Pride, Prejudice, and Other Flavors audiobook

Now this is the kind of retelling that doesn't make me want to pull my hair out!I've read so many variations of P&P and never have I been this satisfied with one. Sonali Dev has successfully delivered an awesome, gender-swapped retelling of everyone's favourite love story, with exotic Indian flavours and beautifully believable characters. Dr.Trisha Raje, the proud and acclaimed Neurosurgeon, is our female Mr.Darcy, trying to save the world, one brain at a time. Darcy James Caine aka DJ Caine, portrayed as the male Lizzy Bennet, is a hot chef with yummy biceps and yummier desserts, who becomes a victim of his own assumptions when he meets our royal Dr.Raje. Sparks fly, misunderstandings happen, drama ensues, truth prevails, sparks fly harder this time around and ignites a crazy fire and yayyy happy humping ummm ending. That's right. HAPPY ENDING. The one thing I loved the most about this book was, unlike most retellings that rely heavily on Austen's beloved classic, this book manages to retain its uniquity in sub-plots and character developments. Be it the hero's backstory, the marital woes of the heroine's sister, the animal farm analogy for her ambitious family, Wickham's wickedness, cultural background of the protagonists or the way racism and classism are dealt with, the author has managed to cultivate Austen's subtle satire and cleverly ingest her own idiosyncrasies to the mix, while offering a stupendous literary feast. What a lovely blend of fragrant flavours! A must read for P&P fans.

4 stars I am a sucker for any Pride and Prejudice reimagining and this book did not disappoint. Instead of Elizabeth, we get Dr. Trisha Raje (and in this book, she’s actually the Darcy role) and a chef DJ Kane (whose name means Darcy but he assumes the Bennett role). After a series of unfortunate meetings, DJ Kane has realized he cannot stand the snob Dr. Trisha, but Trisha is the doctor who can save his sisters life.I thought Austen was blended seamlessly into this family drama. We have a large Indian American family from wealth, trying to establish their legacy in California. And then we have a chef who wishes to be a caterer for the family so he can afford the medical bills for his sister. I thought the tension between the main characters was built really well, and the eventual realization that their first impressions were not an accurate picture of who the other person really was? Very well done. The only thing is this book is almost 500 pages long and I felt the pacing of everything could have been much faster, things didn’t really pick up for me until the second half of the book. I very much want to binge this entire series, I love how all the Austen novels and characters are going to be blended together into the same family universe.

Fun Fun FunA gender flipped Pride and Prej retelling with a surgeon Trisha as Mr. Darcy and DJ as Elizabeth Bennett.What I loved:- drama - jumping balconies, rom-com scenes, flailing in love, girl hates boy trope to fall in love later, rich girl poor boy trope, royal Indian father, ex-Bollywood Indian mother, rich family and parties.-FOOD - Well, what do you expect? Le Cordeon Bleu chef who specializes in French and North Indian fusion- I must say DJ is the total rom com hero and I loved it. Well built, good chef, caring, British accent, sarcasm and humour. He was too perfect and I definitely didn't care. I loved it.- This isn't your usual retelling. So the characters were surprises. For eg there's a Jane and Emma in the novel but maybe you might not be able to guess what they are upto in the novel. Wickham was brilliant too.What I didn't :-Some names were so confusing. I wish DJ was not named 'Darcy' and also cast as a retold version of Elizabeth. While this does not make it confusing, I felt it could've been omitted for further clarity-The first chapter was pretty boring. I considered leaving it unfinished. Until the tempo picks up, which is when DJ and Trisha meet, it was dull and definitely not captivating.

MY RATING: 5/5 STARSI received a copy from Harper Collins Canada in exchange for a honest review.BUT GUYS this might be my favourite read of 2019 so far. Okay, not my most favourite book of 2019 but Top 10 and it's pretty high up on the list. If you're a fan of retellings, then you need to read this one because instead of it being completely by the book, this is a fresh twist on Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen. I'm not educated enough to tell you point by point differences but Sonali Dev played around with the characters from both the Bennet and Darcy family. I don't know how to go into this book without gushing over everything but you're going to hate Trisha or at least think something is wrong with her because she's emotionally unavailable and socially awkward. YESSSSSS. She is Darcy and she has good intentions for everything (a saint, really) but she's so freaking awkward, people think she's a jerk. When she's not. And then she doesn't understand what is going on to the point that there's a bunch of misunderstandings and she becomes the jerk people paint her to be. I'm not saying Trisha is perfect. She's not. She says some stuff that are unwarranted but I loved her a lot by the end of the book just like how readers love Darcy so hush. Don't hurt my baby. Anyways, Trisha is great because she strives to win the heart's of her family members after The Incident. The Incident has caused major grief and complications in her family as they dealt with a psycho stalker and her father basically hating Trisha for basically, allowing it to happen to her own brother. It was terribly angsty when the issue was resolved between Trisha and her father. It hit me in the fact when everyone's true emotions were revealed and I may had shed a few heart-warming tears. I just...cannot. Trisha, baby, you're doing great.Meanwhile, the cook, also known as Dj, cannot stand to lose his sister to brain cancer. Trisha knows a brilliant way to save his sister but shockingly to both of them, his sister doesn't want to do it because she'll lose her vision and what's the point of life as an artist if you can't see what you're doing? DJ has his own prejudice against Trisha. He sees her a rich brat who got everything handed to her. After all, her wealthy upbringing allowed to get the best of studies and also, the best connections for the best jobs. He also doesn't like her that much because well, Trisha called him the Help and usually when that happens, nobody likes you.Anyways, the psychopath comes back throughout the whole story and you're just waiting for her to get her punishment. When that moment comes, i'm kind of let down? In a way? Like it was like oh snap! Trisha really did that and defeated the beast but I wanted a legal battle. I wanted psychopath person to be in jail. To be removed from the country. Because I CANNOT STAND HER. I REALLY CANNOT. Sonali did a great job at writing a Wickham that made readers want to rip the pages out and eat them because you cannot possibly handle this character. MY RECOMMENDATIONIn conclusion, this book made me feel a lot of emotions. Good emotions. I teared up and cried a lot so yeah. Pick this bad boy up and dig into 400 plus pages of delicious writing.

A modern day retelling of Pride and Prejudice (obviously), set in the Bay Area and featuring the unlikely pairing of world-class neurosurgeon Trisha Raje and up-and-coming master chef DJ Caine, whose initial meeting is fraught with haughtiness and false impressions. As it turns out, Trisha is the only doctor offering a cure for DJ's beloved sister's brain tumor, so despite their mutual dislike, the two are forced together again and again. I liked that the author didn't follow the P&P plotline 100% -- there are plenty of familiar beats, but the story here stands on its own and isn't shoehorned into unnatural shapes just to make it fit the pattern. I also like that it's Trisha who's in the Darcy role here, hiding behind her snobbiness and self-image and repelling the very person she finally realizes she wants to attract. The story moves quickly, has some key emotional moments, LOTS of mouth-watering descriptions of DJ's culinary creations, and definitely succeeds as a love story with plenty of modern twists. Quite fun -- I'm hoping Sonali Dev writes more in this world!

4.3 starsI received this book for free in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review. The truth was, he was right about many things—things she could change, like how she treated people. He was also wrong about a few—things she could not change, like who she was. In this start to the Rajes series, Sonali Dev gives us an emotional look into a royal Indian family that migrated to America. The title gives a clue that Ms. Dev took inspiration from Jane Austen, Trisha is our arrogant still waters run deep Mr. Darcy while DJ is our making some snap judgments Elizabeth. There is also a villainous Wickham character, older sister (already married) worried about her beau wanting someone else, sick younger sister, mother pressuring children to get married, and other little takings that Pride and Prejudice readers will recognize. It's all inspired by and not based on and I loved how Dev put her spin on the tale. It had been fifteen years. Fifteen years since Trisha had been shut out of her brother’s political career, the family’s most precious dream. The beginning focuses on Trisha, a young brilliant brain surgeon, and the dynamics she has with her family. Her family is rather large but I never felt overwhelmed with characters, Dev is amazing at weaving sibling, parent, cousin, and grandparent relationships into the fabric of the story. We learn how Trisha feels like an outcast in her family because of how a friendship (Julia Wickham) ended up hurting her brother Yash, a US District Attorney gearing up to make a run at California Governor. I can't even put into words how Dev expertly touches on and relays all those complicated family feelings; you'll get sucked in believing the Rajes are a real family and probably personally connect with some of their issues. “Looks like we’re stuck together for the sake of our sisters.” He pulled the door shut, put the car in gear, and shot off around the looping driveway, watching her disappear in his rearview mirror. She didn’t look any happier at the prospect than he was. DJ comes into the story with the opposite of a meet-cute with Trisha, leaving him to believe she's an arrogant snob. He also turns out to be the older brother of Emma, a patient of Trisha's. Emma has a brain tumor that other doctors have said is inoperable, but Trisha has developed a way to remove it, however, it would leave Emma, an artist, blind. Emma wants to refuse the surgery and DJ is mad that Trisha won't heavily push her. They are forced to spend more time together when, because of his friendship with one of Trisha's cousins, leads to him catering for her brother Yash's campaign fundraiser. Further complicating matters is Trisha's past enemy, Julia, snaking around DJ and Emma. My sister is not live tissue. But DJ Caine was wrong. That’s precisely what Emma had to be to her, because Trisha knew exactly what to do with misbehaving live tissue. Trisha is harder to warm up to right away, she is a bit arrogant but Dev deftly draws out her character through showing how she grew up, the dynamics, her guilt, her love for her family, and the very essence of what makes Trisha such a brilliant surgeon. Her character is a master class in giving what people need from you while still staying true to your core and finding someone who understands and loves you because and despite it all. It takes a little longer to get to DJ but Dev gives him as much depth and breadth to his character as Trisha. His background, parent's situation, racial and class divisions, relationship with surrogate mother, and being responsible for Emma at a young age, breath life into his thoughts, feelings, actions, and motivations. The romance is all at once the background and motivation for the story, family dynamics steal the show often enough but without those dynamics driving the story, the romance would not flourish and feel as complete the way it does. Their relationship is very biting at first but as Dev peels back the layers on Trisha and Dev, it becomes clear how they are talking at cross purposes to each other and you begin to root for these two to clear up misunderstandings and give into what their hearts are trying to tell them. As I said earlier, there is no way to touch on all the characters and threads that make this such an enriching full story. I don't know if it is a term but this read like literary romance, Dev beautifully began a woven tapestry of the Raje family. I've called Dev a “lip quivering” author and while the emotions can be quite raw at times, there is always an underlining hopefulness to her writing that makes me believe that love will win in the end. I'm utterly invested in the Raje family and can't wait for the next in the series.

Pride and Prejudice and Other Flavors is a modern retelling of the timeless classic. This version has a unique element. The woman, Trisha, is proud, and the man, DJ, is prejudice. I liked Trisha. She is proud because she's a surgeon, and that's a justifiable reason. She is an intelligent, strong and likeable character. DJ, on the other hand, I despised. At some point, I should have come to like him, like in the original, but that didn't happen. He's just unlikable and garners no sympathy. I understand that the differences between social classes is supposed to be sharply rendered, but prejudice is present in every class and every race. Much of it is due to extreme ignorance, lack of education and an unwillingness to admit or acknowledge that these attributes are present. I see all of this in DJ. His character soured what was otherwise an engaging story. Everything else is quirky and charming and it flows well. The culture is beautiful described, well written and immersive. The place and time have a true feeling of life about them. Overall, I'm just ignoring DJ because he's a drag who brings the review down to a two star,and I think it's better than that. Instead, I'm focusing on the merits of the story. It's a delightful and culturally rich retelling. For the positive attributes, the story is more of a four star. Thanks to NetGalley for an arc in exchange for an honest review.

The genres of popular fiction each have their own modes of description, a palette of language that feels comfy and recognizable to the reader. For romantic fiction, there is a limited common vocabulary of attraction; fair enough, I would have said, because there are only so many ways to describe it, right?Wrong.Sonali Dev has come up with a way of evoking attraction and the negotiations of relationships that is so original it left me gasping with delight. Her characters are unique not just in the details of their lives but also in their ideas and thought patterns, and she draws in all the senses at once to bring those descriptions to life. Dev has exploded the envelope of what's possible in the genre. Physical attraction is all tied up in the characters' experiences of the past and hopes for the future, their world views and values, in what they like and what they do and who they are; the result is a remarkably deep dive into another person's psyche.As you may imagine from the book's title, the story is grounded in Jane Austen's classic, but there is nothing derivative in this book. First of all, Dev messes with the genders in ways that lead to surprising twists and reimaginings. The Elizabeth character, Trisha Raje, is a neurosurgeon from a demanding, ambitious, and highly privileged East Asian American family, with all the under-examined privilege and unconscious arrogance that implies. The Darcy character, meanwhile, has an equally strong sense of family but a hardscrabble upbringing full of loss and experiences of prejudice that have left him still externally calm but seething with resentment underneath. He pours all his love and passion into cooking. Although the external circumstances are wildly divergent from the original, though, Dev does what so few Austenesque novels bother to do--she remains true to the themes of the original. The changes bring inventiveness and surprise, but the strong themes of family loyalty and the ways it is tested; judgment and understanding; and what we owe to society add richness and depth.For those who are concerned with such matters, there are no explicit descriptions of sex acts in the book. Toward the end a couple gets perilously close but heads for another room before getting down to brass tacks. For those who enjoy sex in their fiction, I don't think you'll miss it because of the rampant celebration of other forms of sensuality throughout. For those like me who are squeamish about sex in prose, I thought the author got the balance just right: the desire is so well contextualized that it felt natural, not jacked into the text to titillate. I am more titillated by thoughts and emotions anyway, and felt well taken care of here. That said, the descriptions of food should come with a warning label: they will leave you weak-kneed and craving the real thing.If I had any quibble, it would be how long the author teases the reader with hints of past events that cast a long shadow over the present. But I was having so much fun that I was tolerant of the author's making game of me. The book feels so organically complete that I was surprised to learn, after the fact, that Dev is planning a series of Austen-based novels centering on the Raje family. But I can't wait for more!I wrote a much more articulate review that Goodreads inexplicably dumped, but I loved this book so much I stayed up an extra hour to write it again.16 July 2020: Just finished rereading in preparation for reading the second book in the series. Was I less thrilled? Not at all. This time I was reading a hard copy so I got to underline and dog-ear favorite bits. Additional things I noticed this time around was how thoroughly Dev has absorbed Austen's subtlety of social observation, how much of a character she can reveal through small adjustments of body language. Loving, loving, loving it.

Pride, Prejudice, and Other Flavors by Sonali DevA romance in the end but it takes a while to get there. It's a very loose take off from the Austin novel set in today's world where privilege and pride need to be broken down as barriers for the couple really get to know one another.I was happy with the ending. Getting to the ending was a bit difficult in the long narrative background information. Pages and pages. It was mostly interesting with deep family history, culture descriptions, events and so forth, but I found myself wanting to move the story along faster.I ending up loving the characters, especially Emma and how Trisha, as her doctor, works tirelessly to help Emma cope.Trisha's extended family were plentiful and every one had the letters A, S and H in their names.I received a copy of this book from the publisher at a conference. I have purchased other books by this author but haven't read them yet.

This book bewitched me, body and soul. I'm biased as an Austen enthusiast but Pride, Prejudice, and Other Flavors gave me just what I wanted: the acidy burble in my stomach that comes from vicariously living through a glorious misunderstanding between could-be lovers.

The Essence of Jane Austen Infused With Bold Indian-American ZestTYPE OF NOVEL: Pride and Prejudice Modern AdaptationSETTING: San Fransisco, Present DaySYNOPSIS:Dr. Trisha Raje: A brilliant neurosurgeon who developed life-saving technology to help operate on brain tumors comes from a titled Indian family living in California. She is horrible at relationships, feels banned from her family, and has a strong mistrust of others due to appalling events that happened a few years back.DJ Caine: A talented chef who abandoned his life and career in Paris to take care of his sister who has a brain tumor. He is trying to stay above the expensive doctor bills by catering fancy events for the elite such as Trisha’s family.Due to their professions Trisha and DJ are constantly being thrown together. And after a few contentious encounters and misguided prejudgments, their opinions of each other could not be lower. With such critical outcomes at stake, how will Trisha’s and DJ’s animosity effect the delicate and important work they are involved in? Can these two ever learn to understand each other, or has their unpleasant encounters together “built so immovable a dislike?”WHAT I LOVED:- Inspired by Pride and Prejudice: I love that this story only utilized a set of specific parallels to Jane Austen’s original tale. DJ isn’t one of 5 brothers, there is no Mr. Collins/Caroline Bingley/Lady C characters. However, there is a spectacularly horrible first impression, frequent heated debates, a heartwarming devotion to siblings, and the challenges of family, society, and personal development. Other similarities are more shades of Jane Austen, but that makes them even more diverting to spot!- A Brilliant Gender-Swap: Yes! This has to be one of the best and most successful gender-swaps I’ve ever witnessed! I thoroughly appreciated the nuanced way Sonali Dev transformed Jane Austen’s characters into her own. They weren’t reincarnated modern replicas, these characters instead captured key similarities while also exhibiting their own persona. I really enjoyed how these characters were still likable through their flaws. Readers can understand Trisha’s extreme arrogance and sympathize with her reserved/skeptical demeanor, yet at the same time comprehend DJ’s defensive attitude and forgive his errors in judgment.- Compelling Conflicts: Aside from DJ and Trisha, there are other characters in this story with gripping storylines. I was desperate to know what happened in Yash’s (Trisha’s brother who is running for governor) past that ruined Trisha’s relationship with her family. And I was completely consumed by what would happen to Nisha (Trisha’s sister who is hiding a critical secret from the rest of the family) and Emma Caine (DJ’s artist sister with an operable brain tumor). Not to mention Julia Wickahm – who I knew would commit some heinous act to destroy others. I loved that these conflicts weren’t all the same as the ones we experience in Pride and Prejudice, it added some new intensity and suspense.- The Raje Family: There are so many members of this illustrious, royal family. I loved learning more about their history and witnessing each family members’ distinct personality. There is definitely some heart-wrenching pasts for some characters, and I appreciated the depth these experiences gave to these characters. Also, it was a lovely switch to see the “Darcy” character come from a big, dynamic family, when it is usually the opposite.- Other Details: The depiction of immigrant families, Indian culture, funny family nicknames, and inside jokes – I loved all these details that provided such vibrancy and color to this tale. In addition, I absolutely adored every single bit of food described and every decadent and inspiring creation conceived by DJ Caine! What scrumptiously vivid and sensory descriptions. Cooking is indeed an art form.- It’s A Series!?!: I’m so elated! I could not contain my happiness when I read that this book is the first in a series and that Sonali Dev is planning to write more! I cannot wait to learn who takes center stage in the next story and if it will be inspired by another Jane Austen novel!!WHAT I WASN’T TOO FOND OF:That the second book in this series isn’t out yet. I need it yesterday! 😉WARNING: Due to the use of strong language and reference to a sexual encounter (nothing explicit), I’d recommend this book for readers over the age of 14.CONCLUSION:Pride, Prejudice, and Other Flavors is an inventive, remarkable, and perceptive homage to Jane Austen’s characters that I thoroughly admired. This savory and vibrant tale is appetizing enough to tempt readers who enjoy contemporary stories, dynamic family sagas, and compelling fiction. I heartily recommend!Austenesque Reviews

Review to follow

Definitely felt the homage to Lizzy and DarcyI love how this story took beloved character and repurposed them with a different cultural experience.I loved DJ from the beginning and hard to work to like Trisha. This story made me question some beliefs I have about super wealthy people and that was a good thing. Rich and poor people have stereotypes about how the other is living, and we are all too complex for those shallow assumptions.I love that the man was the chef and the woman was the renowned surgeon. I also want to delve more into that Indian/Rwandan heritage. I would have loved more about that in the story since Indians and Black or African people don’t have the same experience as far as racial injustice.Also, there was an implication about Emma and the friend who left the VW beetle. Is there any romantic. Feelings there.A great story about family dynamics, love and first impressions being correct or are they?

☆☆☆☆I come upon this book by chance, I’ve never read any books by this author and when I realized this was a Pride and Prejudice retelling I was eager to start as soon as possible.Dr. Trisha Raje is San Francisco’s most acclaimed neurosurgeon. She is considered the black sheep by her Indian American family, the Rajes, a family that has been setting rules since the beginning of their arrival to the continent. Trisha has been breaking those rules, having a chance at redeeming herself. Chef DJ Caine comes into the picture when he is assigned to cook for her family. He has known people like Trisha before and he is not eager to put up with someone that judged him. He cannot pass the opportunity to work for the Rajes since he needs the money for his sister’s surgery, discovering that Trisha is also the only surgeon capable of saving his sister. I thought this was going to be a romance contemporary book, and it is at some parts. To be honest, for me is not that much of a romance since the main characters don’t come into contact that very often, always trying to avoid each other. However, I enjoyed the author’s writing so much that I didn’t mind the lack of romantic moments. I liked how everything was narrated, and I loved the author’s intake on this retelling of Pride and Prejudice.