Fighting For Others, Fighting Prejudices/Stigmas, and Fighting for Yourself

Rating: 5 out of 5 stars

Source: Purchased

TYPE OF NOVEL: Emma Modern Adaptation

SERIES: The Rajes#4

NOTE: Each novel in The Raje Series is stand alone and can be read out of order.

THE PREMISE: Vansh Raje has just decided that his next project will be to tackle the homelessness problem in San Fransisco, when a big donor, who is solely impressed with his family connections, offers to fund his project. The only problem is, this donor wants to split the funding he’s already pledged to Naina Kohli’s foundation to build clinics for women in Nepal. And Naina just happens to be a long-time family friend who was fake-engaged to his older brother for ten years (and recently publicly humiliated when he left her for another woman). Even though Naina wants nothing to do with the Rajes, she has no other alternative but to work with Vansh to save her foundation…

WHAT I LOVED:

• Naina: Sonali Dev took the antagonist from Incense and Sensibility – the Lucy Steele character of sorts – and opened her up. She reveals her insecurities, her fears, her childhood scars, and her heart. After seeing Naina’s relationships with her parents and her selfless hard work and genuine care for others, her situation definitely secured my compassion. Naina was a wonderful and worthy heroine, and I was eager to root for her happiness. I also enjoyed the dynamic of her being older than Vansh.

• Vansh: Just like with Pride, Prejudice, and Other Flavors, The Emma Project swaps the genders of Jane Austen’s characters, so Vansh Raje is our Emma! And even though Emma is a character Jane Austen famously stated is “a heroine whom no one but myself will much like,” that is not true for Vansh Raje. He is extremely likable – everyone is charmed by him. Unlike Emma, he isn’t a self-appointed matchmaker that has never left his home village. But like Emma, he has blindspots – he has lived a life of privilege, and in his eagerness to help others, might not always judge best on how to help them. And like Naina, he also carries his own insecurities and wounds from his childhood.

• Emma Echoes: While some of the parallels and nods are easy to spot – Naina’s name is actually Knightlina and Hari is the person that prompted Vansh to take an interest in solving the homelessness problem in San Fransisco, Sonali Dev is a master at subtly. Even though I felt this work had the fewest parallels (compared to the other three books in the series), I loved trying to spot these hidden echos. Aside from the main characters mentioned and themes of helping others, there was a concealed relationship that brought in some Frank Churchill/Jane Fairfax vibes (although I wish they had more page time, but it’s like that in Emma too) and a maybe a Miss Bates type character with whom there was a Box Hill-like-incident. Also, similar to Emma, there were incidences of women feeling limited or dealing with prejudice because of their gender.

• Family Expectations Versus Support: Both Naina and Vansh carry the weight of disappointing their family – in their pasts and even now (when they catch wind of their relationship). They feel some absence of love and support in that quarter, but both are so strong that they learn to cope without it. But the scars never go away, and it was moving to see how both Naina and Vansh dealt with their families and their feelings about their families. I was especially moved by Naina’s relationship with her mother and Vansh’s relationships with his father.

• Sonali Dev’s Universal Truths: Having read four insightful and inspiring books by this author I’ve noticed that she often builds her stories around these essential themes, and I thought I’d list them here and how they were featured in this story.
  • Chase Your Passions: Don’t let anything stop you from going after what you want. Naina faced a lot of obstacles with chasing her passion, but she never once thought to give it up.
  • Love With Abandon: Open yourself fully for love, be honest and don’t hold back. The fear of being hurt, of rejection, or of failure holds Naina back from ever wanting love or marriage. In fact, she believes love is a lie and that she is incapable of feeling love.
  • The Importance of Being Whole: Everyone – I’ll say it again – ev-ery-one has healing and growing they need to do. To have full happiness or success with your goals and relationships, you need to do the work – analyze your feelings, heal from the hurt, make adjustments. The characters in this story learn they can only move forward after they stop ignoring, burying, running from things that are difficult or intimidate them.

WHAT I WASN’T TOO FOND OF:

• I literally cried when this book was over because I’m heartbroken the series is ending.

NOTE: Due to the use of strong language and the references to/descriptions of  intimate encounters, I’d recommend this book for Mature Audiences.

CONCLUSION: Sonali Dev concludes her brilliant and beautiful series with a moving tale about the importance of learning how best to fighting for others and not forgetting to fight for yourself. The Rajes series is exquisitely crafted – full of vibrant and allegorical prose, character depth and relationship developments, and thought-provoking and perceptive themes. But also, let us not forget the nuanced nods and clever connections to Jane Austen and the rich display of cultural diversity and detail. This series is all. the. things. 💜

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✨ E B O O K  S A L E  A L E R T ✨

Incense and Sensibility is currently on sale for 💲1️⃣.9️⃣9️⃣

The Emma Project is currently on sale for 💲3️⃣.9️⃣9️⃣

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The Rajes

Pride, Prejudice, and Other Flavors

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Recipe for Persuasion

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Incense and Sensibility

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The Emma Project

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