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lida_magg's review against another edition
- 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
3.25
Graphic: Chronic illness, Racism, Islamophobia, Medical content, Religious bigotry, Death of parent, and Cultural appropriation
librocubicularist_x's review against another edition
- 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
Graphic: Chronic illness, Xenophobia, Islamophobia, and Grief
Moderate: Death, Medical content, and Death of parent
Minor: Cultural appropriation and War
thewildmageslibrary's review against another edition
4.0
CW: HP references
Graphic: Chronic illness, Islamophobia, and Grief
Moderate: Medical content and Death of parent
Minor: Car accident, Cultural appropriation, and War
kingrosereads's review against another edition
- 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
Fantastic, brilliant, beautiful, effortless YA contemporary romance that is also a drama and somewhat of a coming-of-age.
I’m not even going to go into depth about what the book was about. You just need to know that two very beautiful souls serendipitously meet and they fall in love while going through the hardest things a person can go through.
This book was beautiful from start to finish. It is unapologetically Muslim and I friggin loved every second of it! I love Zayneb’s passion and Adam’s ability to see the beauty in the world. At first I didn’t see the chemistry between them and aside from them both keeping this journal based off an ancient manuscript, I didn’t think they had much in common since they’re SO different. But the book just unfolds in this amazing way, where you fall in love with Zayneb and Adam as individuals then watch them come together and fall in love with them as a couple.
Zayneb is dealing with Islamophobia throughout the book (at school, on a plane, at the pool, etc) and the injustices in the world make her righteously angry. And she tries to “tone down” her anger, but she learns she doesn’t have to hold back, she just learns how to be smarter than the bigots. Then there’s Adam and he is this peaceful soul that I just adored and is more behind-the-scenes in his support. He’s such a family guy and I loved his softer way of caring. They both deal with loss and grief in their own ways that make you want to tear your heart out.
I think this book does a fantastic job depicting a traditional Muslim relationship, grief, anger, prejudice, and dealing with a chronic medical diagnosis. I can’t speak for its accuracy but it seems authentic and raw. I loved that these two opposites started meeting in the middle on their own in a natural way (they weren’t forcing themselves to change to fit with the other). The book had me grinning like a fool, crying like a baby, and it even had me laughing a few times. Just a gorgeous, well written story.
Graphic: Chronic illness, Xenophobia, Islamophobia, and Religious bigotry
Moderate: Death, Hate crime, Xenophobia, Grief, and Death of parent
Minor: Racial slurs, Racism, Murder, and War
calamitywindpetal's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Graphic: Chronic illness, Racism, and Islamophobia
Moderate: Death, Death of parent, and War
Minor: Animal cruelty, Blood, and Alcohol
terryegreen's review against another edition
- 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
Graphic: Islamophobia
Moderate: Chronic illness and Death of parent
sweetsxrrxw's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
going back to zayneb and adam's story i think its superwholesome from the start to the end. i mean they have a really heartwarming meet cute as they realize they're both muslims and they both have the same journal of oddities and marvels (istg if this happened to me i would be dead lmao) and then they're just waiting until the next time they see each other again just cause they have a nice impression of each other PLS, AND
anyways, if zayneb is a bold badass female main character, adam is totally the opposite. he's the sweetest person you'll ever meet. his back story with his mom, his chronical illness and his refusal to ask for help just makes the reader's urge to love and protect him even bigger lmao. and all of that made me tear up too but yeah, wasn't that obvious?
to sum up, this is one of the cutest love stories i've ever read and adam has become one of my favorite book boyfriends. it's a perfect book if you want to dig into a different culture, to educate yourself about the impact of islamophobia but specially to read a very very very cute love story
Graphic: Chronic illness, Terminal illness, Islamophobia, and Death of parent
maya_ahmed's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
Graphic: Chronic illness, Islamophobia, and Grief
Moderate: Medical content and Death of parent
Minor: Cursing and Cultural appropriation
aishallnot's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
this was such a cute love story between two muslims in a halal way! im glad ive got the time to read it especially bc its well received among muslim readers. i was the same age as these characters when this book was released and i think had i read it then, i wouldve related to the characters more. even now i saw parts of myself with zayneb's character and her sense of empathy, justice, and handling her emotions in a healthier way. adam is such a sweetheart 🥺 i really liked him a lot. im definitely going to read the eid gift and can't wait for the second book of adamzayneb
Graphic: Chronic illness, Death, Islamophobia, and Death of parent
Moderate: Grief
bookcaptivated's review against another edition
- 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
Graphic: Chronic illness, Islamophobia, Grief, and Death of parent
Moderate: Bullying
Minor: Hate crime, Medical content, Murder, Cultural appropriation, and War