THE VILLAGE BRIDE OF BEVERLY HILLS

Author: Kavita Daswani ISBN: 0452286565 7/2005 CONTEMPORARY Publisher: PLUME

After an arranged marriage in her native India, Priya moves with her husband to California, where they share a house with his parents. Playing the traditional daughter-in-law role, she's expected to clean, cook, and-because she doesn't immediately get pregnant-find a job as well! But the job Priya lands isn't at all what her in-laws had in mind for a traditional Indian wife. She soon finds herself with a secret life that she must hide from her disapproving new family. All the while, she is growing into a marriage to a man whose loyalty is decidedly torn between his parents and his bride. This is hardly surprising, given that he met his wife only a week before their wedding. The question is, can this fragile new love survive the pull between tradition and ambition?

RRAH's THOUGHTS AND PONDERINGS:

THE VILLAGE BRIDE OF BEVERLY HILLS is a witty, fun look at an Indian woman's transition as she tries to get used to being in a new marriage, in a new country, and working a job for the first time in her life. I love learning more about the heritage in India and trying to pronounce all the different forms of clothing and foods!

Priya is a good person who has taken a lot in her short year of marriage. Her in-laws treat her like a slave, her husband takes her for granted and her co-workers are backstabbing wenches. I felt for Priya as she tries to deal with her controlling, manipulative in-laws while making a life for herself in America. But, Priya has given away her life in the process. She no longer knows who she is or what she wants. When she is offered the job of a lifetime, she knows that her in-laws will not permit her to take it, so she does something she never thought she would do—she lies.

She lives this wonderful, decadent little second life that no one knows about, except for a few of her coworkers. I found myself enthralled completely in the workings of Priya's mind, and wondering over and over how she was going to get herself out of a few very "iffy" scrapes. Through it all, Priya pulls it off nicely, and when enough is enough and she finally decides to take control of her life, I wanted to clap out loud for the decisions that she made.

Kavita Daswani has written and absolute winner with THE VILLAGE BRIDE OF BEVERLY HILLS and I will gladly be reading more of Ms. Daswani's books in the near future.

Kristal Gorman