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hatterell's review against another edition
emotional
lighthearted
relaxing
medium-paced
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
Sofia's perspective is a great one to read from, but the level of interest I had in her story fluctuated throughout the novel. The diary format seemed unnecessary to me and was consistently confusing. However, I liked her interactions at work and particularly the humorous way her family was portrayed - I think those were some of my favourite scenes.
Sofia's colleague Katie was a nice character, but beyond that none of her friends felt fleshed out much beyond their boy troubles. As I reader I felt that I came to conclusions long before Sofia did, for example realising that Naim wasn't good for her, which was frustrating as she is a much older protagonist than me.
I'd read other books by this author in the future, as I enjoyed the perspective and reading about Muslim families in Britain, especially the dating/marriage scene, but I don't think I'll go any further in this series. I loved Conall, but he wasn't in it enough to justify me picking up the next one.
Sofia's colleague Katie was a nice character, but beyond that none of her friends felt fleshed out much beyond their boy troubles. As I reader I felt that I came to conclusions long before Sofia did, for example realising that Naim wasn't good for her, which was frustrating as she is a much older protagonist than me.
I'd read other books by this author in the future, as I enjoyed the perspective and reading about Muslim families in Britain, especially the dating/marriage scene, but I don't think I'll go any further in this series. I loved Conall, but he wasn't in it enough to justify me picking up the next one.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Alcoholism, Death, Hate crime, Infertility, Racial slurs, Racism, Islamophobia, and Medical content
fayereadsbooks's review against another edition
funny
informative
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
This book was great. It is one of my reading goals for 2021 to read a wider range of diverse books and this book fulfilled this perfectly. I didn't know very much about Muslim relationships and dating before and now have some base knowledge on this topic. As expected with a book following Muslim characters, i also know more about what religion means to Muslims and how it effects their daily life (Sofia's decision to wear the hijab and praying five times daily etc.). This book is a perfect example of an Own Voices (a book about Muslims written by a Muslim author).
This book was funny, light-hearted and just lovely. My favourite character was Connell. I also love how family and friendship was represented in this book. I really enjoyed it and stayed up late to continue reading as I really wanted to know what would happen next.
I liked that this book was written in a diary-like format, as it meant I could read it in manageable small chunks, rather than pages and pages of solid text.
I would recommend this book to anyone who likes funny books, anyone who would like to learn more about Muslim life and relationships and anyone who loves contemporary books.
This book was funny, light-hearted and just lovely. My favourite character was Connell. I also love how family and friendship was represented in this book. I really enjoyed it and stayed up late to continue reading as I really wanted to know what would happen next.
I liked that this book was written in a diary-like format, as it meant I could read it in manageable small chunks, rather than pages and pages of solid text.
I would recommend this book to anyone who likes funny books, anyone who would like to learn more about Muslim life and relationships and anyone who loves contemporary books.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Racial slurs, Racism, Islamophobia, and Medical content
brief mention of 9/11helendipietro's review against another edition
hopeful
lighthearted
relaxing
slow-paced
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
2.0
I was really looking forward to reading this but unfortunately it didn’t live up to my expectations. It is light hearted and funny in places but I found it to be quite boring. I’ve read some absolute crackers this past year so could be that I’m comparing it to them. The mix of writing formats throughout (letters, notes, texts, thoughts etc) made it quite jolted to read. However, I did enjoy learning about the experiences of a young Muslim woman in today’s world and can see why other people would enjoy it.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Racial slurs, Racism, and Islamophobia