ParaNormalRomance.org

"fine ethnic contemporary romance"

In India almost twenty-eight years old Lakshmi has a gift that her mom says comes from the Goddess she is named after who visited her when she was still in the womb. Lakshmi shares her ability to see inside the hearts of people to observe the tribulations that haunt them and she lifts those burdens off of that individual. As a side benefit of her mental skills, Lakshmi knows the perfect color and fabric for patrons of the family's sari shop.

However, because of her age, her mother worries that her daughter remains single so she arranges a match with a friend. Reluctantly as an obedient daughter and to honor her late father, Lakshmi accepts her mother's arrangement. However, as fate (and romance novels) would have it, she meets chauffeur Nick Dunbar and knows he is the one for her because her ability to look into hearts fail whenever she is around him.

Readers will enjoy this contemporary romance starring a delightful likable young woman who balances having one foot in the modern world and another in her heritage. Lakshmi's dilemma feels real as she wants to honor the desires of her mother and her late father, but loves Nick. This is a fine tale that rings true as a genuine chick lit Bollywood style.

Reviewed by Harriet Klausner
Posted August 29, 2006

Reviewed by PNR Group Member
Posted January 20, 2007

Lakshmi Sen was born with a magical ability to perceive the secret longings in others. Putting aside her own dreams to help run her widowed mother's struggling Seattle sari shop, Mystic Elegance, Lakshmi knows exactly how to bring happiness to customers -- from lonely immigrants to starry- eyed young brides. And to honor her father's dying wish, she has agreed to marry a respectable Indian doctor who will uphold her family's traditions.

But when a famous Indian actress chooses Mystic Elegance to provide her wedding trousseau, Lakshmi finds herself falling for the actress's sexy chauffeur -- all-American Nick Dunbar -- and her powers seem to desert her just as she needs them most. As Nick draws Lakshmi into his world, however, new dreams awaken in her, and she begins to uncover deeper, startling longings in her mother, her friends, her fiancé, and even herself. But choosing between Nick and her fiancé seems an impossible task, like intuiting the very nature of true love. Is it instantly recognizable or does it need time to grow? And how can she possibly know for sure?

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