Exclusive Interview
Naina Kumar Reveals the Scottish Spark for ‘Just a Highland Fling’ & Shift in Her Next Book
What To Know
- Naina Kumar’s upcoming novel, Just a Highland Fling, is set in Scotland.
- The book explores a strangers-to-enemies-to-lovers romance during a road trip.
- Kumar is currently working on her fourth book.
Naina Kumar is embracing the beauty and romance of Scotland in her upcoming novel, Just a Highland Fling, out July 21, 2026. A brief visit to Caledonia turns into a road trip with her dad and the sexy desi bagpiper she had a one-night stand with in order to find her dad’s runaway bride. (Read our exclusive excerpt here!)
The author, whose previous novels include Say You’ll Be Mine and Flirting With Disaster, spoke with Swooon about the inspiration behind Just a Highland Fling, the first love story she swooned over, and how a “bouquet of celery” is just as romantic to her as a bouquet of flowers.
Kumar will join Swooon, Joss Richard, Ava Wilder, and Sarah Adams at Dell Romance’s Cozy Night In event on October 28 at The Ripped Bodice in Brooklyn, New York. Tickets are sold out, but you can buy a signed copy of the books from the authors here!
Were you inspired by anything in particular to write Just a Highland Fling?
Naina Kumar: Romance as a genre has a fun history with Scotland as a setting! There are so many incredible love stories set in Scotland, but I really wanted to write one that featured desi characters! Growing up, I attended a Scottish school in Texas and happened to learn highland dancing for a few years, and my brother became a competitive bagpiper. Through that experience, I learned so much about Scottish culture and the Indian diaspora in Scotland, and that really inspired the idea for this book!
What was exciting to you about Just a Highland Fling’s love story?
Kumar: There’s a real strangers-to-enemies-to-lovers dynamic in this book, which coupled with the forced proximity of the road trip, created the best chemistry. I love these characters and their complicated feelings about love. Seeing them work through their fears together and learn to trust one another was really rewarding! Their love story is swoony, but also deeply rooted, and it was a joy to write!
Are you working on your next book already?
Kumar: I am! I’m currently drafting what will be my fourth book. It’s very different from anything I’ve ever written, and I can’t wait to share more soon!
What was the first love story you fell in love with? (Can be literary, TV, movies, etc.)
Kumar: The Sound of Music! Maria and Captain Von Trapp are the blueprint, the original grumpy/sunshine! I revisit the movie often, and always fall back in love with them!
What makes you swoon?
Kumar: The small things that signal that you’re truly known by someone! When they remember your very particular order at a restaurant, or the anecdote you told them forever ago, or they bring you a bouquet of celery instead of flowers because they know you have a strange obsession with it!
What’s your best advice for aspiring romance authors?
Kumar: I’m afraid this is the advice that everyone gives, but it’s true! It’s just not possible to be a writer without being a reader, so read a lot, and read widely! Pay attention to what you like and don’t like, to the rhythm of a story, to what brings characters together and pushes them apart. There are amazing craft books out there (Romancing the Beat was very helpful to me!), and workshops, too, and I’d explore those as well!
