I really enjoyed this book! I love a cozy mystery, and this one has a great story and characters. It’s full of rich descriptions, from music and clothing, to the food. Oh my, reading about the food made me so hungry! The author did a great job of introducing characters, and dropping clues to make you suspect each one in turn. But it wasn’t overly complicated or convoluted. I didn’t realize this is the second book in a series, so I will definitely pick up the first one.

If I'm being honest, I wanted to like this more than I did. The writing style had me bored and this book was almost a DNF for me due to it being so slow about halfway in. I enjoyed the cultural exploration and the characters but that was it, unfortunately.

First of all thank you so much to NetGalley and Joffee books for giving me an advanced reader copy of this book to review.

I tried really hard to stay invested in this book because there were some really cool and intriguing parts of this story. The only issue was that around 50-60% I almost DNF’d (Did Not Finish) because at that point it had such a slow slump, I wasn’t invested in who the killer was, and was still very lost in a lot of the verbiage and terms. That being said, I pushed through and am glad I did. I think there’s a lot of potential here. It’s a very interesting premise and I love a cute cozy mystery. The murder itself wasn’t interesting enough, though, and I thought the main character’s romance needed work. I loved some of the elements, and thought some of it needed work. I loved the dynamic of the main character telling off the intrusive older women, and the caring auntys, and the sister relationship. Overall, I give this book a solid 3/5.

NetGalley/Publishers have got to be better when promoting a second book in a series! I had no idea until I started reading and it said it was book 2.

That being said! Due to the nature of mystery series like this one, I think missing out on one is fine because I didn't feel like I was missing very much, though I will most likely go back to read that one because I enjoyed this one so much. It's fun! A cozy mystery set in Mumbai, there's so many descriptions of culture and food and people, it's already interesting based on that. Our main character Radhi is a great main character and the author Meeti Shroff-Shah is so good at balancing the mystery, characterization and story. Really enjoyed this and I'm excited read more form the author!

Thank you to NetGalley and Joffe Books for the eARC in exchange for an honest review.

Have you binged on Indian Matchmaking airing on Netflix? If you have, A Matrimonial Murder by Meeti Shroff-Shah would be an excellent choice for a cozy mystery read. Add in a whodunit scenario to that series, and this book would be created. Expected Publication is February 13th, 2024.

This book is a second in the series, and though this one can be read as standalone, reading the first one would be better to understand the life of the main character. Radhi, our main character, wants to know the ins and outs of the arranged marriages of India. She is helped by Sarla, who runs her own marriage bureau and is Radhi's foster mom of sorts. Did Radhi bargain for a little more than expected?

This is a perfect book for readers who like cozy mysteries and want to learn about Indian cultures and traditions. I loved how the author portrayed the reality of situations in India. The only thing I would say is that the reader is completely unaware of a lot of things going on. I would have liked a little bit of clue on those, but again, it's a personal preference.

family-drama, family-dynamics, family-expectations, cultural-exploration, cultural-heritage, amateur-sleuth, murder, local-gossip, local-law-enforcement, cozy-mystery, India, relationships, relatives, class-consciousness, mystery, threats, matchmaking, secrets, lies, small-business, Mumbai, tarot*****

This is the second in series and it is every bit as interesting as the first! Radhi Zaveri is a writer who recently came back from USA after the divorce and is currently shadowing the matchmakers for an article. When Radhi finds the private investigator associated with the matrimony bureau dead, she gets involved with the investigation while vividly depicting the foods, attire, homes, vicinity, and the curiosities of people's societal prejudices.
Made me smarter! It's especially interesting for those of us who have little understanding of life a very busy city in India. People are the same everywhere (and so are the gossipmongers), but the cultural differences (and names!) are like the flavors of the foods the author tantalizes us with. The mystery plot is well done and full of interesting characters, twists, and red herrings (but I still get hung up on the foods!). Loved it!
I requested and received a free ebook copy from Joffe Books via NetGalley. Thank you!

I enjoyed this book. I was drawn to the matchmaking romance concept. The idea that you can be matched by a professional and have that be successful was interesting and at the same time not my style. I loved the descriptions of each role in the match making process.
I enjoyed the snips of the main characters culture the traditional food eaten and a quick description of each didn't take away from the story.
The murder had me guessing to the end. I enjoyed the strong female lead. I will read more books by this author.

Temple Hill Mystery series is an excellent mystery series that mixes strong and well plotted mysteries with the personal life of Radhi Zaveri, a writer who recently came back from USA.
Temple Hill is a fictional posh area of Mumbai where Radhi, a member of a rich family lives.
This is the second in this series and it's even better than the first one as it mixes observation on the cut throat world of machtmaking agencies, social observation and a main character who is living between different world.
The mystery is gripping, kept me hooked and fell in love in with the atmosphere and the characters.
I had fun and wish I could travel to Mumbai and visit the places.
There's plenty of twists and I couldn't guess the culprit. The author sometimes does not reveal the clues but this didn't make me love less this story.
This can be read as a stand alone but all the series is worth reading.
Highly recommended
Many thanks to Joffe Books and Books 'n' All Promotions for this digital copy, all opinions are mine

This book deserves so much more rep, I can't believe I haven't heard about it more!

The mystery is wonderful, of course, but the inner world of Radhi is so complex and there's still so much more we don't know! She feels like a 1920s pi with a better wardrobe.

As someone who is not super familiar with Indian culture, I've loved learning through this series and I can't wait fir more!!

***advance review copy received from NetGalley in return for an honest review***
Solid little cosy mystery, emphasis on the cosy - I particularly enjoyed the insight into Indian culture, with the descriptions of food, weddings and clothing really bringing the setting to life. The mystery itself felt very tied into the culture and very much related to the background that we are shown as readers.

I would like to thank Netgalley and Joffe Books for an advance copy of A Matrimonial Murder, the second novel set in the fictional Temple Hill area of Mumbai to feature writer Radhi Zaveri.

Radhi has been asked by her agent to write a book about arranged marriages, so she contacts her mother’s friend, Sarla Seth, who runs a matchmaking agency for insight. She has hardly started when one of the employees is bludgeoned to death in her office, so she puts aside the writing in favour of investigating.

I enjoyed A Matrimonial Murder, which is a fun read with a warm, vibrant atmosphere and plenty of descriptions of yummy sounding food. It is told entirely from Radhi’s point of view, so the reader can guess along with her, well, not this reader as I had no idea.

The plot is fairly traditional with just about every character hiding secrets and thus having a motive for murder. Radhi spends her time interviewing these suspects and trying to formulate a solution. All the clues are there, but it takes an aha moment to clarify her thoughts and set a trap. Only once the trap is sprung is the killer’s identity revealed. None of it is rocket science, but it’s fun to see the motives uncovered and work on the puzzle.

The novel is set in the richer part of Mumbai, where reputation is everything and probably the only place that can afford a matchmaker. It seems like an old fashioned world, but I don’t know rich, so who knows. Radhi married for love and is divorced, oh the shame, whereas the agency seems to take pains to match couples. I found it fascinating.

I wish that Radhi was a more carefree protagonist. She is filled with angst and forever second guessing herself. There are historical reasons for this, but if she let loose a bit both she and the reader would have even more fun. At least the emails from her agent, George, provide some humour.

A Matrimonial Murder is a good read that I can recommend.

A Matrimonial Murder is the second book in the author's contemporary Temple Hill mystery series, and at times I felt that it would have been better had I read the first book (A Mumbai Murder Mystery) beforehand. However, I felt that way not because I was getting lost among the characters and the story, I felt it would have given me a slightly better understanding of the main character and her backstory.

Radhi has money. She's driven around Mumbai by her chauffeur, and she's found herself the subject of gossip in the rarefied air of the (fictional) Temple Hill district of Mumbai. After all, she's a thirty-year-old divorcee; she's had a white boyfriend, and... she's lived in the United States! Her sister Madhavi is a treasure even though Madhavi does have the mother-in-law from hell, a woman filled with feelings of entitlement and all the old prejudices that should have died lonely deaths years ago.

I enjoyed following Radhi around because of the in-depth look she gave me of present-day Mumbai and the detailed look at the matrimonial business of arranged marriages. I could see the clothing, wonder at the boxes of brightly-colored, patterned tissues, and feel my mouth water at the descriptions of all the food. For armchair traveling sleuths who love to learn about the cultures of other countries, A Matrimonial Murder is a treat.

The book also has a strong mystery that kept me guessing. Unfortunately, it also did something that really annoys me. What was it? Several times, Radhi found an important piece of the puzzle, and instead of sharing it with readers, she kept it to herself until the reveal at the end. Do writers do this because they think sharing the clues will help readers solve the mystery too soon, or are they wanting to play Agatha Christie and gather everyone in a room so the main character can Reveal All? For whatever reason, it annoys me because Christie could do it without being so obvious.

Strong mystery. Marvelous sense of place. An interesting main character. Something tells me that I'll be visiting Radhi in Mumbai again in the future. I just hope she starts sharing the clues she finds.

Our heroine, Radhi, is writing a book about arranged marriages in Mumbai's posh Temple Hill district, and stumbles upon a murder. At the same time, her personal life goes through twists and turns and learn more and more about who she is and how she sees herself. Strikingly, nearly all the protagonists in the book are women, and very strong women at that. The story also deftly presents the continuous tension between traditional India, with its aunties, arranged marriages, and traditional women roles, and the modern one, where women might not want to get married, divorce, and refuse to have children. In the background to all this, there is an ode to Mumbai culture and its food, as well as a poignant critique of the social tension in that society.

What I liked most about the book was the fact it was super fun to read and experience. I can't say it was overly complex or "important", but I thouroughly enjoyed it, and actually, as per the blurb, genuinely struggled to put it down. It reminded me most of Agatha Christie - perhaps not at her best, but definitely at her most fun. The author draws a lot from Christie, and even mentions her in the book itself. This is perhaps the closest in style to Christie I've ever read, albeit with a bit more romance (similar, perhaps, to the Tommy and Tuppence books), and more social criticism (which I found important).

The writing was extremely well paced, and the various storylines woven together nicely to create one whole. Nothing felt forced to me. While I can't comment on the veracity of describing the world the book takes place in, to me it felt genuine, rich, and interesting.

I recommend it to anyone who likes Agatha Christie, and anyone who's interested in contemporary India, and is perhaps tired of reading about its underbelly.

My thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for providing me with an early copy of this book in return for an honest review.

Arranged marriages are nothing new in India, and within the exclusive Temple Hill community, "perfect" matches are highly sought after. Sarla Seth has
run the most popular marriage bureau in Mumbai and her expertise and talent is unmatched. Radhi Zaveri has recently returned to Temple Hill, where she grew up, from the US. She has planned to write a book about the arranged marriage business in India. She has no idea of the mystery she will become engrossed in when a murder occurs at Sarla's office.
This book definitely kept me engrossed and had me guessing at every turn. I will say, however, I really dislike learning that a book is part of a series after I start reading. I personally avoid detective series' because I hate when there are things left unanswered. That said, the main plot and mystery of this story is solved and completed at the end, so don't let that stop you from reading. I just dislike not getting closure on everything, especially about the main character, and the suggestion that I need to keep reading to know more. It's a turn-off for me. I wish the authors and publishers would be more transparent about a book being part of a series.
I didn't really feel any connection to the main character, possibly because I felt I didn't know her well enough (again, the need to read other books in a series is the issue). There were so many other characters to keep up with that I had to keep reminding myself who was who. The ending, while it did wrap up everything, fell a bit flat for me. I was just happy it was over because I was at the point that I just wanted it solved. While I would love to learn more about Radhi and how her personal life plays out, this was just a bit much for me.
Thank you to Netgalley and Joffe Books for the advanced copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.

A woman writing a book on arranged marriages becomes more entangled with the industry than originally planned, as a murder finds her investigating everyone from the top to bottom rungs of both the company, and society as a whole.

Though this was the second book in a series, I was able to enjoy it without having read the first. The recurring characters were given enough context to at least give the reader an idea of their relationships to each other. While the supporting characters are quite interesting, the main character fell a bit flat for me and I never got a real handle on her personality. The mystery itself was satisfying, and neither too obvious nor too unexpected.

There are many instances of non-English words sprinkled throughout the story, some of which have very little context, which can take you a little out of the book if you aren’t very familiar with the culture, clothing, and food of Mumbai. Despite this, the descriptions of the city and its people are rich and vibrant, painting a clear picture for the reader to imagine. A lot of the book focuses on the ins and outs of arranged marriages, and I left with a much more nuanced view of them.

Many thanks to NetGalley and Joffe Books for this ARC. This is my honest review.

3/5 A murder mystery set against the remarkably cutthroat business of arranged marriage.

I was so intrigued by this one, the premise sounded so good. It just did not live up to my expectations unfortunately. It truly fell flat for me.

Murder mysteries are definitely my go to and I very much enjoy them. Radhi is writing a book on a behind the scenes matchmaking and turns to her Auntie Sarla who owns a matchmaking firm in Temple Hill. Sarla shares with Radhi the tarot cards that she's receiving in the mail and how she isn't sure who is sending these to them. On top of this there is a murder that happens and Radhi finds herself in the investigation.

I very much enjoyed the unfolding of the story. The one complaint that I have is that there are so many characters that I did have to take a minute to get them all straight.

Thank you #NetGalley for the advance read!

This book is set in India and deals with arranged marriages which is a popular option there. Food is talked about a lot with lots of details of the food and the scenery. I was totally unaware there was a vegan culture over there as well. An enjoyable enough mystery but I did struggle with the Indian terms and details which did slow things down as they had to be explained. I haven't read the first book but didn't feel this affected my take on this one. I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.

Thank you to #NetGalley and #JoffeBooks for an #ARC of #AMATRIMONIALMURDER.
Set in India, focusing on the culture of arranged marriages, A Matrimonial Murder was beautifully descriptive of the food, scenery and general background for this book. An enjoyable story which is the second in a series, I found it was not essential to have read the first book to understand the background to the story.
The main con I had regarding this book was trying to keep track of the many many characters introduced throughout the story. Other than that it was a good story which I assumed was pointing one direction but threw in a twist.

In a culture where marriage is often viewed as a cure-all for everything from being infatuated with the wrong person to having a drug habit, a good matchmaker really is worth her weight in gold (no pun intended). And Sarla the savant knows it.

But when the best-known matchmakers in the Temple Hill area of Bombay start receiving threatening notes, they are inevitably concerned about how it might affect business if the news gets out. Luckily for Sarla, she can rely on the services of Radhi, who is currently shadowing the matchmakers for an article. Because what is a journalist, after all, but a professional snoop?

This is a reasonably interesting cosy mystery, but it does play the exotic card a trifle heavy-handedly. That said, it brings to life the vibrant surroundings of Temple Hill and some aspects of life in urban India. It also shades in a few unexpected aspects to the characters - even after one feels that one has already got to know them. Radhi, in particular, is very relatable. Overall, an entertaining read.