Match Me If You Can by Swati Hegde

Book Review Feb 27, 2025

My review

3/5 stars

Jia works at a women's magazine in Mumbai and prides herself on being a great matchmaker after making two successful matches for her friends and family. Her best friend Jaiman sees her as more meddler than matchmaker and often challenges her viewpoints. A failed third attempt cause her to question everything she knows about love, and her relationship with Jaiman as a result.

This was a fun, modern take on Jane Austen's Emma. Jia, much like her inspiration, was hard to like at times, but ultimately reached the right character development eventually. Also, much like the original work, Jaiman was the highlight of the book (as was Mr Knightley in the original). He was open, warm, kind and engaging throughout.

If I'm being totally honest though, I was more invested in the friendships around the couple than the couple themselves. They had chemistry, but I think the will-they-won't-they of it all just burned a little too slowly for me to remain completely interested.

I also struggled a little with the setting and the culture of it all. I can't claim to have any familiarity with Indian culture, so it could just be that I have incorrect expectations, but the story felt very Americanised for being set in India and that was a little jarring to me.

All in all, it was a fun, cozy, easy read, but it didn't grab my attention in the way that I expected it to from the blurb.

*I received a free copy of this book from NetGalley and the publisher, in exchange for an honest review.

Book blurb

Confident fashionista Jia Deshpande spends her days writing cliché-ridden listicles for Mimosa, Mumbai's top women's magazine. When she can, Jia dishes about the messy truth of real love on her anonymous blog, attends her family's weekly game nights, and ignores her true feelings for her childhood friend. If that wasn't enough, Jia needs to successfully set up a coworker with her perfect match to get the green light for her new column. Thankfully, organising meet-cutes has never been difficult for her.

Local pub owner Jaiman Patil can't help but be enamoured with Jia and her meddling spirit. He's always been an honorary part of her family, even more so since his own moved to America. Life with the Deshpandes is chaotic and loud, but it's also more loving than anything he experienced growing up, and he wouldn't risk losing that for the world. It feels manageable - until his pub begins to struggle and his feelings for Jia grow deeper.

When Jia's attempts at office matchmaking go haywire, risking new friendships and her relationship with Jaiman, she must reevaluate her own thoughts on love. For the first time, Jia realises that love may be a lot more complicated than she thought. Luckily, happily-ever-afters are never in short supply in Mumbai.