The Marriage Clock: A Novel

Leila Abid is running out of time. At the old age of 26, it’s a shocking embarrassment to her parents that she’s still single! Her well-meaning but somewhat meddling mother suggests an arranged marriage. Although it worked out well for her parents, Leila isn’t interested in that for herself. She compromises with her mother by suggesting that she’ll find her own husband within the next three months, or she’ll allow her parents to arrange a match.

Leila is a modern Muslim woman who is trying to balance traditional beliefs with her contemporary American-born ideals. Her parents married just before moving from India to California. She’s hoping to find a real-life Bollywood romance that will sweep her off her feet. That’s not too much to ask, right?

This book was a lot of fun. You’ll go along with Leila on a lot of dates, most of them memorably and hilariously bad. The end of the book is a bit of a twist, which is just right in some ways but disappointing in others. Despite mixed feelings on the ending, this is a fun book with some great characters. It’s worth taking the journey with Leila to see if she can find her own perfect happily ever after.