Priyanka Taslim |
The Love MatchZahra Khan is basically Bangladeshi royalty, but being a princess doesn’t pay the bills in Paterson, New Jersey. While Zahra’s plans for financial security involve working long hours at Chai Ho and saving up to study writing in college, Amma is convinced that all Zahra needs is a “good match,” Jane Austen-style.
Enter Harun Emon, who’s wealthy, devastatingly handsome, and…aloof. As soon as Zahra meets Harun’s stuck-up gaze, she knows it’s a bad match. It’s nothing like the connection she has with Nayim Aktar, the new dishwasher at the tea shop, who just gets Zahra in a way no one has before. So when Zahra finds out that Harun is just as uninterested in this match as she is, they devise a plan to slowly sabotage their parents’ scheme over the course of the summer. And for once in Zahra’s life, she can have her rossomalai and eat it too: develop real feelings for Nayim while “dating” Harun and keeping Amma happy. But love—and boys—are more complicated in real life than the stories Zahra writes. With the end of the summer looming, and her feelings growing more and more tangled, what was meant to be a simple scheme could cost Zahra’s dreams and her family’s future—or leave her with a broken heart. Sometimes, being a good Bengali kid can be a royal pain. Publisher: Simon & Schuster/Salaam Reads
Publication Date: Moved to January 2023 ISBN: 9781665901109 Blurbs and reviews coming soon!
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Priyanka Taslim is a writer, teacher, and lifelong New Jersey resident.
Having grown up in a bustling Bangladeshi diaspora community, surrounded by her mother’s entire clan and many aunties of no relation, her writing often features families, communities, and all the drama therein. Currently, Priyanka teaches English by day and tells all kinds of stories about Bangladeshi characters by night. Her writing usually stars spunky Bangladeshi heroines finding their place in the world...and a little swoony romance, too. THE LOVE MATCH, out in summer 2022 from Salaam Reads, an imprint of Simon & Schuster, is her debut YA novel. Tags: YA, Contemporary, Romance, Rom-com, BIPOC
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