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Fashionably Yours
“Maya Kapoor swaps the snowy mountains for the glittering ocean.”
Maya Kapoor arrived in Mumbai with a glamorous dream, quite literally. Maya wants to be a serious fashion writer for the high-end fashion magazine, Glamorous but luck is not in her favour. Instead, she lands a job with a local fashion magazine, Style. Maya hates everything about it but for now this is all she has. Despite all the odds, Maya is excited about living an independent, fashionable life in the city of dreams.
At twenty-five, love has eluded Maya. But when she bumps into the dashing photographer, Aryan Malik, she falls head over heels for his gorgeous smile and charming manner.
But Maya seems to be stuck in a rut - her credit card bills are sky-high, her melodramatic mother can't stop ranting, the boss is unbearably cruel, her younger sister has decided to tie the knot, and she's not sure if Aryan could love a simple, confused girl like her.
Will Maya get the fairytale life she dreamed about or will she let everything slip through her fingers? Read her diary and find out.
Maya Kapoor arrived in Mumbai with a glamorous dream, quite literally. Maya wants to be a serious fashion writer for the high-end fashion magazine, Glamorous but luck is not in her favour. Instead, she lands a job with a local fashion magazine, Style. Maya hates everything about it but for now this is all she has. Despite all the odds, Maya is excited about living an independent, fashionable life in the city of dreams.
At twenty-five, love has eluded Maya. But when she bumps into the dashing photographer, Aryan Malik, she falls head over heels for his gorgeous smile and charming manner.
But Maya seems to be stuck in a rut - her credit card bills are sky-high, her melodramatic mother can't stop ranting, the boss is unbearably cruel, her younger sister has decided to tie the knot, and she's not sure if Aryan could love a simple, confused girl like her.
Will Maya get the fairytale life she dreamed about or will she let everything slip through her fingers? Read her diary and find out.
253 pages, Paperback
First published November 1, 2014
57 people want to read
About the author
Swati Sharma
169 books19 followersSwati Sharma is born and grew up in Delhi. Before dabbling into writing, she completed her post graduation in business. Amazingly she has learned Spanish and German and has valid certification in both but sadly can’t speak any of it in decent fluency. Before writing this book, Swati has authored four coffee-table books and written for a lifestyle magazine. One thing which very few people know, that she is clairvoyant and no it’s not a joke. Currently she lives in Delhi with her extensive collection of nail polishes, lipsticks and with very neat piles of books and magazines. Drop by her facebook or twitter and say hi!
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Displaying 1 - 12 of 12 reviews
November 10, 2014
Also posted on This Chick Reads
*Copy provided by author in exchange for an honest review*
Every fan of chick lit must be familiar with a fab chick lit site, called ChickLitClub which is probably one of the best sites for chick lit/women's fiction. Many reviewers work hard every day, bringing us honest reviews, sharing recommendations and news about everything chick lit. It's through this site that I became familiar with Ms Sharma, reading her honest reviews. When I found out she was publishing a book, I couldn't be happier. I know a great deal of bloggers, who have decided to make the leap (or are currently in transition) and I must say I'm very proud of them all, proud of how brave they are to finally get to the other (not saying darker) side. I really can't be more proud of Ms Sharma, as she proves she has great writing skills and stays truthful to her favorite genre, chick lit.
I expect some of you would be quite surprised with the Indian tradition, all the 'laws' the young need to obey out there, all the things which are really weird for the Westerns. However, I have read another fab chick lit from another writer with Indian heritage, writing about basically the same things a modern Indian girl is facing. I'm talking about Romi Moondi's 'Year of the Chick', which I also enjoyed and reviewed. Now, I only mentioned this book because it was the first chick lit I've read that spoke about India and their tradition. So, baring this in mind, I had no problems in understanding the MC and I sure wasn't surprised with the way she's expected to lead a normal, family life obeying the traditions.
So, we have Maya Kapoor, a young girl with big dreams, trapped (if I may say) in a small, traditional place. While her sisters and most of her friends dream of finding Mr Right (hopefully, he's rich too), becoming mothers and housewives, caring for their offspring and their husbands, Maya dreams of having a career. And not just any career, she dreams of working for 'Glamorous', a fashion magazine she loves. When getting a chance to work in less glamorous magazine "Style', she grabs the opportunity because that way she's at least in Mumbai, the city of opportunities, far enough from her judgmental and narrow minded family (especially her mother). There's also a romance, with a dishy photographer Aryan Malik and loads of laugh out scenes with her BFF Anu.
The plot might seem pretty simple, and not very original. However, what makes this book stand out IMHO are the characters. Maya is an honest girl, saying it like it is, razor-sharp tongue and all. I absolutely loved this about her and her relationship with her best friend and co-worker Anu. They really have a special bond, nothing can break. They understand each other perfectly, and despite the bad language at times, they over come every trouble. And that made them seem even more real as characters, they are flawed and Ms Sharma sure managed to perfectly portray them and make it easier for readers to connect with them. There aren't many characters, but I could tell the author put equal effort in creating Maya and the side characters. It's fun and fast paced, loads of laugh out moments that make this book quite an enjoyable read.
I really enjoyed the humor, even the drama which escalated at the end, however I have to say the ending felt a bit rushed. We're fast forwarded a month or so from some events and I felt some things needed a bit more clarification.
But overall, this was quite a remarkable debut and one I sure enjoyed. I love the fact Ms Sharma wrote about things she knows best, India and their tradition. There were couple of typos or errors, however baring in mind Ms Sharma wrote the entire novel in English which is not her native language, I'm actually pleasantly surprised and in awe of her knowledge in English. I am not from UK or US. But reviewing and reading books in English while not being from the UK/US, sure made me understand and appreciate even more all this effort that Ms Sharma put into her book. I definitely can't wait to read more from this author who has the potential to become a great chick lit star right next to some well known and established names in the chick lit industry.
February 17, 2017
Fashionably Yours is the story of Maya Kapoor, a small town girl with big dreams. While her contemporaries are dreaming of finding Mr.Right and settling down, Maya dreams of making it on her own in the big city of Mumbai. As she lands a job there and moves to the city, against the wishes of her ‘well-wishers’, her adventures begin. From forming friendship to having an infatuation to her gritty work schedule, Maya discovers her independence and its cost. Will she be able to live her dreams or will they be shattered?
Maya comes from a middle class family from a small town. As such the author has kept her character true to her roots. As she tries to live her dreams, she discovers the allure of material things, an obnoxious boss, the wonder of friendship and even a man who puts butterflies in her stomach. She was quite relatable and I loved her runaway tongue. Aryan on the other hand is a manifestation of many women’s dreams. Handsome and sexy Aryan can match Maya in her tongue in cheek manner. These two characters balance each other out. I also loved the character of Maya’s colleague, Anu who brightened any scene she was a part of.
The plot is not very unique, but the author has added her personal touches to make it her own. In addition, the author’s simple and pleasing narration style makes the book more appealing. The small details that the author has embedded in certain scenes make them come alive and easy to picture in one’s mind. The cover catches the essence of the book and I think that the red double decker bus on it was a perfect touch.
Overall this is one sassy and romantic story that makes for an entertaining light read.
http://www.b00kr3vi3ws.in/2014/12/Fas...
Maya comes from a middle class family from a small town. As such the author has kept her character true to her roots. As she tries to live her dreams, she discovers the allure of material things, an obnoxious boss, the wonder of friendship and even a man who puts butterflies in her stomach. She was quite relatable and I loved her runaway tongue. Aryan on the other hand is a manifestation of many women’s dreams. Handsome and sexy Aryan can match Maya in her tongue in cheek manner. These two characters balance each other out. I also loved the character of Maya’s colleague, Anu who brightened any scene she was a part of.
The plot is not very unique, but the author has added her personal touches to make it her own. In addition, the author’s simple and pleasing narration style makes the book more appealing. The small details that the author has embedded in certain scenes make them come alive and easy to picture in one’s mind. The cover catches the essence of the book and I think that the red double decker bus on it was a perfect touch.
Overall this is one sassy and romantic story that makes for an entertaining light read.
http://www.b00kr3vi3ws.in/2014/12/Fas...
November 2, 2014
Fashionably Yours is Swati Sharma's promising debut for Harlequin, India. I received an ARC copy for my unbiased review.
As the title suggests, Maya is big on fashion and bigger on ambition. Her dream is to leave the small town where she lives with her family, and where the only prospect for her is to fall in with her mother's ambitions and marry a suitable man, abjectly living life on his terms.
Instead, Maya wants desperately to work for an upscale fashion magazine in big, bad, Mumbai, but things keep going wrong for her. That is what I enjoyed most about this book - Maya gets into more scrapes than are legally permissible, even some that may possibly be patently illegal.
The author is very imaginative, so expect at least one twist per chapter! Maya's language is colorful. Here is an excerpt - "My fingers were hurting and my eyes were virtually hanging out of my eye sockets." Yes, it is written in the first person; occasional typos do not detract from a dramatic story. Although it spans 250 pages, it moves rapidly, taking us along through Maya's many escapades, through her journey into (and out of) the handsome, debonair Aryan's bed, and finally to the moment when she realizes more than one dream.
Do read!
As the title suggests, Maya is big on fashion and bigger on ambition. Her dream is to leave the small town where she lives with her family, and where the only prospect for her is to fall in with her mother's ambitions and marry a suitable man, abjectly living life on his terms.
Instead, Maya wants desperately to work for an upscale fashion magazine in big, bad, Mumbai, but things keep going wrong for her. That is what I enjoyed most about this book - Maya gets into more scrapes than are legally permissible, even some that may possibly be patently illegal.
The author is very imaginative, so expect at least one twist per chapter! Maya's language is colorful. Here is an excerpt - "My fingers were hurting and my eyes were virtually hanging out of my eye sockets." Yes, it is written in the first person; occasional typos do not detract from a dramatic story. Although it spans 250 pages, it moves rapidly, taking us along through Maya's many escapades, through her journey into (and out of) the handsome, debonair Aryan's bed, and finally to the moment when she realizes more than one dream.
Do read!
November 11, 2014
"Fashionably Yours" is Swati's debut novel and when she approached me and asked if I would be interested to read and review it, of course I WAS. It actually isn't my first book set in India, I think Ruth Saberton's book "Rearranged" (or "The Wedding Countdown")that was partly set in India was my first one, although it is absolutely my very first strictly India novel, but they both address the topic of living according to tradition, with all its rules and bans versus living a real dream and standing up to your own family and friends. It is rather amazing how big the differences are between the rural and urban India, how harder the girls from the little Indian villages must fight for their dreams, how many obstacles they must avoid, and Swati gives us such a girl in her book.
The main character is Maya Kapoor who dreams of working in a fashion magazine and, against her mother's will, she finally achieves her goal, moves out from her home into big city. Maya can't understand her mother and her sister and friends, whose only dream is of getting married (best to a very rich man), become mothers and housewives, and her mother, sister and friends don't understand Maya - how can she risk having all of this in the name of career? But Maya is a very strong - willed young woman and although the work is not at her dreamed - of "Glamorous" magazine but in "Style", the smaller and a little worse version, she jumps at the chance. And so begins her adventure in Mumbai, a city of many opportunities, where she meets new friends, new foes, new men, and doesn't have to think about her family, until at least one telephone from her mother telling her that her younger sister is getting married...
It was a light, easy to follow story that, although already used many times in books already, was still written with a lot of enthusiasm and faith, and felt really like a breath of fresh air. The characters, though they lacked in depth sometimes, were young, dynamic and had all the ups and downs of young people, living for the first time alone, far away from their families, in strange city, grabbing life at its horns and living life to its fullest, enjoying their lives. It has in a very accessible way told us a story of Maya and her friends, who live not only the adventurous life of young but must also face the consequences and must alone deal with problems. It's colourful, it's vivid, and I could really feel the enthusiasm of the author through the pages. She has drawn characters that popped out of the pages and had their own personalities, she has chosen a very interesting background for the characters, and she crossed all the t's and dotted all the i's: the characters were very different to each other, there were the good and the very bad ones, the situations were described in a very realistic way, the dialogues were modern and rang true, there were elements of drama and romance as well.
However, I must admit I had some problems with the book. Firstly, with Maya herself. I don't understand why so much hate surrounded her, it seemed that everybody, starting with her own mother, sister and finishing with her boss and many other work colleagues hated her. To be honest, she was neither the most self - confident nor self - righteous girl that she should elicit such feelings. Secondly, Maya seemed to me as if she didn't really know what she want, she was mostly unhappy with everything. Thirdly, where did she spent all her money and why was she so much in debt? Then I had some issues with the plot itself. I am going to be honest and those are my own opinions so please do not behead me, but mostly I was wondering, what is this book about? Yes, about Maya following her dream, but where does it going to take us to? What is the main point of the story? It seemed to me that the author wanted to write a great, funny, engaging book with great, funny, engaging characters, and she had a lot of great ideas for this, but it was as if the ideas were just thrown in the pot and the lots were drawn because I missed continuity and more depth to both the characters and the plot. But. It is a debut novel and it has a lot of potential to it. It is funny, and even the bad language suits the book perfectly. It was easy to follow, light - hearted read, and I personally think that it's great that Swati, who is born and bred Delhi product (as she herself says :) ), wrote a book set in a place that she knows best. Moreover, she made the story a very quick one, with some twists and turns and didn't make Maya's life a very easy one.
Altogether, it was a fast - paced, light, humorous and enjoyable read, to sugar one or two rainy and dark evenings. It's not going to stay with you for long but the few hours spent on reading it are going to flow quickly. One star extra of encouragement for Swati because this story really had potential and it would be great to read more from her in the future.
Copy received from the author in exchange for a review.
The main character is Maya Kapoor who dreams of working in a fashion magazine and, against her mother's will, she finally achieves her goal, moves out from her home into big city. Maya can't understand her mother and her sister and friends, whose only dream is of getting married (best to a very rich man), become mothers and housewives, and her mother, sister and friends don't understand Maya - how can she risk having all of this in the name of career? But Maya is a very strong - willed young woman and although the work is not at her dreamed - of "Glamorous" magazine but in "Style", the smaller and a little worse version, she jumps at the chance. And so begins her adventure in Mumbai, a city of many opportunities, where she meets new friends, new foes, new men, and doesn't have to think about her family, until at least one telephone from her mother telling her that her younger sister is getting married...
It was a light, easy to follow story that, although already used many times in books already, was still written with a lot of enthusiasm and faith, and felt really like a breath of fresh air. The characters, though they lacked in depth sometimes, were young, dynamic and had all the ups and downs of young people, living for the first time alone, far away from their families, in strange city, grabbing life at its horns and living life to its fullest, enjoying their lives. It has in a very accessible way told us a story of Maya and her friends, who live not only the adventurous life of young but must also face the consequences and must alone deal with problems. It's colourful, it's vivid, and I could really feel the enthusiasm of the author through the pages. She has drawn characters that popped out of the pages and had their own personalities, she has chosen a very interesting background for the characters, and she crossed all the t's and dotted all the i's: the characters were very different to each other, there were the good and the very bad ones, the situations were described in a very realistic way, the dialogues were modern and rang true, there were elements of drama and romance as well.
However, I must admit I had some problems with the book. Firstly, with Maya herself. I don't understand why so much hate surrounded her, it seemed that everybody, starting with her own mother, sister and finishing with her boss and many other work colleagues hated her. To be honest, she was neither the most self - confident nor self - righteous girl that she should elicit such feelings. Secondly, Maya seemed to me as if she didn't really know what she want, she was mostly unhappy with everything. Thirdly, where did she spent all her money and why was she so much in debt? Then I had some issues with the plot itself. I am going to be honest and those are my own opinions so please do not behead me, but mostly I was wondering, what is this book about? Yes, about Maya following her dream, but where does it going to take us to? What is the main point of the story? It seemed to me that the author wanted to write a great, funny, engaging book with great, funny, engaging characters, and she had a lot of great ideas for this, but it was as if the ideas were just thrown in the pot and the lots were drawn because I missed continuity and more depth to both the characters and the plot. But. It is a debut novel and it has a lot of potential to it. It is funny, and even the bad language suits the book perfectly. It was easy to follow, light - hearted read, and I personally think that it's great that Swati, who is born and bred Delhi product (as she herself says :) ), wrote a book set in a place that she knows best. Moreover, she made the story a very quick one, with some twists and turns and didn't make Maya's life a very easy one.
Altogether, it was a fast - paced, light, humorous and enjoyable read, to sugar one or two rainy and dark evenings. It's not going to stay with you for long but the few hours spent on reading it are going to flow quickly. One star extra of encouragement for Swati because this story really had potential and it would be great to read more from her in the future.
Copy received from the author in exchange for a review.
November 26, 2014
http://njkinny.blogspot.in/2014/11/bo...
Fashionably Yours is Swati Sharma's debut novel and narrates the story of Maya, a small town girl with big dreams. She wants to become a successful fashion writer for the top fashion magazine, Glamorous in the glitzy city of Mumbai. Against the social expectations, she embarks on her journey to realize her dreams and faces many misadventures along the way including her not so smooth love ride with a man who makes her heart flutter.
Will Maya be able to prove everyone wrong and realize her dreams?
Will she get her fairytale happily-ever-after with the man she loves?
What challenges will she have to face to get her perfect life?
I absolutely adored the cover. It is catchy and instantly attracts the readers' attention. The blurb is intriguing and forms an image of a normal middle class Indian girl trying to fight her way into the glamorous world of fashion. Both the cover and blurb will attract the readers loving chick lit and romance towards this book.
The plot idea is pretty conventional but Swati is able to make the idea her own. I loved the opening scenes of the book which relate the typical life in the small towns in India complete with the nosy neighbours, gossipy women and the chit chat that revolves around the latest daily soaps on TV! The unsaid expectation of the society for girls to simply fall into its predefined mold and the general distaste that people show towards women or girls who want more from their lives is beautifully protrayed by Swati. Maya is expected to marry a guy and settle down comfortably but when she wants to pursue her ambitions in another city, she is looked down upon and her mother is subtly warned by the other women of the damage to their image in the society if this happens. How sad is this attitude!
The middle part of the book lags a little and the story seems like it has lost its direction but then the author brings it back on course during the later half and all is well! :)
Swati's writing style is simple and engaging. She is able to create a mental picture of the scenes in the minds of the readers. The only let down for me was the excessive use of slang. I think the correct impact could also have been made without the usage of slang so much. This is just my personal opinion. The characters and story telling lacked a little polish but seeing as how this is the author's first attempt at story telling, I cant help but feel impressed. She is talented and no doubt will improve with each subsequent book.
The characterization is expertly done. Maya plays the rebellious small town girl well but her transition once she reaches Mumbai sometimes made me grit my teeth in exasperation. She is always complaining. I was also not able to understand why she was always broke. People from middle class families usually know the value of money but Maya cant help buying a much too expensive perfume even when she knows she cant afford it. In some ways, I could connect with her but generally she was just a girl I could not seem to relate to.
Aryan's character, on the other hand, had me enchanted. He is handsome, sexy and well balanced in his approach. The bickering between him and Maya was entertaining and made me smile. Maya's best friend Anu is just like Maya and not someone I could connect to. However, her friendship and care for her friend touched my heart and made me see her in a new light.
I loved reading about Maya's adventures with her obnoxious and demanding boss, her less than stellar life in Mumbai which is completely different from her expectations, her mounting credit card bills and her anxiety at being in love with a hunk and confused why he is interested in a less than curvy, non sexy girl like her! Add a huge dollop of drama, emotional scenes, the eccentric quirks of characters and you have Fashionably Yours in a nutshell.
All in all, Fashionably Yours is a story that will entertain and have you smiling while reading it. I look forward to reading more from Swati in the future and wish her the very best. 4 out of 5 to Fashionably Yours and recommended to all chick lit lovers.
I received the book from the author, Swati Sharma and the publishers, Harlequin India and I am very thankful to them. The above review is my honest and unbiased opinion and in no way influenced.
Fashionably Yours is Swati Sharma's debut novel and narrates the story of Maya, a small town girl with big dreams. She wants to become a successful fashion writer for the top fashion magazine, Glamorous in the glitzy city of Mumbai. Against the social expectations, she embarks on her journey to realize her dreams and faces many misadventures along the way including her not so smooth love ride with a man who makes her heart flutter.
Will Maya be able to prove everyone wrong and realize her dreams?
Will she get her fairytale happily-ever-after with the man she loves?
What challenges will she have to face to get her perfect life?
I absolutely adored the cover. It is catchy and instantly attracts the readers' attention. The blurb is intriguing and forms an image of a normal middle class Indian girl trying to fight her way into the glamorous world of fashion. Both the cover and blurb will attract the readers loving chick lit and romance towards this book.
The plot idea is pretty conventional but Swati is able to make the idea her own. I loved the opening scenes of the book which relate the typical life in the small towns in India complete with the nosy neighbours, gossipy women and the chit chat that revolves around the latest daily soaps on TV! The unsaid expectation of the society for girls to simply fall into its predefined mold and the general distaste that people show towards women or girls who want more from their lives is beautifully protrayed by Swati. Maya is expected to marry a guy and settle down comfortably but when she wants to pursue her ambitions in another city, she is looked down upon and her mother is subtly warned by the other women of the damage to their image in the society if this happens. How sad is this attitude!
The middle part of the book lags a little and the story seems like it has lost its direction but then the author brings it back on course during the later half and all is well! :)
Swati's writing style is simple and engaging. She is able to create a mental picture of the scenes in the minds of the readers. The only let down for me was the excessive use of slang. I think the correct impact could also have been made without the usage of slang so much. This is just my personal opinion. The characters and story telling lacked a little polish but seeing as how this is the author's first attempt at story telling, I cant help but feel impressed. She is talented and no doubt will improve with each subsequent book.
The characterization is expertly done. Maya plays the rebellious small town girl well but her transition once she reaches Mumbai sometimes made me grit my teeth in exasperation. She is always complaining. I was also not able to understand why she was always broke. People from middle class families usually know the value of money but Maya cant help buying a much too expensive perfume even when she knows she cant afford it. In some ways, I could connect with her but generally she was just a girl I could not seem to relate to.
Aryan's character, on the other hand, had me enchanted. He is handsome, sexy and well balanced in his approach. The bickering between him and Maya was entertaining and made me smile. Maya's best friend Anu is just like Maya and not someone I could connect to. However, her friendship and care for her friend touched my heart and made me see her in a new light.
I loved reading about Maya's adventures with her obnoxious and demanding boss, her less than stellar life in Mumbai which is completely different from her expectations, her mounting credit card bills and her anxiety at being in love with a hunk and confused why he is interested in a less than curvy, non sexy girl like her! Add a huge dollop of drama, emotional scenes, the eccentric quirks of characters and you have Fashionably Yours in a nutshell.
All in all, Fashionably Yours is a story that will entertain and have you smiling while reading it. I look forward to reading more from Swati in the future and wish her the very best. 4 out of 5 to Fashionably Yours and recommended to all chick lit lovers.
I received the book from the author, Swati Sharma and the publishers, Harlequin India and I am very thankful to them. The above review is my honest and unbiased opinion and in no way influenced.
December 11, 2014
Originally reviewed for https://bookaholicconfessions.wordpre...
Fashionably Yours tells the story of ambitious twenty five year old Maya Kapoor. Maya is determined to do something with her life, other than be married off to some man she’s met before by her mother and live forever under the scrutiny of her family.
Maya dreams of working for the hugely successful ‘Glamorous’ magazine after spending so many years devouring its glossy pages, but when she is offered a job at the not-quite-as-fabulous ‘Style’ magazine, desperate to escape her mother’s clutches she accepts and heads off to live a super fashionable, super successful life as an independent woman in the city of Mumbai…
Only things don’t quite go to plan. It turns out that living the life of a successful independent woman is hard. Unable to resist the tempting calls of retail therapy and acquiring one or two debts, living on take-outs and working for one mega-cow of a boss, Maya struggles to find her feet. However she overcomes these struggles with help from her best friend Anu and she is one tough cookie. Maya gives as good as she gets and is determined to get what she wants. (Including that hot looking photographer, Aryan Malik, who has turned up at the ‘Style’ offices…)
However everything looks set to change when her mother rings her up to inform her that her younger sister is getting married (and before Maya no less!) and Maya suddenly finds herself fighting a whole new series of battles…
I loved the sound of Fashionably Yours; the plot line sounded like classic chick-lit (plus there’s the added extra of having a fashion related storyline…always a winner in my eyes!)
As soon as I started reading I became engrossed in Maya’s battle to follow her dreams against the wishes of her family. I really enjoyed reading about the Indian traditions and feel as though I learnt a fair bit about their culture. I don’t recall reading a book that was set in India before so it was a completely new back drop to a story for me, and one that I found to be really enjoyable. The Indian traditions were really brought to life and very authentic to read about, especially as I didn’t know a great deal about them. Whilst I found this side of the story fascinating, I really felt for Maya and the difficulties she went through to be allowed to go off and live a life of her own as opposed to obeying all the rules and traditions of her culture. Swati really did a good job of conveying what life must be like for young girls in India that are expected to live their lives in a certain way.
I loved Swati’s style of writing; reading this novel feels just like having a good old gossip with your best friend and it’s extremely easy to glide through. The writing is down to earth and draws you in with its witty, conversational tone.
I fell in love with Maya right from the off. She is definitely my kind of girl with her love for fashion that she can’t afford and a fondness for ice-cream. She’s inspiring with the way that she sets out to achieve her dreams and works extremely hard in the process. She’s insecure, funny without even realising it and down to earth. She does sometimes overreact and do the odd thing that will have you yelling in frustration, but that means she’s just like the rest of us. I saw a scarily large amount of myself in Maya but I have decided that’s a good thing as she’s pretty ace when it comes down to it.
I didn’t understand why everyone seemed to have it in for Maya; her boss, her mother, her sister, her co-workers. Give the girl a break!
However she was a brilliantly formed character and her relationship with Anu was pure gold. I loved these two together and how Anu was always there for her friend, no matter what. They’re both hilarious and extremely likeable and their friendship with make you feel all warm and glowy inside.
I found myself getting frustrated with Aryan at times but he does sound pretty gorgeous so I can see why Maya fell for him. As long as he treats her right then that’s just fine…
All in all this is an addictive, very funny story which will open your eyes to one girls struggle to go after her dreams. I thoroughly enjoyed Maya’s roller-coaster of an adventure as she navigates life in Mumbai and found myself cheering for her all the way.
Swati Sharma has produced a very fine debut here and I’m looking forward to reading more from her in the future…
Fashionably Yours tells the story of ambitious twenty five year old Maya Kapoor. Maya is determined to do something with her life, other than be married off to some man she’s met before by her mother and live forever under the scrutiny of her family.
Maya dreams of working for the hugely successful ‘Glamorous’ magazine after spending so many years devouring its glossy pages, but when she is offered a job at the not-quite-as-fabulous ‘Style’ magazine, desperate to escape her mother’s clutches she accepts and heads off to live a super fashionable, super successful life as an independent woman in the city of Mumbai…
Only things don’t quite go to plan. It turns out that living the life of a successful independent woman is hard. Unable to resist the tempting calls of retail therapy and acquiring one or two debts, living on take-outs and working for one mega-cow of a boss, Maya struggles to find her feet. However she overcomes these struggles with help from her best friend Anu and she is one tough cookie. Maya gives as good as she gets and is determined to get what she wants. (Including that hot looking photographer, Aryan Malik, who has turned up at the ‘Style’ offices…)
However everything looks set to change when her mother rings her up to inform her that her younger sister is getting married (and before Maya no less!) and Maya suddenly finds herself fighting a whole new series of battles…
I loved the sound of Fashionably Yours; the plot line sounded like classic chick-lit (plus there’s the added extra of having a fashion related storyline…always a winner in my eyes!)
As soon as I started reading I became engrossed in Maya’s battle to follow her dreams against the wishes of her family. I really enjoyed reading about the Indian traditions and feel as though I learnt a fair bit about their culture. I don’t recall reading a book that was set in India before so it was a completely new back drop to a story for me, and one that I found to be really enjoyable. The Indian traditions were really brought to life and very authentic to read about, especially as I didn’t know a great deal about them. Whilst I found this side of the story fascinating, I really felt for Maya and the difficulties she went through to be allowed to go off and live a life of her own as opposed to obeying all the rules and traditions of her culture. Swati really did a good job of conveying what life must be like for young girls in India that are expected to live their lives in a certain way.
I loved Swati’s style of writing; reading this novel feels just like having a good old gossip with your best friend and it’s extremely easy to glide through. The writing is down to earth and draws you in with its witty, conversational tone.
I fell in love with Maya right from the off. She is definitely my kind of girl with her love for fashion that she can’t afford and a fondness for ice-cream. She’s inspiring with the way that she sets out to achieve her dreams and works extremely hard in the process. She’s insecure, funny without even realising it and down to earth. She does sometimes overreact and do the odd thing that will have you yelling in frustration, but that means she’s just like the rest of us. I saw a scarily large amount of myself in Maya but I have decided that’s a good thing as she’s pretty ace when it comes down to it.
I didn’t understand why everyone seemed to have it in for Maya; her boss, her mother, her sister, her co-workers. Give the girl a break!
However she was a brilliantly formed character and her relationship with Anu was pure gold. I loved these two together and how Anu was always there for her friend, no matter what. They’re both hilarious and extremely likeable and their friendship with make you feel all warm and glowy inside.
I found myself getting frustrated with Aryan at times but he does sound pretty gorgeous so I can see why Maya fell for him. As long as he treats her right then that’s just fine…
All in all this is an addictive, very funny story which will open your eyes to one girls struggle to go after her dreams. I thoroughly enjoyed Maya’s roller-coaster of an adventure as she navigates life in Mumbai and found myself cheering for her all the way.
Swati Sharma has produced a very fine debut here and I’m looking forward to reading more from her in the future…
November 1, 2014
Maya Kapoor is a small-town Indian girl with a big dream: to be a modern, independent woman, and work at Glamorous, a high-end fashion magazine. Every week, her mother's friends and their daughters come over to cook, sew, and talk about their favourite thing: matchmaking. Maya, however, doesn't have any interest in cooking or sewing, and couldn't care less about becoming some man's trophy wife. When she's offered a job at Style magazine in Mumbai, Maya leaves home and hopes for the best. It's not quite the job she wanted, but she figures it's a step in the right direction. Two years later, she's no closer to her dream job at Glamorous, is struggling to pay her bills, and is worried that she may have accidentally flashed her knickers and generously curvy thighs at the gorgeous mystery man in the elevator. As Maya feels the pressure from a demanding boss, her disapproving mother, mounting credit card debt and wondering why gorgeous mystery man is interested in a curvy, less-than-perfect girl like her, Maya wonders if she's meant to achieve her dreams at all. This story expertly contrasts the traditional roles of women vs their desire to be modern and independent. If you want an entertaining read, with laughter and a whole lot of fabulous fashion, then this book is for you. Swati Sharma has a promising career ahead of her.
November 3, 2014
A big thanks to the author for providing me with an ARC of this book. I read the story within a few consecutive days. Being a fan of chick-lit, this didn’t disappoint. The main character was extremely likeable, realistic and with her flaws and problems, at times, made you feel sorry for her. I definitely rooted for her happy ending. The novel is descriptive and wonderfully written. The dialogue between friends is realistic, the sort of gossip you’d have with your friends. It was also nice to learn more about the Indian culture, and their upbringing. The main character was true to herself, and never gave up on her dreams. Well done, Swati! A brilliant first novel for a new author! Check out the interview with the author at www.authorsophia.wordpress.com.
November 4, 2014
This is the first time I have ever read a story that was set in India. I loved reading more about the Indian lifestyle and culture and thought the insight the reader gets into Maya's struggle to find a balance between wanting a career for herself, but at the same time still trying to obey and please her parents, was brilliantly depicted.
Maya and also her friend Anu are really lovable characters and I was straight away intrigued to find out whether Maya will be able to live the life she has been dreaming of and possibly also find a loving boyfriend in the process.
This novel is fast paced and although I thought that some of the plot lines could have been a bit more developed, I very much enjoyed this funny and easy to follow romantic comedy.
Maya and also her friend Anu are really lovable characters and I was straight away intrigued to find out whether Maya will be able to live the life she has been dreaming of and possibly also find a loving boyfriend in the process.
This novel is fast paced and although I thought that some of the plot lines could have been a bit more developed, I very much enjoyed this funny and easy to follow romantic comedy.
December 7, 2014
Review first posted on my blog: http://spoonfulofhappyendings.blogspo...
Maya Kapoor is a twenty-something who has one big dream: she wants nothing more than to work as a journalist for her favourite fashion magazine, 'Glamorous.' In contrast to most girls around her, including her younger sister, Maya doesn't necessarily want to find a rich husband, she'd much rather have her own career and glamorous life filled with expensive shoes and a fabulous job within the world of fashion. So, when Maya is offered the chance to work for magazine 'Style', she immediately grabs the opportunity with both hands and moves to the city of Mumbai. Life at 'Style', however, isn't everything Maya hoped it would be, and neither is life in the city. Together with her best friend Anu she tries to make the best of things, and everything certainly starts to look up when handsome photographer Aryan Malik arrives on the scene...
This was the first book I read set in India and I really enjoyed reading about the Indian culture and the importance of family and tradition. This sense of tradition forms an important and fascinating part of the storyline, since Maya wants to follow her dreams instead of finding a rich man to marry, completely against the will of her mother. I immediately warmed to Maya and kept my fingers crossed for her, hoping she would manage to make it in the fashion magazine world. As a character, she sparked off the pages with her emotions and enthusiasm, and the same goes for many of the other secondary characters, such as Maya's best friend Anu and Maya's parents.
The plotline was quite easy to follow; the idea of a girl going to the city to follow her dreams is perhaps not that original, but I personally thought Maya's journey was really quite entertaining. I do think the author could have done more with Maya and her story; occasionally I felt like the story wasn't really going somewhere concrete. The potential for a great chick lit read is definitely there, but it didn't quite get there for me. I also couldn't help but spot quite a few typos and errors, which I thought was a shame, even though Swati Sharma's first language is not English. Overall, though, I definitely enjoyed reading 'Fashionably Yours'; it's an easy to read and light story about following your heart and fighting for your dreams. A novel with potential, and I already look forward to seeing what else Swati Sharma has in store for us!
Maya Kapoor is a twenty-something who has one big dream: she wants nothing more than to work as a journalist for her favourite fashion magazine, 'Glamorous.' In contrast to most girls around her, including her younger sister, Maya doesn't necessarily want to find a rich husband, she'd much rather have her own career and glamorous life filled with expensive shoes and a fabulous job within the world of fashion. So, when Maya is offered the chance to work for magazine 'Style', she immediately grabs the opportunity with both hands and moves to the city of Mumbai. Life at 'Style', however, isn't everything Maya hoped it would be, and neither is life in the city. Together with her best friend Anu she tries to make the best of things, and everything certainly starts to look up when handsome photographer Aryan Malik arrives on the scene...
This was the first book I read set in India and I really enjoyed reading about the Indian culture and the importance of family and tradition. This sense of tradition forms an important and fascinating part of the storyline, since Maya wants to follow her dreams instead of finding a rich man to marry, completely against the will of her mother. I immediately warmed to Maya and kept my fingers crossed for her, hoping she would manage to make it in the fashion magazine world. As a character, she sparked off the pages with her emotions and enthusiasm, and the same goes for many of the other secondary characters, such as Maya's best friend Anu and Maya's parents.
The plotline was quite easy to follow; the idea of a girl going to the city to follow her dreams is perhaps not that original, but I personally thought Maya's journey was really quite entertaining. I do think the author could have done more with Maya and her story; occasionally I felt like the story wasn't really going somewhere concrete. The potential for a great chick lit read is definitely there, but it didn't quite get there for me. I also couldn't help but spot quite a few typos and errors, which I thought was a shame, even though Swati Sharma's first language is not English. Overall, though, I definitely enjoyed reading 'Fashionably Yours'; it's an easy to read and light story about following your heart and fighting for your dreams. A novel with potential, and I already look forward to seeing what else Swati Sharma has in store for us!
December 11, 2014
Fashionably Yours looked like a really cute read and that is the reason I picked it up when I got the opportunity to read and review it. It is the story of Maya and how she lives in Mumbai with her dreams of making it big at a high-end fashion magazine.
Maya is our protagonist. Maya was a really nice person at heart and the situations she got herself into were hilarious. I did find Maya to be judge mental and easy to jump to wrong conclusions at times but her heart was always in the right place. When Maya meets Aryan things suddenly seem to be looking up where her love life is concerned.
I liked how things with Maya were shown where her job was concerned. Things didn't magically fall into Maya's lap and she had to work hard and find ways to keep herself from drowning in her credit card bills. The romance side of the plot was cute but I did wish we'd got a little more depth where Aryan was concerned.
I absolutely loved Maya's best friend Anu. She was an amazing girl and a best friend anybody would be lucky to have. She was always there for Maya come what may. When Maya's younger sister decides to get married Maya seems to be getting ambushed from all sides. I liked how Maya's family was shown complete with the melodramatic mother and sister and understanding father.
There were a few typos in Fashionably Yours which unfortunately deteriorated my enjoyment of the book. I liked the attention to detail which the author provided and overall Fashionably Yours turned out to be a cute, light and quick read.
*Note: A copy of this book was provided by the author in exchange for an honest review. We thank them.
Find more of my reviews at The Readdicts- http://thereaddicts.blogspot.in/
Maya is our protagonist. Maya was a really nice person at heart and the situations she got herself into were hilarious. I did find Maya to be judge mental and easy to jump to wrong conclusions at times but her heart was always in the right place. When Maya meets Aryan things suddenly seem to be looking up where her love life is concerned.
I liked how things with Maya were shown where her job was concerned. Things didn't magically fall into Maya's lap and she had to work hard and find ways to keep herself from drowning in her credit card bills. The romance side of the plot was cute but I did wish we'd got a little more depth where Aryan was concerned.
I absolutely loved Maya's best friend Anu. She was an amazing girl and a best friend anybody would be lucky to have. She was always there for Maya come what may. When Maya's younger sister decides to get married Maya seems to be getting ambushed from all sides. I liked how Maya's family was shown complete with the melodramatic mother and sister and understanding father.
There were a few typos in Fashionably Yours which unfortunately deteriorated my enjoyment of the book. I liked the attention to detail which the author provided and overall Fashionably Yours turned out to be a cute, light and quick read.
*Note: A copy of this book was provided by the author in exchange for an honest review. We thank them.
Find more of my reviews at The Readdicts- http://thereaddicts.blogspot.in/
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December 27, 2014The content is interesting. I particularly liked the humour. Situations are interesting and characters are nicely sketched. This book is not for those who seek literary crispness. But, if you like to read a light ChickLit, you’ll find it interesting and enjoyable. For me it was an interesting, light and easy read.
Read the full review here:
http://tarangsinha.blogspot.in/2014/1...
Read the full review here:
http://tarangsinha.blogspot.in/2014/1...
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