Book Review: “From Twinkle, With Love”

“From Twinkle, With Love” by Sandhya Menon

Source: Owlcrate

Genre: Young Adult Fiction, Contemporary Fiction

Summary:

Aspiring filmmaker and wallflower Twinkle Mehra has stories she wants to tell and universes she wants to explore, if only the world would listen. So when fellow film geek Sahil Roy approaches her to direct a movie for the upcoming Summer Festival, Twinkle is all over it. The chance to publicly showcase her voice as a director? Dream come true. The fact that it gets her closer to her longtime crush, Neil Roy—a.k.a. Sahil’s twin brother? Dream come true x 2.

When mystery man “N” begins emailing her, Twinkle is sure it’s Neil, finally ready to begin their happily-ever-after. The only slightly inconvenient problem is that, in the course of movie-making, she’s fallen madly in love with the irresistibly adorkable Sahil.

Twinkle soon realizes that resistance is futile: The romance she’s got is not the one she’s scripted. But will it be enough?

Told through the letters Twinkle writes to her favorite female filmmakers, From Twinkle, with Love navigates big truths about friendship, family, and the unexpected places love can find you.

Review:

I don’t actively seek out romance books but this was SO cute. Twinkle is so relateable.

I initially didn’t love the letter/diary format of the story. It’s a very narrow way to see the larger story. You’re only seeing things through Twinkle’s perceptive. It does help you to see why she feels the way she does. I felt the burn of tears being held in when the mean crowd makes an appearance. I felt the anxiety of not being sure how to handle feelings for different boys. You really understand her.

Twinkle’s growth through the story was great. I love how she evolves. Much like Menon’s other protagonist, Dimple, I found Twinkle to be relatable but bratty at times. Unlike with Dimple, I thought Twinkle had a great character evolution. She begins to recognize how her behavior is hurtful (yes, it does take some prompting from others to get to to this point) and makes an effort to make amends. Yay for character growth!

The love triangle (square?) is a bit obnoxious. It’s cliche because you can see who Twinkle is meant to be with so seeing her be oblivious is annoying. I suppose we’ve all been oblivious about things like this before.

I love the diversity of the novel. It’s so fun to read a small snapshot of a different culture and life. I would have appreciated a glossary of terms. I could figure out most the words but exact definitions are always appreciated.

All in all, a cute romance that’s wonderfully diverse.

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