Reviews tagging 'Emotional abuse'

The Love Match by Priyanka Taslim

3 reviews

betweentheshelves's review

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emotional 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

This book has all of the elements necessary for a great romance; fantastic characters, interesting premise, good setting. And a large dash of Bangladeshi culture! Zahra is trying hard to have everything, working to save money to go to college, helping to support her family. Just when two boys enter her life and love throws a wrench into all her plans.

On the one hand she has her momo's choice for her: Harun. A kind of aloof, devishly handsome boy from a good family. On the other hand, there's Nayim, the new boy at Chai Ho, inspiring her to follow her dreams. As you'd expect, rom-com elements follow, and it's just an overall joy to read. 

Outside of Zahra, the side characters are just as fleshed out and have their own things to contribute to the plot. Definitely a great romance to add to your summer TBR!
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helenareadsbooks's review against another edition

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funny hopeful lighthearted 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

4.5

In Priyanka Taslim's The Love Match, Zahra Khan works long hours to save up for college. Her family is struggling financially and her Amma thinks that a suitable match for Zahra is just what their family needs, so she arranges a marriage for her daughter. Zahra is uninterested and luckily, so is her suitor, Harun. Zahra and Harun agree to fake date to please their parents and get them off their backs, which also leaves Zahra available to get to know Nayim, the boy she actually has feelings for. But life is more complicated than Zahra realizes, and she goes through an emotional journey to understanding love, happiness, and her family. 
 
The Love Match is charming and funny, and I was enamoured by the writing early on. I respect Zahra as a character and appreciate how much she cares for her family. As the oldest daughter, she feels responsible for them and wants to help her Amma whenever she can. The book shows all the complexities involved in situations where parents want the best for their kids, and children want to make their parents proud. But these complexities often involve feeling burdened by responsibility and guilty for wanting to follow your heart and your dreams. Through Zahra, Harun, and Nayim, The Love Match explores different aspects of this type of familial situation and, I think, realistic feelings that a lot of South Asian children have. 
 
There are so many great characters in this book and I loved getting to know them. Zahra’s friends are the best and her siblings are lovable. While romance is a large part of the book, I love that a lot of time was spent with her friends and family. The Love Match is also full of Bangladeshi culture and pride, which adds to the joy of the book. 
 
I loved the romance and thought Harun and Nayim were interesting characters, and I enjoyed how they brought out different sides of Zahra’s personality. I love who Zahra ultimately ends up with and was rooting for them the entire time. However, I didn’t enjoy a major event that happens near the end of the book, which lessened my enjoyment of the ending. I didn’t mind the drama, but I wish it had been dealt with differently.  While the book ended with my desired outcome, I don’t love the final obstacle in the story Zahra had to overcome for it to happen. 
 
Overall, The Love Match is a joyful and nuanced YA book that’s full of love in every form. The book kept me smiling and kept me on my toes. Pick it up if you enjoy reading about complex family dynamics, beautiful friendships, and YA romance.
 
Thank you NetGalley and Simon & Schuster Canada for providing me with an eARC. 
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bookwormbullet's review against another edition

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emotional funny lighthearted relaxing 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

5.0

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