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moonchildshine's review against another edition
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
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? No
4.0
One thing that makes me want to read this book is the amount of people who are crazy about Adam Chen. The soft-spoken artsy mualaf guy. So, naturally, Im curious about him.
And after finished the book, well, turned out that everyone isn't wrong about him. He's THAT lovable (and I associate him with peace). That's why Zayneb is such a great fit for him, in my opinion. A slytherin-gryffindor girl who's loud and brave.
Reading this remind me of how I love my religion and how grateful I am to be muslim :") and there's alot of Harry Potter and ATLA reference here, i love it alot haha.
PS. NOEMI IS THE FREAKING MVP SHE'S FREAKING HOT. PLS MARRY ME.
And after finished the book, well, turned out that everyone isn't wrong about him. He's THAT lovable (and I associate him with peace). That's why Zayneb is such a great fit for him, in my opinion. A slytherin-gryffindor girl who's loud and brave.
Reading this remind me of how I love my religion and how grateful I am to be muslim :") and there's alot of Harry Potter and ATLA reference here, i love it alot haha.
PS. NOEMI IS THE FREAKING MVP SHE'S FREAKING HOT. PLS MARRY ME.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Chronic illness, Religious bigotry, and Islamophobia
Moderate: Grief
Minor: War and Cultural appropriation
bookcaptivated's review
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
sad
tense
slow-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? No
4.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Islamophobia, Grief, Death of parent, and Chronic illness
Moderate: Bullying
Minor: Hate crime, Medical content, Murder, War, and Cultural appropriation
snikhtha's review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
lighthearted
reflective
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? It's complicated
3.75
This was a cute story and Adam and Zainab are wonderful, vibrant characters. I especially connected with Adam, which surprised me. I also loved the portrayal of a Muslim relationship with coming-of-age characters and thought it was really well done. The pacing is great, and the weird third-person narration that comes in sometimes is also super cute.
On the other hand, being Muslim, some parts where they speak on their identity just didn't fully connect with me. Which makes sense- people don't all have the same experience. I also thought that the hurdles standing in the way of their relationship were pretty unsubstantial, especially on Zainab's part. I think if it focused more on her inner conflict with the relationship rather than the outside problems stopping her, I would've understood it more, as I did with Adam's problems.
I also would've liked more scenes of Adam and Zainab just talking and connecting. The scenes we did get were some of my favorites, so I wish there were more of those just sprinkled throughout the book. Enjoyable overall!
On the other hand, being Muslim, some parts where they speak on their identity just didn't fully connect with me. Which makes sense- people don't all have the same experience. I also thought that the hurdles standing in the way of their relationship were pretty unsubstantial, especially on Zainab's part. I think if it focused more on her inner conflict with the relationship rather than the outside problems stopping her, I would've understood it more, as I did with Adam's problems.
I also would've liked more scenes of Adam and Zainab just talking and connecting. The scenes we did get were some of my favorites, so I wish there were more of those just sprinkled throughout the book. Enjoyable overall!
Content Warnings
Minor: Cultural appropriation, War, Xenophobia, and Sexual violence
rhm04's review against another edition
emotional
funny
hopeful
inspiring
lighthearted
reflective
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
3.75
Content Warnings
Graphic: Chronic illness, Death, Grief, Islamophobia, Racism, and Xenophobia
Moderate: Cultural appropriation and War
dalmavatai's review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.5
Ah, this book. The first half worked for me just fine, but it kind of lost me in the second half. I thought there was just way too much telling and not enough showing, which meant we didn't really get to know any of the side characters and their relationships with the main characters. It also meant that I often felt disconnected from what was happening as well as from our main characters' emotions.
Basically, I enjoyed Adam's storyline because his struggle with MS was something I've never read about and his internal conflict about telling his father definitely made me feel for him. I even teared up at the end of one chapter when he recounted the french fries story about his mom, which was honestly so beautiful and touching.
Unfortunately I had a harder time connecting with Zeyneb because her main struggle was with this Islamophobic teacher at school, and I just didn't feel there was enough internal conflict or complexity involved for me to feel invested. Basically she and her friends are trying to hold this teacher accountable for his Islamophobic comments, but nothing interesting really happens, like there's no deeper conversation about why someone might be Islamophobic, or exploring the structural and systemic dimensions, etc. There were so many things I would've enjoyed reading about if the author had explored it. That said, Zeyneb's story is a very important one and I'm sure it reflects so many people's lived experience which is awesome and very needed, especially because Muslims are a marginalized and deeply stigmatized community in 'Western' countries.
The romance was very slow-burn, we don't get much dialogue between these two and we don't really understand why they're even falling for each other. For this reason, I didn't even get to enjoy Adam's chapters in the second half of the book.
Overall, I thought the concept and the emotional and social dimensions explored were super interesting, but there was so much telling without showing that made me disconnect from the characters, and I felt that there was no growth/direction in Zeyneb's storyline.
Basically, I enjoyed Adam's storyline because his struggle with MS was something I've never read about and his internal conflict about telling his father definitely made me feel for him. I even teared up at the end of one chapter when he recounted the french fries story about his mom, which was honestly so beautiful and touching.
Unfortunately I had a harder time connecting with Zeyneb because her main struggle was with this Islamophobic teacher at school, and I just didn't feel there was enough internal conflict or complexity involved for me to feel invested. Basically she and her friends are trying to hold this teacher accountable for his Islamophobic comments, but nothing interesting really happens, like there's no deeper conversation about why someone might be Islamophobic, or exploring the structural and systemic dimensions, etc. There were so many things I would've enjoyed reading about if the author had explored it. That said, Zeyneb's story is a very important one and I'm sure it reflects so many people's lived experience which is awesome and very needed, especially because Muslims are a marginalized and deeply stigmatized community in 'Western' countries.
The romance was very slow-burn, we don't get much dialogue between these two and we don't really understand why they're even falling for each other. For this reason, I didn't even get to enjoy Adam's chapters in the second half of the book.
Overall, I thought the concept and the emotional and social dimensions explored were super interesting, but there was so much telling without showing that made me disconnect from the characters, and I felt that there was no growth/direction in Zeyneb's storyline.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Bullying, Chronic illness, Death of parent, Islamophobia, and Grief
Moderate: Cultural appropriation, Death, Medical content, Racism, and War
lunagirl_alice's review against another edition
inspiring
reflective
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? It's complicated
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Chronic illness, Death, Death of parent, Grief, Hate crime, Islamophobia, Religious bigotry, and Terminal illness
Minor: Medical content, Racial slurs, Racism, and Cultural appropriation
thebankofbooks's review against another edition
emotional
funny
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
sad
fast-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? It's complicated
5.0
This beautiful book shone a light on MS, Islamophobia, and finding love in between.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Chronic illness, Death of parent, Islamophobia, Medical content, Racism, and Religious bigotry
Moderate: Cultural appropriation, Death, Gaslighting, and Grief
taliabasma's review against another edition
emotional
funny
hopeful
informative
inspiring
lighthearted
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
Wow. This is the Muslim Rep Romance I've been looking for all my LIFE. I've had this book on my TBR since it came out and I'm an utter FOOL for not reading it sooner. This was so good. It is better than Saints N Misfits in my opinion and Adam was the epitome of a cinnamon roll while Zayneb was SO relatable to teen (and current) me. I cannot recommend this book enough to my Muslim Romance fans.
The Muslim Representation in this book follows most of the Islamic rules while still keeping it grounded in reality to how the "average Western Muslim" may experience and exemplify their religion.
The Muslim Representation in this book follows most of the Islamic rules while still keeping it grounded in reality to how the "average Western Muslim" may experience and exemplify their religion.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Islamophobia, Xenophobia, Racism, Medical content, Grief, Death of parent, Death, and War
Minor: Cultural appropriation
atinybitbookish's review against another edition
hopeful
inspiring
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? It's complicated
4.0
Content Warnings
Moderate: Chronic illness, Death of parent, and Islamophobia
Minor: Cultural appropriation
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