Breakaway Books

Authored by Naina Kumar; Published January 2024; Romance

⭐️⭐️⭐️ / 🏖️🏖️🏖️

Say You’ll Be Mine is a great beach read. Did I know how it was going to end within a chapter? Yes, of course. But did it charm me anyway? Yes, it did.

The plot is an old romantic comedy standby: a fake relationship that becomes a real one. But Kumar manages to breathe new life into the story, adding enough detail that it feels more relatable to young adults now. This is not a frictionless path, even once the happy couple is together, because, frankly, an issue that’s real enough to present a true obstacle to marriage doesn’t disappear overnight. 

The primary challenges that our heroes face are not trivial miscommunications–although, unsurprisingly, there is plenty of that. They are the true issues that people of our generation have to contend with: How do you approach marriage when you don’t want to emulate your parents’? How long do you hold on to friendships that have served their purpose? When is it worth it to jump ship from surefire financial success to pursue a true career passion?

And now that I think about it–I suppose those issues aren’t confined to my generation. There aren’t any answers to those questions in this beach read; that would make it far too serious. But, the specter of those issues lends this novel a little more realism, perhaps just enough. 

Those elements shone through and made up for the weak points: a little too much “will they or won’t they,” and secondary characters that felt flat at times. The relationships between the heroes and their parents were heartwarming gems, and I wish other family and close friends had gotten the same treatment.

It’s a delightful (if predictable) rom com to curl up with this fall. You won’t regret it.