I loved Patel’s debut The Trouble With Hating You and picked up First Love, Take Two expecting the same wonderful reading experience. Unfortunately, 33% of the way in, I gave up. I just couldn’t stand another moment. But I’m getting ahead of myself.

Here is the book’s summary:

On the verge of realizing her dream of being a doctor, Preeti Patel should be ecstatic. But between the stress of her residency, trying to find a job, and managing her traditional, no-boundaries family, Preeti’s anxiety is through the roof. Relationships and love aren’t even an option. Fortunately, Preeti’s finally found a new place to stay . . . only to discover that her new roommate is her ex.

Preeti never quite got over Daniel Thompson. Super-hot, plenty of swagger, amazing cook—the guy is practically perfect. And if it weren’t for their families, there might have been a happily ever after. But it’s hard to keep her sanity and libido in check when the man of her dreams is sleeping mere feet away. Can Preeti and Daniel find a way to stand up and fight for each other one last time . . . before they lose their second chance?

It turns out Preeti not only suffers from anxiety but she is “touch averse” – something I know nothing about but found interesting. How does a person who wants to be a family physician deal with such a disability? Also, Preeti is dating a very traditional Hindu man, Yuvan, who expects to marry her. Not only does he expect it but so do his parents as well as Preeti’s. So, you know, no pressure.

Another important point is that it was Preeti who broke up with Daniel. Only she didn’t really break up so as much as run away. She never explained to Daniel – after four years of dating in college – that she had been 1) threatened by his wealthy father, 2) believes her mother’s heart attack at about the same time is the result of her family being shamed by their small Hindu community because she is dating a black man (or maybe he’s just not Hindu?), and 3) she felt like she had to choose between Daniel and her family, that there was no way to have both. She can’t imagine “breaking up” with her family, and can’t imagine telling Daniel any of this, so Preeti bails without a word.

But now she’s completed medical school. She’s interviewing for her first position as a physician. As the book opens, Preeti is looking for temporary digs until a job comes through and her best girlfriends offer her the perfect place to stay. Except it includes Daniel, back in town and also needing temporary digs. (The girlfriends are all about Preeti about to marry a man she does not love, while not sure that Preeti isn’t still in love with Daniel and proximity will answer that question.)

Daniel is in contact with his family but has not been living nearby since the breakup. He is close to his grandparents but not his parents, and he’s resisting getting sucked into his father’s business interests and becoming Dad’s shadow. So, points to Daniel.

I managed to read far enough for Preeti and Daniel to meet in at least two public places and both times Daniel asks her to find the time to explain why she left. He also manages to spend at least 3 nights in the apartment with Preeti, despite her doing everything she can to avoid being in the same room with him. (Although she does get into the only bed in the apartment with Daniel on two of those nights, rationalizing that since he’s asleep, so it’s ok. Maybe I’m just old-school, but if you can’t woman up enough to explain what was going on in your life that caused you to run away, maybe you shouldn’t be sleeping – even only platonically – in the same bed with him.)

I got to this point in the book:

Because one doesn’t get over the love of his life walking away! What the hell, Pree? Why can’t you just give me a damn answer?”

I blinked, a nauseating sensation rumbling through my insides. How hard was it to tell him that I never stopped loving him, and worse than that, I left him for the wrong reasons? The words were simple and few, but they knotted on my tongue and refused to come out.

And I was done.

I assume Preeti finally gets her act together before the end of the book because it is a romance. She’s going to have to 1) break off her relationship with Yuvan, 2) be honest with her parents about her fears about their position in the community, and 3) either stand up to members of her community with or without her parent’s help; or tell them all to take a hike. I was also curious to find out how and when Daniel was going to stand up to his own family. All of this should have made for really interesting reading, and all it needed to unfold was an honest conversation.

But I just couldn’t take one more second of Preeti’s pity party, and treating people she supposedly loves with such discourtesy.

Beyond the lies Preeti’s telling Yuvan and her family (both of omission and outright), Preeti knows Daniel wants to have a conversation, she’s had multiple opportunities to have it, and she’s avoiding it AGAIN? A person who thinks she’s going to be a doctor? Sorry. Doctors know that you don’t let wounds fester. And watching that wound fester for a full third of the book and knowing there was more to come was beyond me.

What I can’t figure out is how Patel could write such strong characters in The Trouble With Hating You; and not see how all the issues she’s thrown in front of Preeti and Daniel (disabilities, new jobs, family dynamics on top of cultural issues) were more than enough material to make for an interesting read. Why make Preeti such a snivelly character?

To be fair, this book does have positive reviews elsewhere. YMMV. If you do read it and like it, I hope you’ll come back to tell others that in order to balance out my own disappointment.

~ Katherine Lynne