Reviews - Mad, Bad & Dangerous to Know

Mad, Bad & Dangerous to Know by Samira Ahmed

342 reviews for:

This book alternates between two narratives, both of strong Muslim women, but set centuries apart. Khayyam is a 17-year-old French, Indian, American aspiring art historian and she’s on a family holiday in Paris. While she is there she meets Alexandre, a cute French boy who happens to be the descendent of Alexandre Dumas. Together, they team up to unravel the mystery of a Muslim women mentioned in letters by Dumas. The other narrative is of is of Leila, the women from Byron’s poem, The Giaour, telling the story from her perspective.

I really enjoyed the mystery of it all. I was consistently curious what would happen next as they slowly unraveled the identity of the mysterious raven-haired woman. You definitely have to suspend disbelief as they do some pretty wild things along the way and get away with it.

I also enjoyed the fact that this book explores topics like orientalism, sexism, and the silencing of women’s stories throughout history. Khayyam was also a badass Muslim woman which is always a plus. Although, I did feel that Khayyam was sometimes indecisive and ended up being a bit unfair to Alexandre as a result.

One thing I could have done without was the love triangle. It felt a bit contrived and did not do a whole lot for the plot.

“I’m not even sure of the difference between fact and fiction.”

I found myself very confused throughout the book about what is real and what is fiction but I think that may have been intentional. This is clarified in the authors notes at the end.

✅ 2020 POPSUGAR Reading Challenge - A book that’s published in 2020

✅ 2020 Ramadan Readathon

msethna's review against another edition

5.0

Samira Ahmed writes about the power of women's voices in a world that tends to listen to men. Mad, Bad, & Dangerous to Know is the story of two young women, Khayyam and Leila, fighting to have their voices heard centuries apart from one another. Khayyam is a French Muslim American spending the summer with her parents in France. With a passion for art history and a desire to uncover a mystery of a missing painting from the past, Khayyam happens to meet and fall for a descendant of Alexandre Dumas. Together they seek to find answers to Leila's story and her connection to the missing painting.

I am a huge fan of Samira Ahmed's work and this one did not disappoint. I loved the alternating narratives between Leila and Khayyam and how the mystery doesn't truly unfold until the very end. A huge thank you to NetGalley and SoHo Teen for this ARC in exchange for an honest review. I will be adding this to our classroom library and can't wait to book talk this one when we are back in the classroom after this "Coronavacation" is over.

mon_3's review against another edition

4.0

adventurous emotional funny inspiring mysterious reflective medium-paced

andersonh92's review against another edition

3.0

Loved the perspective of women of color gaining a voice. Love that it’s a historical fiction. Love the idea in the author’s note of “control the narrative, control the people.” Loved that it was beautifully written.

I just didn’t connect with the story line very well. Different from most other YA books, but I almost didn’t believe it WAS a YA book except for the main characters.

readerrabbit23's review against another edition

3.0

adventurous informative mysterious slow-paced

Plot or Character Driven: A mix

Strong character development: No

Loveable characters: No

Diverse cast of characters: Yes

Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

This book is definitely girlboss-y and preachy, but I liked Leila a lot and could have done with more of her and less with Khayyam. As much as I found Khayyam's own journey with heartbreak and messy boys relatable, she was also annoying. I debated a 2.75-3 stars because the book dragged but the story itself is interesting and personally relevant to my own trials and tribulations in this current moment.