Synopsis
Sunny G’s brother left him one thing when he died: His notebook, which Sunny is determined to fill up with a series of rash decisions. Decision number one was a big one: He stopped wearing his turban, cut off his hair, and shaved his beard. He doesn’t look like a Sikh anymore. He doesn’t look like himself anymore. Even his cosplay doesn’t look right without his beard.
Sunny debuts his new look at prom, which he’s stuck going to alone. He’s skipping the big fandom party—the one where he’d normally be in full cosplay, up on stage playing bass with his band and his best friend, Ngozi—in favor of the Very Important Prom Experience. An experience that’s starting to look like a bust.
Enter Mindii Vang, a girl with a penchant for making rash decisions of her own, starting with stealing Sunny’s notebook. When Sunny chases after her, prom turns into an all-night adventure—a night full of rash, wonderful, romantic, stupid, life-changing decisions.
Title: Sunny G’s Series of Rash Decisions
Author: Navdeep Singh Dhillon
Publication Date: February 8, 2022
Publisher: Dial Books
Genre: Young Adult, Contemporary, Romance
Review
This book had a few things that were great and wonderful, but overall, I wasn’t a fan.
First, I’ll mention the things I did like. The representation, Sikh Punjabi, is an obvious positive. I’ve never read a book with this representation so I was able to learn a lot about the culture and religion as it pertained to our main character, Sunny. As well, we see other representations through his love interest, Mindii, and a couple of other characters throughout the story. The author did a great job of bringing all of this together and telling it in a clear way.
Also, I thought Sunny’s voice was a fresh and funny one. We get to hear his confident and outgoing thoughts in his head and then we see how it plays out in real life (which is never the same as his head). I think it would be so fun to have him narrate my life or my favorite tv show.
Now, onto my least favorite things. The beginning of this book was extremely slow. I like a fast beginning or at least a book that sucks me in and doesn’t let me go. That wasn’t the case with this book. We get lots of background and some flashbacks which I could have lived without. Or which could have been pushed back further into the story. It was just too much, too soon and I instantly grew bored. The story does eventually pick up, but I was already checked out by that point so it was difficult for me to reengage.
Additionally, there’s the whole fanfic/fandom deal which is too much, too soon. At the beginning, when we’re getting a lot of background and learning who Sunny is, we’re also introduced to a fandom he likes. It’s a lot of learn and contributes to the slow-ness and overabundance of information.
Lastly, I had bigger hopes for the romance. Like the rest of the book, it was slow. Don’t get me wrong. Slow burns are my favorite type of romance, but not when they’re boring and don’t feel like they’re developing at some points.
Overall, while there were some good things about this book, I wouldn’t recommend it to others. The story was a good idea and the plot was even fun at some moments, but it wasn’t executed well. I won’t write this author off for forever because I think he still has some potential for great books in the future.
Disclaimer: I voluntarily read and reviewed a gifted and advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.
Rating
To check out my other reviews, click here. Or to learn more about Navdeep Singh Dhillon, go to his Goodreads profile or visit his website.
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