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caprivoyant's review
The angst! The confusion! The all-too-easy tendency to get a little lost in family's opinions! Ah!
This story was told with so much tenderness. I adored getting to know Samira and her family as Samira got to know herself. Watching her prioritize the life she wanted made this the sweetest book I've read in a long time.
Will definitely be trying to get my hands on other books by this author.
This story was told with so much tenderness. I adored getting to know Samira and her family as Samira got to know herself. Watching her prioritize the life she wanted made this the sweetest book I've read in a long time.
Will definitely be trying to get my hands on other books by this author.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Fatphobia, Toxic friendship, Toxic relationship, Islamophobia, and Misogyny
If seeing HP references is a trigger for you, just a heads up that there is a sort of reference in here? An ex is called "He Who Shall Not Be Named" at one point. I believe it was only mentioned once.bookishmillennial's review against another edition
funny
reflective
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
disclaimer: I don’t really give starred reviews. I hope my reviews provide enough information to let you know if a book is for you or not. Find me here: https://linktr.ee/bookishmillennial
This is a romcom about Samira, who is perpetually unimpressed with the dating pool lol. I loved that because it was so real! Samira works as an assistant at a bridal magazine, but feels lackluster and a sense of malaise about her job and weddings in general. She meets Menem at a team-building day, and finds out he is the brother of her cousin Zahra’s husband-to-be, which means they are about to be around each other much more with the nuptials coming up!
Anyway, there’s a bit of a love triangle so be forewarned if that’s not your thing! However, I felt the romance was more of a subplot, while the familial dynamics and friendships of Samira are what really shone to me. Samira’s friendships with Lara & Hakeem; and cousin-ship with Zahra were delightfully goofy and felt authentic to what I’ve experienced with family, frenemies, and friends!
Samira is 27, which is considered “old” if you’re unmarried, and though her father is mostly supportive of whatever she wants, it’s no secret that it would be excellent news and a collective sigh of relief would be shared if Samira finally accepted a proposal! I appreciated reading about Palestinian-Australian joy, messy beginnings to love, miscommunications in friendship, and figuring out next steps career-wise!
The narrator Randa Sayed did a wonderful job, I enjoyed listening to her bring this story to life!
This is a romcom about Samira, who is perpetually unimpressed with the dating pool lol. I loved that because it was so real! Samira works as an assistant at a bridal magazine, but feels lackluster and a sense of malaise about her job and weddings in general. She meets Menem at a team-building day, and finds out he is the brother of her cousin Zahra’s husband-to-be, which means they are about to be around each other much more with the nuptials coming up!
Anyway, there’s a bit of a love triangle so be forewarned if that’s not your thing! However, I felt the romance was more of a subplot, while the familial dynamics and friendships of Samira are what really shone to me. Samira’s friendships with Lara & Hakeem; and cousin-ship with Zahra were delightfully goofy and felt authentic to what I’ve experienced with family, frenemies, and friends!
Samira is 27, which is considered “old” if you’re unmarried, and though her father is mostly supportive of whatever she wants, it’s no secret that it would be excellent news and a collective sigh of relief would be shared if Samira finally accepted a proposal! I appreciated reading about Palestinian-Australian joy, messy beginnings to love, miscommunications in friendship, and figuring out next steps career-wise!
The narrator Randa Sayed did a wonderful job, I enjoyed listening to her bring this story to life!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Fatphobia, Racism, Misogyny, Toxic relationship, Islamophobia, and Sexism
kteq's review against another edition
funny
hopeful
lighthearted
slow-paced
3.25
A romance but also a love letter to Palestinian joy, millennial pop culture, and cousins making the best friends. Content warning for microaggressions (acknowledged) and casual fatphobia (not acknowledged).
Content Warnings
Minor: Fatphobia and Islamophobia
hearth_hobbit's review
funny
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? N/A
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
3 Stars: I liked it
Summary: No shoes with tassels, no cheesy leather jackets, no mustaches. These are Samira’s rules when enduring what Samira calls the “door knock appeals” which are arranged matches where Samira meets men who have the intention of courting her. When her cousin and nemesis, Zahara, gets engaged and needs help planning her wedding Samira reluctantly helps. Right when she meets Zahara’s handsome brother-in-law-to-be who seems interested in Samira, a childhood friend throws his hat into the ring as well and puts Samira in the middle of a love triangle that she never expected to be in.
Thoughts: Despite this being a romance, what took center stage for me was Samira’s social and family life. I was way more interested in Samira planning the wedding for her cousin, her work interactions, and her friendships. I learned a bit about Muslim and Palestinian culture. It was interesting to learn about some customs, practices, and social norms that I hadn’t known at all before.
There were some parts of the story that I wish had been expanded on. For example, Samira had a coworker who showed a little too much interest in her. I was kind of hoping that Samira at one point would tell him off in true RomCom fashion, but it ends up getting dropped and he starts dating someone else. I felt like there were multiple instances where the author would pick up a topic and then place it down and move on.
This book came out over 10 years ago and in some ways it feels like it. There are some fatphobic insults and comments that I felt aged the book a bit.
Overall, I would recommend this book on its coziness rather than the romance.
Content Warnings
Minor: Xenophobia, Islamophobia, Toxic relationship, Fatphobia, and Racism
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