As a self-professed romance novel-holic, Saman Shad’s The Matchmaker captivated me from its first couple of pages. She delivers a beautiful love story, while also opening a door to allow us readers a peak into Sydney’s rich and vibrant Desi community.

Saima, a matchmaker in the community, focuses on creating matches based on compatibility. Her methods are considered unorthodox, as they ignore factors that others within her community consider more important than love, such as social standing, wealth, and religiosity.

Love makes its unexpected arrival when Saima meets Kal, who is struggling with direction in his own life. After an initial clash, a connection forms, which is soon undermined when Kal’s parents hire Saima as a matchmaker for their son, unaware that they have already met. Moreover, they insist that she convince Kal to hire her without him knowing that they are pulling the strings!

This love story travels beyond the romance, peeling back layers of the characters to reveal deep inner yearnings. Saima seeks to make something of herself as she continues to build her business, despite the backlash she receives from those around her. Internally, we see her face struggles that reflect those of entrepreneurs everywhere: trying to have faith in what she wants to create, and then the ability to materialise it.

In contrast, Kal is looking to come home to himself. However, as a third-culture kid, he struggles to do so. Shad explores what it feels like to straddle two worlds, and to belong to a culture that sits between them, with beautiful fluency. This story reminds us of the powerful relationship we have with our culture and, in turn, the way that it shapes us.

Through this novel, Shad showcases with incredible agility the complexities of navigating a world where cultures interact, and where being in step with another person requires us to come home to ourselves first.