I didn’t love the audio for this one but I enjoyed the story. I was happy to read a Indian romance that wasn’t a fake dating or marriage trope. This was a fun enemy to lovers romance that was set in India which made it even more fun. I loved learning about India and the cities, food and culture. I just wished there was more angst and I didn’t fully feel the connection between the two MCs.

While The Marriage Code got off to a bit of a slow start for me, once Burroughs hit her stride I didn't want to put this one down. I enjoyed the tech-y portions of the novel which reminded me of my days working in the tech industry. And I really enjoyed the adversarial start to Emma and Rishi's relationship as well as the growth of it - the banter, the teasing, and eventually the honesty. I appreciated how Burroughs conveyed the difficulty that the difference in culture affected Emma and Rishi as their romance bloomed. And her depiction of life in India, both city and more rural, has me very curious about the country. Also, her descriptions of the food kept me hungry! LOL

So despite some bumps - dialog being stilted, irritation with the inability of Emma and Rishi to be vulnerable with each other in the beginning - The Marriage Code is a promising debut. I look forward to seeing more from Burroughs.

I really enjoyed this enemies-to-lovers multi-cultural romance set in India! I really enjoyed how the book wove in Indian culture, food, and traditions. I loved how although Rishi and Emma seemed to be opposites, they also complimented each other really well. I’m a big fan of the enemies to lovers trope and found this one to be unique especially because Emma is a strong female lead in the STEM field. I definitely recommend this book!

This was such a cute romance novel with a little bit of spice. The novel follows Emma, just getting over a fresh break-up, overseas to Bangalore where she has had to relocate for her IT job as the lead on a new app. Rishi can’t believe that the job was given to Emma instead of him and he will be relocating as well to work under Emma. The tension between these two was palpable. There were lots of details about culture and food in this story. I loved how much detail was given about Rishi’s culture and the details about his family home. The author’s personal experience and knowledge definitely contributed to the vivid details of the story.

I would like to thank NetGalley and the publishing house, Montlake, for providing an advanced copy for review. All thoughts and opinions written in this review are my own.

THE MARRIAGE CODE by Brooke Burroughs is an enchanting debut enemies-to-lovers multi-cultural romance set in India. This story is written around a romance trope, but it is so much more with the culture, food and traditions of India blended throughout.

Rishi is sent to his IT company’s Seattle headquarters with the belief he will be heading up a new project. He plans on sending the extra pay home to help with his sister’s wedding and while living in the U.S., the pressure is off him to marry first. Then he finds out, he has been passed over and has to return to India and work with the woman who stole his project position and his family is now putting extra pressure on him to find a wife.

Emma discovers her division in headquarters will be closing down and she jumps at the chance to head up a new project even though she will have to relocate to India. She is named the project head, but has no idea the position was promised to Rishi and now she has to get his professional help on her team for the project to succeed.

Emma proposes a deal. If Rishi will join her team and help her succeed, she will write an algorithm for him to find him the perfect wife. Neither are prepared for the marriage code to be so successful even as they fall for each other.

I enjoyed this debut romance. Rishi and Emma are wonderful main characters that have past hurts and present pressures constantly working against them to overcome for their HEA. All the secondary characters are fully fleshed and add extra depth to the multi-cultural story. Ms. Burroughs is talented at making the reader understand the cultural differences, smell and taste the Indian food and not get bogged down in technical IT descriptions all while intertwining the growing romance throughout.

I can highly recommend this debut multi-cultural romance.

A very refreshing read. I never thought I would like it but I really did. I liked Emma she was a refreshing heroine. I’ve never read a multiracial book before, I certainly didn’t know what to expect. Reading this book was like taking a leap for me.
Overall this was a nice and okay read for me. Cant say that I absolutely loved it but I certainly liked it.
Thank you to the publisher and netgalley for an arc copy in exchange for an honest review.

The Marriage Code is Brooke Burroughs’ debut novel. If you’ve ever read any of my reviews, you know I’m always on the hunt for my next favorite author, so trying a new book by a new author is kind of my thing. With that in mind, the title of this book and the blurb intrigued me, so I decided to jump right in. And I can honestly say that I’m very much looking forward to more from this author.
NICUnurse’s Rating: The story is told from both main characters’ points of view which really makes you like both Emma and Rishi from the very beginning, even though they really can’t stand each other for most of the first quarter or so of the book. It’s all about misconceptions and bad first impressions with these two. But the journey to the happily ever after definitely takes you on an emotional roller coaster. It’s the insight into both characters, though, that had me really wanting to be that mediator and sitting them down together to make them communicate better. But that wouldn’t have been nearly as entertaining to a reader. And the cultural divide didn’t help these two overcome any of their differences very easily, either, which highlights how challenging intercultural relationships can be. Rishi was quite literally stuck between a rock and a hard place trying to figure out whether to listen to his heart or his mind. And Emma was often caught in the crossfire. Needless to say, there were many points in the story where my heart quite literally broke for these two characters. And when it was all said and done, I nearly cheered out loud for them.
If you love contemporary romance that is definitely an enemies-to-lovers trope with complex characters and a lot of emotion, don’t miss your chance to dive into this book. I promise it will be worth it.
I give The Marriage Code by Brooke Burroughs 5 out of 5 stars!

***3 Stars***

The blurb was the lure and sounded like it would be a fun enemies to lovers ride, and for the most part it was an enjoyable read. I liked learning about all the cultures and peoples that make up the country of India and just how diverse they are when it comes to food, religion and how they view each other. But the pacing of the story was off for me. It took me a bit to get into Emma and Rishi, the middle of the book dragged for me and I felt that the ending was a bit too rushed for my liking. As for Emma and Rishi, I liked them, but I did have a rough time truly connecting with them and their love story, though I was happy with how things worked out for them in the end.

While this book didn’t give me the emotional gut punch I was hoping for, it was still a good debut and I feel will do well with those who love multicultural stories, food and their romance on the more sweet side of the heat spectrum.

~ Copy provided by the publisher via NetGalley & voluntarily reviewed ~

With the lack of travel the past year, this book was the just escape I needed - and all the way to India! The descriptive language makes you feel like you're experiencing the vibrant Indian culture right alongside Emma. In traditional enemies-to-lovers fashion, The Marriage Code tells the story of Emma and Rishi, who are polar opposites and yet perfect for each other at the same time. I enjoyed every page of their story!

4 Coding Stars
* * * * Spoiler Free-A Quick Review
I am always interested in a different perspective than my own. I find it important to hear/read stories that give me other life experiences. I love learning and being able to put myself in other's shoes.

The Marriage Code allowed me to do just that. I felt it a strong example of cultural differences, dealing with them, and overcoming the challenges.

Wow, you guys! I can't think of a more wonderful way to kick off 2021 than with The Marriage Code by Brooke Burroughs. Smart, sweet, infuriating fun is what I like to call the relationship between Emma and Rishi. It's creative rom-com at its finest. From the way they meet to the way they interact and turn from friends to more, it's what makes Hallmark and Netflix sit up and take notice.


A perfect way to kick off a year of reading!
~Tanja

The Marriage Code by Brooke Burroughs is a wonderful enemies-to-lovers, multicultural romance set in vibrant India.

This story follows main character, Emma, whose life starts to crumble after declining a proposal from her boyfriend. Although she didn’t feel that passionate love affair with her ex, she certainly feels that way about her work as a program developer. That’s why she jumps at the chance for a promotion to help see her beloved program be developed into an app—even if that means moving to Bangalore for a year. Little does she know, that she will need to recruit Rishi, the one coworker who was promised the job before swept in, to be part of the development team. In effort to sway Rishi to join her team, she offers to develop a code to help him find a perfect bride so he won’t have to rely on an arranged marriage set up by his parents. But when the two start spending more time together, they both start to wish the marriage code never existed.

This was a delightful debut by Brooke Burroughs. Rich in culture with an enemies-to-lovers plot, this is a story that will completely suck you in! I absolutely loved the main characters and couldn’t help but root for them. I also loved seeing the representation of a strong female protagonist in STEM. But what I loved most about this novel was the rich descriptions of the food. If you don’t start salivating while reading this novel, something is wrong with you! Hah! Overall, this was a charming and engaging romance that left me with a smile on my face and a grumbling stomach.

Come for the romance, stay for the food descriptions!

Huge thank you to Amazon Publishing for gifting me a copy of this novel in exchange for an honest review.

Such a beautiful written debut romance.
I enjoyed this story more than I have expected. There’s a lot of chemistry in an enemies to lovers trope usually and this one hasn’t missed the mark with all the great banter and fierce characters.
I really need to try out some of the indian dishes because this story left me wanting to read and know more about some cultures that I haven’t before.
A great debut and a new author that needs to be looked up.

The Marriage Code focuses on Emma, a computer programmer developing a literacy program in honor of her grandmother. Rishi is an app developer, and has been sent to the Seattle office from India. His role there is to redesign Emma's program into an app based system, and this news is not given to Emma, who reacts badly when she learns about it. While trying to save her own position, she has to compromise Rishi and the two work out an arrangement to get her product developed well, and to solve his family issue of finding a wife and starting a family.

The story was interesting, as I don't often find women in CS fields in books, nor are multicultural characters represented. While I appreciated the influx of Indian culture, it was a bit much at times and focused on the food, societal structure, and customs than the relationship between the characters. While the author was trying to be descriptive in her narrative, it came off a bit like alt-text to describe a picture, and lost the charm of the country. It also tended to drag the story and made this a very long novel.

Overall, a 3.5 star read, and good first novel for a new author.

Thank you @amazon pub for the free copy 
The Marriage Cody by Brooke Burroughs #jaylammreviews

Ahh, the enemies to lovers trope really is the best! When Rishi and Emma meet, it is not a great first impression...they both are trying for the same job and Emma gets it. The job forces them to temporarily move to Bangalore India- which for Emma is a brand new adventure, but its going home near family for Rishi. 
Rishi's family is ready for him to marry, and the criteria for the perfect wife is extensive. With this pressure on Rishi, Emma helps him by creating a marriage code to find his perfect match.

What I loved about this story was the beautiful way that Rishi and Emma got to know each other. They bonded over food! With Rishi being from India, he was so familiar with the food and took Emma to all of his favorite places. Their time eating and talking together were so cute. The author really created a realistic connection between the two of them. I also loved all the references to Rishi's culture. It was so interesting to read about! His connection with his family and culture was the best thing about Rishi- his character development was beautiful! Both main characters were very well written. 

The only thing I didn't love about this novel was the rushed ending. I loved reading this relationship build up, and after all the two had been through, it just wrapped up too quickly for me. With that being said, this is an amazing debut novel!

This is out Jan 1 2021

The Marriage Code by B. Burroughs is a stand-alonbe by this new to me author.
Emma's private life is, lets call it unpleasant after a refused marriage proposal. At her job she gets tasked to recruit Rishi to her team.
Rishi , her co-worker is disappointed over being passed over for a promotion. And then his nemesis has a proposal for him, so what does he have to lose. A lot it seems.
TMC is a slow burn, contemporary roamnce, a co-workers to lovers story.
I liked the storyline, but had sometimes a hard time connecting with the characters, esp. Rishi is hard to get a grip on.
All ina ll an enjoyable ok read. 3,5 stars.

Thank you to the author, Amazon Publishing & Montlake for gifting me an advance copy of this book in exchange for a honest review!
——
This is a multicultural romance with the familiar “lovers to haters” trope but with the twist of including India and tradition throughout. Emma and Rishi both work in IT in Seattle but a project that doesn’t go as planned, lead them to Bangalore, India. With his financial plan gone awry, Rishi is left with no choice but to get married and follow his traditional hierarchical role as the older Indian brother who has to marry first before his younger sister can.

Rishi gets the help from Emma who builds a web code for Rishi to find that perfect Indian bride who is both traditional and progressive at the same time. And succeed they do. But fate has its ways when the two realize no code can change their desires for each other. Can Rishi usher a white American woman into his traditional household or will this crumble the fabric of his conservative family? Read to find out!

This book hit home in so many ways so to put some perspective, I would like to say that I was born in the same Indian state where a good chunk of this book takes place. My Indian mother’s cultural background is also identical to that of the parents’ of Rishi. My mother was born of the same caste (although I do not like referring to castes) in a very traditional family and she married my father, a French white man and faced a very similar ostracism described in this book. Why am I saying all this? To say that this book is SPOT ON when depicting traditional Tamil families. Although my parents are more progressive, the background described throughout the book is what I grew up with.

I was also amazed how the author knew to depict the very fine details. For example: white people are always given a ceramic cup to drink their coffee while Brahmins drink theirs in small steel cups (or tumblers). For a Westerner, this makes absolutely no sense but it has deep significance in a Tamil Brahmin’s mind. This book is going to be read by many Americans who will probably not understand some of the background or think it’s embellished, but trust me it’s not.

The only minor criticism I have is that it was fairly unrealistic how Emma quickly adjusted to moving to India. In reality, when a Westerner travels to India for the first time, there is a great cultural shock and varying adjustment period. I have personal experience of this from my American husband, numerous family members from my dad’s side and others. I think throwing in some shocks would have added humor to the book but I also realize that a book can only have so much content in it and this aspect was probably omitted for that purpose. So it appears the author concentrated on Rishi’s character more than Emma’s.

All in all, a wonderful book! I usually don’t read romance books much but this is clearly my No. 1 favorite of the few I have read! I expect American reviewers (those who have zero knowledge about India) to be flabbergasted by some of the content on this book but enjoy the ride and appreciate that there is a whole different world out there. If you read this book with such an open mind, you’ll enjoy this cute multicultural romance.

A completely unnecessary point for a review but ironic nonetheless that I want to share: the author moved from Kentucky to Tamil Nadu but I moved from Tamil Nadu to Kentucky. :-)

When Emma gets the chance to lead a team developing an app for a project she's put her heart and soul into, she jumps at the chance--even if it means moving to Bangladesh for a year. What she doesn't realize is that the job was promised to Rishi, who she has to court into become her lead developer. In exchange for joining the team, Emma agrees to help him develop code to find the perfect wife. But after Emma and Rishi start spending more and more time together, both of them maybe wish she hadn't.

To be honest, I was a little nervous reading a book by a non-Indian author that so heavily involves Indian culture and most of which takes place in Indian. The author's website and brief bio in the book explain it's based a little bit, at least, on her own experiences, of moving to India for work and falling in love. I kind of wish this had been one of those at-the-beginning-of-the-book author's notes; I think it makes the story more... relatable? Digestible? I'm not sure--something.

Overall, I quite enjoyed the book. The characters were wonderful and I LOVED the food descriptions (seriously I ordered Indian food immediately after reading). The character of Rishi was in such a difficult position, but I really understood each of his actions--the author did a great job of showing us each character's motivations and making them seem fully real and three-dimensional. I also love the representation of a woman in STEM leading a romcom! It's not something we see often, and as a woman in STEM myself, I loved seeing that--especially because the book hardly even addressed that she was a woman in STEM. Not every book with a woman in STEM lead has to point out every five seconds that she's the only woman in a room or groundbreaking or different; I love that this book just treated it as a normal career and not a point of adversity or plot point.

I will say, the book was definitely on the long side. It's a bit of an epic for a rom-com (and maybe it's more of a romance than a rom-com). But, on the other hand, I'm not really sure what could have been cut. Maybe I wouldn't have had the same praise for how well-developed and explained the characters were if it were a 75 pages shorter. But it did make me a bit antsy when it just kept going and going.

Overall, would recommend!

5 stars - 8/10

Thank you to Amazon Publishing and Montlake for my ARC in exchange for an honest review!