Spotlight & Giveaway: Sunshine and Spice by Aurora Palit

Today it is my pleasure to Welcome author Aurora Palit to HJ!

Hi Aurora and welcome to HJ! We’re so excited to chat with you about your new release, Sunshine and Spice!

Hi, HJ readers! I’m honoured to be here.
 

Please summarize the book for the readers here:

Sunshine and Spice is my love letter to anyone who has ever felt they don’t fit the mold of what or whom they’re supposed to be.

Charming, bubbly Naomi Kelly is hell bent on making her brand consulting business a success, even if that means pretending she’s up to the task of meeting all of the specific and intimidating standards her new client, Gia Mukherjee, expects her to deliver. Gia wants her rebranded business to pay tribute to her Bengali, immigrant roots and Naomi, the daughter of a woman who ran away from home and rejects anything and everything related to her South Asian heritage, soon realizes she is in way over her head. Lucky for her, Gia’s grumpy middle child, Dev, is in over his head, too: against his wishes, his mother has hired a matchmaker to find him a “proper,” South Asian wife. But having grown up witnessing his parents’ cold, loveless marriage, finding a life partner is the last thing Dev wants. When Naomi suggests they fake date to solve their dilemmas — she’ll help him thwart potential matches and he’ll teach her how to meet his mom’s impossible expectations — Dev believes they’ve found a flawless solution to their problems: she needs an in and he needs an out. Easy, right?

Wrong. In true romance novel fashion, they are so very, very wrong.
 

Please share your favorite line(s) or quote from this book:

Dev turned to find Naomi walking in, an oversized black sketchbook tucked under her arm. She was wearing a stiff-looking blazer again but, underneath, she had opted for a soft pink sweater that brought out the rosiness in her cheeks.

Not that he noticed. It was just that she was so… Bright. Bright curious eyes, a lit-up smile. Even her annoyance sparked. The way she was bounding over to him now was a ray of sunshine bouncing off ocean waves.

He hated the beach, especially on a sunny day.

Please share a few Fun facts about this book…

• Some of the scenes mimic iconic Bollywood vibes: bright splashes of colour as people dance in unison, romance in the rain, comedic misunderstandings, and, of course, drama where every single auntie MUST get involved.
• I picked Kelowna, British Columbia as the setting because of its gorgeous setting, bustling tourism industry, and multicultural population, which are all important aspects of Naomi’s character development.
• I have a whole playlist for Naomi and Dev, but two songs that stick out are: Honey by Raveena and I Like Me Better by Lauv.

What first attracts your Hero to the Heroine and vice versa?

Naomi loves to roast Dev and her heart swoops for every hard earned smile (complete with dimples!). He also comes from the kind of family she’s never known: tight knit and too involved in each other’s business, and even though Dev seems suffocated at times, his loyalty and love for his family means a lot to Naomi.

Reserved, awkward, and more than a little grumbly about everything, Dev is attracted to Naomi’s warmth. Naomi is his sunshine.

Did any scene have you blushing, crying or laughing while writing it? And Why?

I loved writing Dev’s grumpy-with-a-gooey-centre character. For the life of him, he can’t be charming when he needs to be and this particular scene, which occurs in an Indian restaurant after Naomi witnesses Dev’s date throw a glass of water in his face, always makes me giggle (with pity, if I’m being honest):

Naomi watched as Dev attempted to dry the front of his shirt, a sour look on his face. “So, when’s the wedding?”

Dev shot her a glare, but there was a faint twitch to his lips. “Very funny.”

“What happened?”

Tossing the napkin on the table, Dev massaged his eyelids with his fingertips. “I don’t know. I’m not good at small talk to begin with—never mind with strangers who inform me they want three kids in three years before we’ve even ordered an appetizer—and everything I said seemed to piss her off.”

“Well, what did you say?”

“I don’t know, normal things. I mentioned how ridiculous it is to pay for overpriced food that our parents cook all the time.”

Naomi swallowed a smile. “Did she pick the restaurant?”

“Yes.”

“Mmm. Go on. What else did you say?”

“She mentioned something about soaking up some final beach time before everything cools off and I told her I hate the beach.”

“You hate the beach?”

Dev frowned impatiently. “It’s always crowded, people litter everywhere, and don’t get me started on those disgusting porta-potties.”

Naomi couldn’t help herself. She grinned. “And what led to her throwing her drink at you?”

This time, Dev had the decency to look embarrassed. “I… might have called her by the wrong name.”

Readers should read this book….

…if they like/love/want: banter as a love language; humour; BIPOC stories; slow burn romance; Canadian smut; fake dating; identity politics; piggybacks in the rain; food porn; dual POV; meddling families; couples cooking classes gone terribly wrong; stories of female empowerment; finding love while finding one’s self; open door heat; diverse characters; and/or lovable, sometimes cringey, moments that make one’s heart squeeze.

What are you currently working on? What other releases do you have in the works?

Book two is underway but currently under wraps. BUT, because I live for the tea: it’s set in the same universe as Sunshine and Spice, features a love-to-hate character as FMC, and will be released in 2025!
 

Thanks for blogging at HJ!

Giveaway: A finished copy of SUNSHINE AND SPICE by Aurora Palit

To enter Giveaway: Please complete the Rafflecopter form and Post a comment to this Q: Among other things, Sunshine and Spice is a celebration of love and…food! What’s your favourite dessert?

 
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Excerpt from Sunshine and Spice:

Dev came to an abrupt halt and shook out his damp hair. Crouching, he gestured to his back.
“Hop on.”
“Really?” Naomi asked with a delighted grin. “I wouldn’t want to impose,” she added, but already she was gripping his shoulder with one hand while trying to gather her long, heavy skirts in her other so she could climb on.
“Today, Naomi,” Dev said through gritted teeth after her third unsuccessful try. By now, the beginning of an all-out shower was underway, and the fabric of his kurta was wet and sticking to his skin, rough and itchy. This was why he never wore traditional clothing unless absolutely necessary. Yet as he watched Naomi struggle with her skirt, the long length of turquoise bracelets tinkling on her arms and her soaked curls spiraling over her ornately decorated blouse, he had to admit that the traditional clothing was undeniably appealing to look at. Even while wet.
A drop of water snaking its way downward across the few inches of smooth flesh between the hem of Naomi’s top and the waistband of her skirt caught Dev’s eye, and he painstakingly averted his gaze. Especially while wet.
Since childhood, he’d been dragged to traditional events like Garba. Dev was more than well acquainted with the gaudiness, the heaping of heavily spiced foods, the cacophony of drums, music, and jubilant South Asians trying to outdo one another.
In another month or two, they’d be back and it would be the same damn drill.
But nothing could have prepared Dev for tonight. In her brightly colored dress, a smile permanently etched on her face, and practically vibrating against the beat of the dhol, Naomi was more than her usual, bright self. She was brilliant. Several times, Dev had caught her adjusting the dupatta around her neck so it rested just so and twisting her hip from side so she could watch the graceful swirl of her skirts around her ankles. The fact that he’d contributed to her obvious pleasure by doing something as insignificant as buying her that dress did weird things in his chest.
When Naomi finally hoisted herself onto his back, Dev could feel the bunched fabric of her skirts creating a thick barrier between them, preventing her legs from finding a suitable angle over his hips. Already she was slipping off. Without thinking about it, Dev cupped her smooth, supple calves in his hands and gently pulled her as snugly against him as he could. He thought he felt her muscles flex in his grip, but he couldn’t be sure. His fingers might have twitched slightly, too, unable to resist luxuriating in Naomi’s soft, warm skin.
Maybe Dev wasn’t sure of anything anymore.
“Hold on tight,” he said before he shot out into the dark parking lot, zigzagging his way when cars were too tightly packed to ensure Naomi’s safety when they squeezed past. He waited for her to complain about the bumpy ride or, at the very least, urge him faster in an attempt to save her brand-new, dry-clean-only outfit. But she surprised him.
Naomi laughed the entire way, the musical notes of her joy seeping past his itchy kurta, more persistent than the rain, sinking bone deep. Her laughter, and the tinkling of the bangles on her arms wrapped around his chest, would be imprinted on his eardrums for a long time.
And he wouldn’t mind.
When they reached the car, Dev immediately cranked the heat, adjusting the vents so they pointed at Naomi, who was shivering. Water streaked across Naomi’s face, her haphazard curls dripping, and her gauzy dupatta clung to her neck like a wet plastic bag.
She looks absolutely beautiful, Dev realized with a start. But out-loud he blurted, “You have raindrops in your eyelashes.”

Excerpt. © Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved.
 
 

Book Info:

When two complete opposites agree to fake date in order to solve their cultural dilemmas, they find the only force more powerful than an immigrant mother’s matchmaking schemes might just be true love.

Naomi Kelly will do anything to make her new brand consulting business a success. When she lands a career saving contract to rebrand the Mukherjee family’s failing local bazaar, she knows there can be no mistakes. But as the “oops” baby of a free-spirited Bengali mother, Naomi’s lack of connection to her roots represents everything Gia Mukherjee disdains.

Enter, Dev Mukherjee.

Dev knows everything his mother wants…including her wish for him to get married, like, yesterday. When Gia hires a matchmaker (without, you know, asking him), Dev vows to do whatever it takes to avoid ending up in a cold, loveless marriage. When a potential match assumes Naomi is his girlfriend, the solution to both their problems becomes clear: Naomi will pretend to date Dev in order to sabotage his mother’s matchmaking efforts in exchange for lessons in Bengali culture. Flawless plan, right?

But as Naomi and Dev bond over awful dancing at Garba, couples cooking classes, and tackling the rebrand as a team, they start to realize while their relationship may be fake, their feelings for each other are starting to become very real. As the line between reality and rumor blurs, Naomi and Dev must confront what it means to fit the mold, and decide how much they’re willing to risk for love.
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Meet the Author:

A first generation Bengali-Canadian, Aurora Palit grew up in rural Alberta, where she was always the only South Asian student in her class. Her love of reading began at age four but it wasn’t until high school—when she wandered into the romance section of a bookstore—that she realized happily-ever-afters are her jam. Flash forward [an undisclosed number of] years and Aurora is now writing those stories with her own unique brand of humor, perspective, and belief that people of color deserve love stories too. During her time pursuing a master’s degree in English literature, Aurora was drawn to discourses on diaspora and identity, racism, and multi-generational immigrant experiences; topics she now explores in her writing.
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