Goldberg and Patterson, “The Bollywood Lover’s Club” (Reviewed by Liz Busby)

Title: The Bollywood Lover’s Club
Author: James Goldberg, Janci Patterson
Publisher: Garden Ninja Books
Genre: Fiction/YA
Year Published: 2021
Number of Pages: 286 pages
Binding: Paperback

Price: $16.99

(Reviewed by Liz Busby)

First off, I am not typically a romance reader, much less a YA romance reader. But this book had me shirking my responsibilities to race to the final page.

Our two protagonists, Dave and Amrita, are both well-fleshed out and loveable people. The interactions between the teens in school and out feel authentic, not the stereotypical cliques and meanness, but witty banter, obliviousness, and awkwardness. Both Dave and Amrita’s cultures are portrayed vividly and sympathetically. I was disappointed the authors stopped short of portraying an LDS worship service the way they showed a Sikh service. Sunday dinner is just not quite equivalent. But maybe they left it this way as their assumed audience is Mormon.

The central tension of the book is the standard “will they, won’t they” you’d expect of a romance novel. But the tension is ratcheted up because getting together implies abandoning their traditions and cultures. And therein lies the strength of the book: it treats religion and family as something inherently valuable to the individual, rather than an obstacle to the only true value (love). Though the ending may not be satisfying to typical romance readers, I found it to be authentic and healthy.

All together, The Bollywood Lovers’ Club is up there with the best Mormon contemporary novels. I will be passing this one on to family, ward members, and lots of others as well. This is the novel I would have wanted to read as a teenager and young adult, when every decision you make is monumental and life-changing.

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