There's Something About Sweetie

Sweet, quick and not overly complex. A great read! !

Ashish is right, there IS something about Sweetie.

This is by far my favorite Sandhya Menon book to date! Don't get me wrong, I really enjoyed her first two books, they were fun, cute romances but - a little forgettable. She took a slightly deeper dive this time and I LOVED IT. It's only been day so far but I think There's Something About Sweetie is one I'm going to remember. Aside from the adorable (as always) romance that is featured, we also take a hard look at; body image issues (particularly how they relate to American-Indian culture), mother-daughter relationships, getting over hard breakups and finding ways to love yourself despite what anyone else thinks.

There were a couple rough patches where the dialog felt a little cheesy or too forced. Especially in relation to the body positive conversations, they felt a little like they came straight from a personal development book. However those issues are pretty minor and are easy to overlook. As a whole I thought this was a beautiful, motivational story and I had so much fun getting to see our main characters fall in love with each other - and themselves.

NOTE: This can definitely be enjoyed fully without reading When Dimple Met Rishi BUT if you have read it -- then I think you're going to love this even more. (Even if you think you miss Celia, trust me.) There's a few little cameos too from the first book which are fun. As for me, I think the romance is even better in this one.

Content Notes/Trigger Warnings:
N/A

Recommend for fans of:
- Lighthearted Contemporaries
- Simple/HEA Love Stories
- Body Positivity
- Bollywood
- Hallmark Channel

3.5 maybe 3.7 Stars
I really appreciate the message of this book.
I even cry over Sweetie and her Amma conversation 2 or 3 times. I really get what she went through.
Overall It is a light, quick read and I enjoy it so much

Incrível!! Apaixonante do começo ao fim, construção linda de personagens e do casal! Amei!

4.5/5 stars — a joyful celebration of fat acceptance paired with a cute romance

In this companion novel to When Dimple Met Rishi, a pair of Indian-American teens are determined to date in spite of obstacles from one family and well-meaning but often frustrating help from the other. The two main characters, Sweetie Nair and Ashish Patel, are star athletes at their schools, but that’s where the similarities end. There’s Something About Sweetie puts a few fresh twists on well-loved romance tropes. The result is a story that’s simultaneously timeless and current.

Sandhya Menon’s books are always brimful of steamy-sweet romance, complex families, and supportive friends. They bring serious issues to the fore without flinching—and also without making the tribulations of heartbreak and life’s more minor dramas seem trivial. There’s Something About Sweetie is a wonderful book I’d recommend highly to readers who enjoy romance-heavy contemporary novels. Although it’s intended for young adults, it has cross-category adult appeal.

So cute. So funny. A wonderful young adult romance that avoids the headaches and gets right to the good stuff. This is the perfect, feel good, like eating a sweet piece of cake kind of book.

Just so much cute omg !! Great follow up to the first book

I couldn't stop grinning the whole time I read! It was such an adorable story!

There’s Something About Sweetie is a companion novel to When Dimple Met Rishi. It totally stands alone – Dimple and Rishi only make a very brief appearance. There’s Something About Sweetie is about Rishi’s little brother Ashish and a girl named Sweetie Nair. Sweetie is a great student and star of her school’s track team. That’s not good enough for her Indian mother because she also happens to be fat. Sweetie’s mother worries that she’ll never find a suitable boy if she doesn’t lose weight.Ashish is recovering from a break-up and decides to do something he never thought he’d do…Ask his parents to set him up with an Indian girl. They choose Sweetie but Sweetie’s mother won’t allow it. She thinks that because Sweetie is fat, she’s not good enough for Ashish or his family. His parents are filthy rich after all. Sweetie and Ashish decide that they want to date anyway. Ashish’s parents make them sign a dating contract outlining the specific dates he and Sweetie are allowed to go on. Hopefully, Sweetie’s mother won’t find out.I appreciated that this book showed that just because someone is overweight, it doesn’t mean that they aren’t worthy of love or can’t be happy. And that it’s possible to be overweight and an athlete. I think Sweetie is a great role model – she’s very body positive, which is quite a feat considering how horrible her mother is to her about her weight. However, There’s Something About Sweetie crosses the line into After-School Special territory. I found it to be preachy at times. The dialogue between Sweetie, Ashish and their friends was not how typical teenagers talk. The author definitely had an objective – she wrote that she herself was fat as a child – but I think she was heavy-handed in trying to achieve it. I’d be interested to find out if teen readers feel the same way.

Loved being able to return the Dimple/Rishi world with a story about Rishi's younger brother Ashish and a girl from a cross town high school named Sweetie. Sweetie holds some school records for her track accomplishments, but her mother's behavior over Sweetie's weight and by extension her ability to find a nice Indian boy, are what propels the story. Menon does a great job of transforming Sweetie into Sassy Sweetie and how she comes in to her own.

Sweetie doesn't want to feel ashamed about her weight, but her mother's persistent negative comments can't help but bring her down. Sweetie is a talented athlete and a dutiful daughter, as sweet as her name would suggest. But when Ashish Patel's mother approaches Sweetie's about arranging a match between the two and Sweetie's mother turns her down because of her perceptions of the difference between Ash and Sweetie's appearances, Sweetie does something rebellious for the first time in her life: she contacts Ash on her own...This charming romance does a great job of centering a fat female protagonist. I found that Sweetie's extreme prowess on the track (best in state? California is a big state!) stretched credulity a tad bit. Also, I did not like Ash Patel, who comes across as a bit of a player -- I'm never super excited about bad boys who need the love of a good woman to reform them. But that's just me. Fans of this author's earlier books, and anyone looking for a sweet YA romance, should certainly give this one a try.

Very fun YA rom-com. It's the second in a series, but definitely stands alone.

A sweet YA romance, with Indian protagonists, a diverse cast of characters, and the leading lady is overweight and happy.