rajes series, following Recipe for Persuasion (2020) with a heart-melting love story. Solid and steady California gubernatorial candidate Yash Raje is close to achieving his life's purpose when he's violently attacked by a white supremacist. Yash is wounded, and footage of his fake girlfriend Naina sobbing over him goes viral. The result is a surge in the polls and panic attacks that prevent him from campaigning. Adopted in Thailand as a baby by her American mom, India Dashwood underwent cleft-lip surgery, but her scar only makes her more beautiful to Yash, who has scars from a terrible accident. They met 10 years ago as he began his political career, and she dreamt of becoming a premier yoga therapist and reiki healer. Now India wants to help Yash recover, but she can't forget how he ghosted her back then and lied about Naina. Will Yash tell India the truth to keep her in his life, even if that means losing the election? Dev adeptly weaves a deeply soulful, second-chance romance within a larger story that includes LGBTQIA+ relationships, multicultural adoption, class differences, mental health, family loyalty, and the value of hard work and unconditional love.

From Booklist, Copyright (c) American Library Association. Used with permission.
Review by Publisher's Weekly Review

Dev's emotionally charged third Rajes romance (after Recipe for Persuasion) centers on Yash Raje, a California gubernatorial candidate whose meteoric rise is disrupted by an assassination attempt. Public sympathy pushes Yash to the top of the polls following the failed shooting, but trauma and anxiety attacks jeopardize his campaign. Enter India Dashwood, a yoga therapist and stress management coach--and the woman Yash let get away 10 years ago. With the election only months away, India's coaching is Yash's best hope at getting back on the campaign trail--and she's also the only person who makes him feel anything at all. The story of trauma and recovery in the face of racist gun violence is timely, but that may also make it difficult for some readers to get through, despite the narrative's deeply romantic heart. Dev's cast runs the gamut from kindhearted to ruthless, though not all characters are equally believable: Dev excels at portraying the fond interconnectedness of the large Raje family, but is less successful in conjuring the Dashwoods' dynamic, and the disparate tones between scenes featuring each family can be disorienting. Still, series fans will be happy to revisit the Rajes and be pleased by the sweet love story. Agent: Alexandra Machinist, ICM Partners (July)

(c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved
Review by Library Journal Review

Dev (Pride, Prejudice, and Other Flavors) pays homage to Austen and Sense and Sensibility, while also exploring weighty topics like gun violence, political division, health care, and trauma. India Dashwood is a yoga instructor and a premier stress management coach; Yash Raje is a progressive gubernatorial candidate for the state of California. After a shooting at one of Yash's rallies injures him and puts his bodyguard in critical condition, he begins to have panic attacks that jeopardize his ability to appear in public--and thus the entire election. The Raje family's connection to India Dashwood makes her the obvious person to help Yash through this ordeal; Yash and India's shared past of thwarted romantic connection, and the impossibility of a future relationship between them, adds another layer. VERDICT Dev's latest is a deeply emotional story of responsibility and impossible love that will appeal to fans of Austen's classic. It also provides an incisive look at a current political landscape of division and violence, while adding an ultimately hopeful spin. The book's subjects are often serious, but its ultimate focus on being true to oneself and one's principles makes this a satisfying and uplifting romance.--Meagan Day, High Plains Lib. Dist., CO

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Review by Kirkus Book Review

An ambitious politician is forced to examine his past when trauma sends him to a scrupulously honest yoga instructor for help. Indian American gubernatorial candidate Yash Raje is in the throes of a closely contested campaign in California when a rally is derailed by bigotry and violence. Yash escapes relatively unscathed, but when he learns that Abdul, his bodyguard and friend, continues to battle for his life in the hospital, he is too numb and shaken to resume work. Since he clearly needs help, his family recommends yoga therapist and stress management coach India Dashwood. But meeting each other is bound to be painful for India and Yash: After a night of deeply personal and intense exchanges a decade ago, their fledgling relationship ended abruptly. Although India has a lot on her plate, her natural generosity and Yash's obvious plight mean that she cannot turn him away. As India gently prods him into reconciling with a traumatic past, Yash begins to see his present with sharp clarity. But he must make some hard decisions before he can create the future he has envisioned. The third installment in Dev's series of modern-day Jane Austen adaptations revolving around the Rajes, an aristocratic Indian family, is a riff on Sense and Sensibility. Yash and India are consistently endearing in their commitment to creating an egalitarian and empathetic world: India is steadily compassionate but refuses to be a pushover while Yash's burning ambition has not charred his emotional core. Dev demonstrates a sharp understanding of privilege as she tackles the issues of racism and social justice. But this acuity renders her erasure of caste politics, especially as she references Hindu mythology, especially stark. Warmth and humor leaven an emotionally intense romance. Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.

Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.