A little more than a month ago, I joined a few online book clubs. I used the term “Book Club” loosely, as it’s not an organized thing, more like book forums where people actively talk about what they’ve read.
But one of the forums is dedicated to exchanging books. So, I posted a few books from my bookshelf that I’d be willing to trade, and this book, “Playing With Matches” by Hannah Orenstein was one that’d been on my list for awhile.
So, I mailed one book to this person and she, in return, mailed me this and I was so excited to read it! Here’s the scoop:
Sasha Goldberg has a lot going for her: a recent journalism degree from NYU, an apartment with her best friend Caroline, and a relationship that would be amazing if her finance-bro boyfriend Jonathan would ever look up from his BlackBerry. But when her dream career falls through, she uses her family’s darkest secret to land a job as a matchmaker for New York City’s elite at the dating service Bliss.
Despite her inexperience, Sasha throws herself into her new career, trolling for catches on Tinder, coaching her clients through rejection, and dishing out dating advice to people twice her age. She sets up a TV exec who wanted kids five years ago, a forty-year-old baseball-loving virgin, and a consultant with a rigorous five-page checklist for her ideal match.
Sasha hopes to find her clients The One, like she did. But when Jonathan betrays her, she spirals out of control—and right into the arms of a writer with a charming Southern drawl, who she had previously set up with one of her clients. He’s strictly off-limits, but with her relationship on the rocks, all bets are off.
It’s been awhile since I’ve read a “marshmallow fiction” book or whatever you like to call rom-com types… but I really enjoyed being in this world for awhile. I think ever since I visited to New York City, I have a greater appreciation for books and movies that take place in the city.
This book also added in the world of matchmaking, which has been made a little more glamorous thanks to Patti Stanger and Steve Ward, among other reality stars. I liked getting a small taste of what it would be like to search for dates for someone.
There were, of course, a few twists and turns in the book that were a little OUT THERE… but that’s to be expected. Overall, I thought this was a fun read and I’d read more books with these characters.
I’d recommend this book if you’re already into this genre. The next book Blanche’s Book Club will be reading is “Dear Edward” by Ann Napolitano.
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The Bitter Lemon 