Reviews with content warning for Racism - Hani And Ishu's Guide To Fake Dating

This was a cute read. Hani and Ishu are to Bangali girls who didn't associate with each other at first because they didn't want people to pigeonhole them, but as Ishu seems to be the only person Hani can think of when her "friends" invalidate her bisexuality, they make a deal that would benefit them both. Thus the fake dating comes into the picture.

I was really excited to read this, Hani and Ishu's Guide has been on my radar for months and I finally bought it a few days ago. How could I not, have you seen the adorable cover? When I saw it in person I thought to myself, even if I don't like this, this cover is the cutest thing ever and will look great in my shelves.

Let's start with the good things first.

The Bengali and Muslim representation: This year more than any other I've set my mind to read more diversely, to use my love for romance books as an opportunity to get to know other cultures and religions and I really loved how both of them played an important role in this book. From the food they eat, to their routines and even the conflicts in the story, both Hani and Ishu's heritage and culture are always there. As a Mexican girl who rarely sees herself in the romance books she's read her whole life, I imagine how wholesome it is for Desi queer teens out there to read this type of representation. Such and adorable puppy love!
Ishu and Nik's relationship: You win me over if you have a beautiful (if complicated) relationship between siblings in your YA novel, and this book was no exception. We only know how difficult Ishu and Nik's relationship was when they used to live together. It was always a competition between them because of their parents' standards, so they never got to experience true sisterhood growing up. But after spending a few years apart Nik comes back with news that make their parents turn their backs on her, and it also seems to bring her and Ishu together. I loved their scenes together. I was afraid at first that Ishu was right and Nik was going to betray her, but it was so refreshing to see it didn't happen. Being in collage taught Nik just how toxic and damaging her parents' expectations were to her mental health and decided to be there for Ishu once she found out Ishu is gay. I felt warm in my heart whenever Nik went to Ishu's rescue, how she kept supporting her.
Hani and Ishu's dynamic: THEY WERE ADORABLE!! The awkwardness at first, the little blushes and shyness when they had to pretend to date. They're so cute together. I expected more banter to be honest, but I liked how their opposite personalities were shown in their interactions. Especially how Ishu did stuff for Hani that weren't a big deal for her, but for Hani, who has spent her life hiding an important part of herself from her white friends to not be seen as "too much", they were special. I "awww" several times during this book.

Now to the stuff I didn't like

I would've like it more if I got to spend more time getting to know Ishu and Hani separately before the story started moving. The reason is Hani. It's said in the synopsis and repeatedly mentioned in the book how she's so popular, everyone loves her and if Ishu associates with her, the others for sure would vote for her to be the Head Girl. But I don't think Hani's popularity and overall extroverted personality was showcasted enough before she and Ishu made a deal.
I knew going in that there would be shitty friends in the story. Hani having to pretend to date a girl because her friends don't think she can be bisexual if she's only dated guys was proof enough of it. But omg I could not stand Aisling and Dee. They were so awful! And I know Hani's been their friend since they were kids, and Hani not seeing how horrible they were to her was realistic. But the fact that they were never truly punished for what they did to both Hani and Ishu frustrated me to the end. It also made me realize that I'm too impatient and I get worked up too easily for me to be reading YA books with toxic friendships as an important part of the plot. Maybe I should avoid them for now on.
Even though I mentioned before that I loved Hani and Ishu's dynamic, I did expect to see their romance develop more. Hani takes too long to realize her friends are shitty and manipulative and it causes Ishu to feel alone, like Hani will never stand by her side or won't believe her side of the story. There were too many moments in the story where Aisling and Dee did something so incredibly rude and manipulative and I thought to myself, this is it, this will be the last straw for Hani. And it wasn't! I would've enjoy it more if there were more scenes of Hani supporting Ishu and standing by her side when her friends wanted to make her life miserable. It would've also show how strong their love and care for each other was.

This was an overall solid 4 stars for me. I finished this book pretty quickly and the aspects I liked about it win over the stuff I disliked. I do plan of reading more of Adiba Jaigirdar in the future.

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helixirette's review against another edition

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Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes

4.5

“Hani and Ishu's Guide to Fake Dating” by Adiba Jaigirdar follows the story of Hani and Ishu, two Bengali high school seniors, as they navigate the prejudiced world of current-day Dublin. Hani and Ishu are the only Bengali kids at their school but aren’t friends due to their clashing personalities; Hani is outgoing and popular, while Ishu is studious and cold. Trouble happens when Hani’s friends try to set Hani up with yet another guy she finds gross since they don’t believe that she’s really bisexual. To defend her sexuality, Hani asks Ishu to pretend to be her girlfriend. Ishu agrees on the condition that Hani will help her with her campaign to become head girl. Together, they try to help each other out while overcoming all the other problems that come with high school in this dual-POV contemporary YA romance.

First off, I loved this book so much more than I imagined I would going into it. Its story is far more grounded than the cover and synopsis lead you to believe, and I ended up relating so much to the problems both Hani and Ishu face during their last year of high school. I loved seeing Ishu’s relationship with her sister grow realistically and enjoyed the book’s depictions of family in general. The two different portrayals of Bengali parents with Ishu’s strict parents and Hani’s friendly parents disrupt the idea that all families from a certain culture have the same dynamic. Overall, this book handled its discussions of racism, biphobia, stereotypes, and religion very well. The outside world is more hostile than our current reality, but I think that change was done tastefully to convey the themes and message of the story better.

Hani and Ishu’s relationship contains traces of Grumpy/Sunshine, but both characters are way more than tropes. They start off not really liking each other, but through spending time together, their relationship flourishes. They fall in love with each others’ quirks and explore each others’ hobbies together, and I found myself rooting for them the whole story because they both deserve people who truly care about them.

While the plot may seem out of touch with reality at first glance, the story Jaigirdar tells is truly resonant. My only critique is that the ending left a lot of loose ends. I wanted more closure with Ishu’s family drama, Hani’s friendship breakup, and their romantic relationship. However, the open ending didn’t dampen my enjoyment of the book as a whole, and I would recommend this book to anyone looking for an insightful contemporary queer romance.

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pagesandnights's review against another edition

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3.5

Loved learning more about Bangladeshi culture and custom through this sweet wlw romance, but did not love the overuse of the phrase „I don’t know what I/she thought she/I was going to say, but this/that was definitely not it“. There were also some weak conflicts (as well as many difficult ones) and unresolved or purposeless ones that I did not love.

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marissasa's review against another edition

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emotional hopeful tense fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes

4.5

This book had a mix of cute, awkward teen girls fake dating romance and realistic coming of age while grappling with harsh truths about your loved ones. I was rooting for Hani and Ishu the whole way, both for them to realize their true feelings for each other and for them to succeed and grow in their individual stories. It was a joy to see the depiction of their Bengali, Indian, and Muslim cultures and their support and understanding of each other in them. I liked that each girl was fleshed out and dealt with realistic issues, as frustrating as they were at times. It was very relatable to see a long-time friendship turn toxic and to see immigrant parents with harsh expectations of their kids. I thought there was a lot of charm in the Irish culture in the book too, especially in the audiobook with the narrators' accents and the way they cursed so naturally. Even though I'm not at the target audience age for this book anymore, I enjoyed it thoroughly and know that it will be such an important one for young Bengali and Indian bisexual teens.

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robin_nescu's review against another edition

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challenging hopeful informative reflective sad medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

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batbaby's review

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funny hopeful lighthearted tense fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.5

Honestly I enjoyed this one even more than henna wars, I loved the characters and hated the ones I was supposed to not like. The romance was sweet. I really enjoy the fake dating trope and this one didn’t feel like too slow of a burn.

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falibat's review

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funny lighthearted medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

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dhatislandbookworm's review against another edition

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emotional lighthearted medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes

4.0

This was such a cute sapphic romance!

Fake dating is one of my favorite tropes, but oftentimes, the motivations of participating in a fake dating ploy can be quite ridiculous. However, in this instance, it made perfect sense since they both had something to ‘gain’!

Hani and Ishu also plays into the grumpy x sunshine trope and the girls’ opposing personalties complimented each other well.

The book also manages to perfectly balance the romance with the heavier topics such as prejudice, assimilation, abandonment, and the fear of failure.

Unfortunately, the ending felt a bit rushed. The main antagonist didn’t face any repercussions for her abhorrent behavior and was essentially rewarded for it!

We also didn’t get closure on certain plot points. This disappointed me because I felt that some of these points were very essential to the story.

All in all, would still recommend if you’re looking for a delightful read.

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