Piece of Cake
by Swati Kaushal
Published by Penguin Books
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Reviewed by Erica Marston
Minal Sharma is a 29-year-old career girl living in India. She has no boyfriend, no prospects, and her mother has begun placing ads in the local newspaper to "help" her find a husband.
Minal is an extremely likable character who is charming, clever, humorous, committed to her job--despite a few unfortunate setbacks--and willing to keep an open mind about romance, even when it means meeting the men who have answered her mother's ad.
Swati Kaushal[s first novel is a classic example of American "chic lit" with an ethnic twist. The protagonist and the story line are familiar and in the same vein as popular books, The Devil Wears Prada by Lauren Weisberger and Second Assistant by Clare Naylor and Mimi Hare.
Having the story set in the author's native India makes it interesting in a new way. And, readers may be surprised by the unexpected similarities between the life and trials of a young, urban Indian woman and that of a twenty-something woman in any sizeable U.S. city.
While the typical American romance reader is likely to stumble over the author's frequent use of ethnic jargon and local slang, the story holds its own and keeps the reader engaged until the very end.
Armchair Interviews says: A great book to curl up with when you're home alone on a Saturday night.