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onegalonelife27's review against another edition
emotional
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
4.5
This is a wonderful twist on Pride and Prejudice!
The plot navigates between Ayesha, a young woman putting her dreams aside in order to do what’s right for the family-such as paying back the debt she feels she owes her uncle after he helped her family move from India to Canada when she was little-leading her to care for and be pushed around by her cousin Hafsa. And Khalid, who’s own family troubles have led him to turn to religion, bringing his strict beliefs everywhere and onto everyone, earning him some ire from his new boss. So when he finds himself roped into joining some male colleagues-and that’s a stretch of the word-into a lounge he thinks she’s not a good Muslim to which she responds with some smackdown poetry. However when Hafsa volunteers, and then consequently bails, to help out at their local mosque leaving Ayesha to take her place and finding herself working with Khalid. Which leads to some great internal exploration for both characters, seeing how they really connect to their families, and truly getting their own happily ever after.
There’s also a few cuts to other points of view, such as Claire-Ayesha’s best friend and Khalid’s coworkers who wants to help them both while navigating her own love life, Khalid’s mother who is so sure she knows what’s best for everyone especially her son, Ayesha’s grandmother who I’d hire to be a PI any day of the week, adding to some of the great tension to the plot.
Not really sure if the whole “double identity” thing had to go on as long-felt a good call from Hasfa’s parents to the Iman could really helped this part out. Like the Iman just assumes Ayesha is Hafsa and never lets her speak during introductions and Ayesha decides to go along with it to get some more spite for Khalid. Like did Hafsa's parents not tell him to expect two women?
And UGH-Hasidim boss is definitely the worst-all the trigger warnings for her. Makes my skin crawl whenever she’s around. She does get some good karma thrown at her which made me sigh in relief. Also the sweet karma for the Wickham character-whoo! I also found myself feeling sympathetic towards characters I didn’t expect and wanting good things for them too.
Also didn’t realize this came after Much Ado about Nada or would be related, but a few characters’ lines and names clued me in. So guess I should pay attention to book release dates.
Overall, a great story for those who want a good retelling of the classic Pride and Prejudice!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Racism, Islamophobia, and Religious bigotry
Moderate: Alcoholism, Death of parent, and Misogyny
Minor: Abortion and Fatphobia
kiwi_00's review against another edition
emotional
funny
medium-paced
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
Hafsa sucked, i felt so bad that ayesha constantly had to cover up for her mistakes. when Hafsa said that Ayesha's DEAD dad could have been a gangster and throwing jabs at how much she didn't want to be like her (unmarried and 'old') all I could think was that I don't think I could tolerate that especially from someone who supposed to be family. Oh and fuck Farzana for what she did to her daughter .
Content Warnings
Moderate: Misogyny, Physical abuse, Alcoholism, and Islamophobia
sweetsxrrxw's review against another edition
emotional
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
4.0
one thing about me is that i always end up getting stuck in reading slumps for weeks and end up finishing about 50% of the book in a day or two. this is a terrible thing because i always end up forgetting many details. but, anyways, i guess that doesn't really matter for this review.
i must confess i have never read or watched "pride and prejudice" (even though i'll have to watch the movie soon for a uni assignment, lmao) so i had no idea of how the plot would unfold but i honestly did not mind.
there are so many things i have loved about this story. so when i have recently learnt it's the author's debut novel i was surprised because it is so good. the characters she created are truly complex and i love how you couldn't always hate or love them and how they had their cons and pros (some of them felt kinda flat, though).and i love how most of the characters end up being somehow intertwined. even minor characters had some kind of closure and i really like that.
but let's focus on the main characters: khalid and ayesha. there is this other thing i genuinely loved since the beginning of the story and it's khalid standing out because of the way he dresses. usually, it's always muslim women who go through that but he always says he wants to make his identity clear and i love that so much. don't get me wrong, i like relating to hijabi characters who go through discrimination because that's what i face every day too. but i appreciate how, mostly, none of ayesha's issues were related to that. speaking of ayesha, she is also a great character and you can't help but love her. of course, i haven't always necessarily agreed with every thing she did or said (i might have a couple annotations calling her dumb, lmao) but that's what gives her character more depth.
i also love how, before getting together, they took their time to grow and become better versions of themselves.
and i could go on and talk about every other side character since, as i said, i loved many of them. but that would make this review a reaaally long one, so let's just move on.
there were scenes, paragraphs or quotes that made me giggle but i wouldn't really classify this as a funny story or even a rom-com. i think it has more drama than comedy? but i love that, of course. but then there were some parts which felt really slow :/so slow that i am kinda disappointed that we didn't get to see the main relationship properly unfold and the ending left me wanting for more. maybe a second book wouldn't be a bad idea
let me just finish this review with a quote which really ressonated with me <3
i must confess i have never read or watched "pride and prejudice" (even though i'll have to watch the movie soon for a uni assignment, lmao) so i had no idea of how the plot would unfold but i honestly did not mind.
there are so many things i have loved about this story. so when i have recently learnt it's the author's debut novel i was surprised because it is so good. the characters she created are truly complex and i love how you couldn't always hate or love them and how they had their cons and pros (some of them felt kinda flat, though).and i love how most of the characters end up being somehow intertwined. even minor characters had some kind of closure and i really like that.
but let's focus on the main characters: khalid and ayesha. there is this other thing i genuinely loved since the beginning of the story and it's khalid standing out because of the way he dresses. usually, it's always muslim women who go through that but he always says he wants to make his identity clear and i love that so much. don't get me wrong, i like relating to hijabi characters who go through discrimination because that's what i face every day too. but i appreciate how, mostly, none of ayesha's issues were related to that. speaking of ayesha, she is also a great character and you can't help but love her. of course, i haven't always necessarily agreed with every thing she did or said (i might have a couple annotations calling her dumb, lmao) but that's what gives her character more depth.
and i could go on and talk about every other side character since, as i said, i loved many of them. but that would make this review a reaaally long one, so let's just move on.
there were scenes, paragraphs or quotes that made me giggle but i wouldn't really classify this as a funny story or even a rom-com. i think it has more drama than comedy? but i love that, of course. but then there were some parts which felt really slow :/
let me just finish this review with a quote which really ressonated with me <3
"just remember to pack light. dreams tend to shatter if you're carrying other people's hopes around you."
Content Warnings
Graphic: Racism, Islamophobia, and Death of parent
Moderate: Alcoholism and Misogyny
Minor: Grief, Pregnancy, Sexual content, and Abortion
aformeracceleratedreader's review against another edition
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
3.5
Didn't know this was a Pride and Prejudice retelling of sorts. I don't like Pride and Prejudice but I did enjoy this retelling overall. Didn't love it because the characters are frustrating but I did like the discussion of Islamophobia in Canada (it's a nice change from experiencing it/reading about it from the u.s.).
Content Warnings
Graphic: Islamophobia, Xenophobia, Sexism, Racism, and Misogyny
rachelfayreads's review against another edition
dark
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
sad
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
4.25
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death of parent, Toxic relationship, Islamophobia, and Xenophobia
Moderate: Sexual harassment, Misogyny, Racism, Xenophobia, Sexism, and Alcoholism
kingrosereads's review against another edition
emotional
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
A modern Muslim take on classic romance novels. It’s clean and drama filled.
A multiple POV drama that follows the day-to-day lives of Ayesha and Khalid, two people who had a bad first impression and continue to disagree nearly every time they meet (though it’s clear, Khalid likes Ayesha from the start). We see the drama of their professional and personal lives as well as the religious aspect of their lives. Khalid is more conservative in his religion than Ayesha and he judges people on how well they practice Islam in his opinion. He’s got a controlling mother that he just blindly obeys, and Ayesha’s got a family that treats her like yesterday’s garbage (except Nana).
TLDR: I liked this book for the drama and the emotional response it pulled from me. But I didn’t care for the “romance” aspect. Leave your own prejudices and preconceived notions you may have behind before you read this book. I laughed a few times, I cried once, there were a couple of gasps, but mostly I was just irritated and anger but 100% invested. Plot ain’t here, folks, only character-driven narratives.
This book was advertised as being a Pride & Prejudice retelling, but it’s more like it was inspired by Pride & Prejudice and Much Ado About Nothing among other Shakespearean elements. It’s also advertised as a romance, but it’s more of a soap opera-esque drama.
And now the long and boring review and discussion:
I will say, this is one of the few books I’ve read outside of a series or fantasy collection, where the side characters have some interesting substance to them. Clara, Nana, and Nani are all very interesting characters that play important roles in Ayesha and Khalid’s relationship. And I appreciated that.
Here for the drama and nothing else because romance? Who is she? She wasn’t in here. It’s literally mostly drama and it really was just one thing after the other. The Islamophobia from Sheila, the toxic masculinity and chauvinism from Amir and Tarek, faking identities, revenge porn, embezzlement, everything with Farzana, forcing a child into marriage, Hafsa being Hafsa. The book was a mess, but the kind of mess I like to read.
The blasé attitude about these really young women and teenage girls being brides in this book was so upsetting. How anyone would expect Hafsa (as irritating and problematic as she was) to “know better” is beyond me. Just because she’s 20 doesn’t mean she knows anything. She lives a sheltered, spoiled life where everyone around her let’s her get away with everything so how is she supposed to “know better”. Though I’m happy Zareena was at peace with her life, I hated that she was forced into a marriage at 17. It made it seem as though her parents were right in sending her away to “straighten her out”. Why was it seen as such a bad thing if she wanted to adopt more Western aspects into her identity? No one was forcing her to assimilate. And what kind of sexual consent can these women give if they’re just consenting the marriage to appease their families? That they don’t care for or know the men?
If I ever hear or see “that’s a good job for a woman” ever again, library book or not, I’m tossing the book in the trash. I understand that this may be a part of the culture for some communities (hell, my own grandfather berated me and my mother for choosing career paths that “weren’t suitable for women”). Ayesha should be able to follow her dreams and decide what to do next for her career. I don’t think many poets or writers are able to just do the writing unless they have support elsewhere. I think she could become an English professor like her grandfather. Then she’ll have the time to write and teach the subject she’s passionate about.
I hate that all of this (the family’s behavior) is seen as being rooted in love, and again, I’m not a part of this culture so I wouldn’t 100% understand, but it is still harmful. The anxiety from the pressure alone is overwhelming. And that’s all I felt through this book was anger and anxiety. I know it’s different for other families, but I’m really tired of reading the whole “be the bigger person” when it comes to family members that mistreat you. I’m not saying you have to cut them off 100% and hold a grudge forever, but you need to set boundaries. Family is family, you’re supposed to lift each other up when you need it. There is no “you owe them”, they helped you this time and you will help them when they’re in need. And I think Khalid kind of sets boundaries with his mother but Ayesha doesn’t with Hafsa and her aunt and uncle. It’s clear a lot of children of immigrants are struggling under the pressure of living a life that’s worth the sacrifices their parents make, but if the media and books don’t show healthy, gradual ways to implement healthy communication, how will that pressure ever let up?
Khalid is not your average hero (I really hate the terms hero/heroine in romance novels, but whatever). He’s a bearded, white robe-wearing conservative Muslim man. But like Mr. Darcy he’s a difficult character to like in the beginning due to his prejudice and judgmental opinions about what it means to be a “good Muslim” or a “decent, respectable wife”. I didn’t understand why he sometimes spoke like he was straight from a regency novel or Shakespeare play, and other times he talked like he was actually from the 21st century. It didn’t make sense and was really cringey. Khalid had a death grip on Islam in response to what happened with his sister, which is pretty believable. Lots of people turn to religion in a really aggressive way after a trauma. Though I’m glad that Khalid started to heal from that trauma and finally relented on his stronghold on Islam a bit. However, I didn’t understand why he couldn’t keep a little of the beard and some traditional clothing. You don’t need to be a prejudice conservative to wear those things, plenty of open minded Muslims still choose to wear traditional clothing.
I hate that Khalid turned a lot of things back on Ayesha. That she was the one judging him, when he’s constantly talking about how she can change to be a better Muslim. He makes HER feel guilty for how she views him with his beard and clothing when he’s literally trying to push Ayesha into this box. It was getting a little gaslighty.
I wanted my Darcy Hand Flex moment so bad. That burning regency desire to touch, but it’s hardly there. In a way I think paying homage to the regency novel could work in a modern setting within a Muslim community. If we’re talking about a community that’s a little more old fashioned in how it views dating (no touching and with chaperones) then yes. When I think about books like Love from A to Z, I think it does a beautiful job of honoring these traditional rules while also making it realistic they’re falling for each other and the heroine having a strong personality and setting goals for herself while pursuing a career that her family may not agree with. We could’ve had those burning moments in this book. The desire to touch but can’t because it would be improper. It does do the banter aspect of Pride & Prejudice decently. But yeah, I think regency courtship practices can easily be translated to a modern Muslim romance in a believable manner, so there shouldn’t be an issue doing a retelling of a regency classic.
It’s hard to say whether it was good or not. But it was entertaining and made me feel things. Negative things. But things, nonetheless.
A multiple POV drama that follows the day-to-day lives of Ayesha and Khalid, two people who had a bad first impression and continue to disagree nearly every time they meet (though it’s clear, Khalid likes Ayesha from the start). We see the drama of their professional and personal lives as well as the religious aspect of their lives. Khalid is more conservative in his religion than Ayesha and he judges people on how well they practice Islam in his opinion. He’s got a controlling mother that he just blindly obeys, and Ayesha’s got a family that treats her like yesterday’s garbage (except Nana).
TLDR: I liked this book for the drama and the emotional response it pulled from me. But I didn’t care for the “romance” aspect. Leave your own prejudices and preconceived notions you may have behind before you read this book. I laughed a few times, I cried once, there were a couple of gasps, but mostly I was just irritated and anger but 100% invested. Plot ain’t here, folks, only character-driven narratives.
This book was advertised as being a Pride & Prejudice retelling, but it’s more like it was inspired by Pride & Prejudice and Much Ado About Nothing among other Shakespearean elements. It’s also advertised as a romance, but it’s more of a soap opera-esque drama.
And now the long and boring review and discussion:
I will say, this is one of the few books I’ve read outside of a series or fantasy collection, where the side characters have some interesting substance to them. Clara, Nana, and Nani are all very interesting characters that play important roles in Ayesha and Khalid’s relationship. And I appreciated that.
Here for the drama and nothing else because romance? Who is she? She wasn’t in here. It’s literally mostly drama and it really was just one thing after the other. The Islamophobia from Sheila, the toxic masculinity and chauvinism from Amir and Tarek, faking identities, revenge porn, embezzlement, everything with Farzana, forcing a child into marriage, Hafsa being Hafsa. The book was a mess, but the kind of mess I like to read.
The blasé attitude about these really young women and teenage girls being brides in this book was so upsetting. How anyone would expect Hafsa (as irritating and problematic as she was) to “know better” is beyond me. Just because she’s 20 doesn’t mean she knows anything. She lives a sheltered, spoiled life where everyone around her let’s her get away with everything so how is she supposed to “know better”. Though I’m happy Zareena was at peace with her life, I hated that she was forced into a marriage at 17. It made it seem as though her parents were right in sending her away to “straighten her out”. Why was it seen as such a bad thing if she wanted to adopt more Western aspects into her identity? No one was forcing her to assimilate. And what kind of sexual consent can these women give if they’re just consenting the marriage to appease their families? That they don’t care for or know the men?
If I ever hear or see “that’s a good job for a woman” ever again, library book or not, I’m tossing the book in the trash. I understand that this may be a part of the culture for some communities (hell, my own grandfather berated me and my mother for choosing career paths that “weren’t suitable for women”). Ayesha should be able to follow her dreams and decide what to do next for her career. I don’t think many poets or writers are able to just do the writing unless they have support elsewhere. I think she could become an English professor like her grandfather. Then she’ll have the time to write and teach the subject she’s passionate about.
I hate that all of this (the family’s behavior) is seen as being rooted in love, and again, I’m not a part of this culture so I wouldn’t 100% understand, but it is still harmful. The anxiety from the pressure alone is overwhelming. And that’s all I felt through this book was anger and anxiety. I know it’s different for other families, but I’m really tired of reading the whole “be the bigger person” when it comes to family members that mistreat you. I’m not saying you have to cut them off 100% and hold a grudge forever, but you need to set boundaries. Family is family, you’re supposed to lift each other up when you need it. There is no “you owe them”, they helped you this time and you will help them when they’re in need. And I think Khalid kind of sets boundaries with his mother but Ayesha doesn’t with Hafsa and her aunt and uncle. It’s clear a lot of children of immigrants are struggling under the pressure of living a life that’s worth the sacrifices their parents make, but if the media and books don’t show healthy, gradual ways to implement healthy communication, how will that pressure ever let up?
Khalid is not your average hero (I really hate the terms hero/heroine in romance novels, but whatever). He’s a bearded, white robe-wearing conservative Muslim man. But like Mr. Darcy he’s a difficult character to like in the beginning due to his prejudice and judgmental opinions about what it means to be a “good Muslim” or a “decent, respectable wife”. I didn’t understand why he sometimes spoke like he was straight from a regency novel or Shakespeare play, and other times he talked like he was actually from the 21st century. It didn’t make sense and was really cringey. Khalid had a death grip on Islam in response to what happened with his sister, which is pretty believable. Lots of people turn to religion in a really aggressive way after a trauma. Though I’m glad that Khalid started to heal from that trauma and finally relented on his stronghold on Islam a bit. However, I didn’t understand why he couldn’t keep a little of the beard and some traditional clothing. You don’t need to be a prejudice conservative to wear those things, plenty of open minded Muslims still choose to wear traditional clothing.
I hate that Khalid turned a lot of things back on Ayesha. That she was the one judging him, when he’s constantly talking about how she can change to be a better Muslim. He makes HER feel guilty for how she views him with his beard and clothing when he’s literally trying to push Ayesha into this box. It was getting a little gaslighty.
I wanted my Darcy Hand Flex moment so bad. That burning regency desire to touch, but it’s hardly there. In a way I think paying homage to the regency novel could work in a modern setting within a Muslim community. If we’re talking about a community that’s a little more old fashioned in how it views dating (no touching and with chaperones) then yes. When I think about books like Love from A to Z, I think it does a beautiful job of honoring these traditional rules while also making it realistic they’re falling for each other and the heroine having a strong personality and setting goals for herself while pursuing a career that her family may not agree with. We could’ve had those burning moments in this book. The desire to touch but can’t because it would be improper. It does do the banter aspect of Pride & Prejudice decently. But yeah, I think regency courtship practices can easily be translated to a modern Muslim romance in a believable manner, so there shouldn’t be an issue doing a retelling of a regency classic.
It’s hard to say whether it was good or not. But it was entertaining and made me feel things. Negative things. But things, nonetheless.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Islamophobia, Misogyny, Sexism, and Toxic relationship
Moderate: Adult/minor relationship
ms_read's review against another edition
funny
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
4.75
Content Warnings
Graphic: Islamophobia, Emotional abuse, Death of parent, and Religious bigotry
Moderate: Alcoholism, Sexism, Misogyny, Racism, Sexual harassment, Pregnancy, and Toxic relationship
Minor: Abortion, Body shaming, Trafficking, Murder, and Fatphobia
shelbybelby's review against another edition
emotional
funny
hopeful
inspiring
lighthearted
tense
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
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Islamophobia, Misogyny, Racism, and Religious bigotry
Moderate: Death of parent and Emotional abuse
thewildmageslibrary's review against another edition
4.0
It's been a while since I read this, but I remember liking it! Going in, the synopsis had given me certain expectations that I was glad were not true. I enjoyed the story much better with mistaken identity being the conflict! Khalid was such a cinnamon roll.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Emotional abuse and Grief
Moderate: Islamophobia, Racism, Misogyny, and Fatphobia
Minor: Abortion and Death of parent
nytephoenyx's review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
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
It took me a little while to get into Ayesha at Last – at the beginning I thought it was going to be another run-of-the-mill romance and as y’all know… that is not my genre. The deeper I got into the book the more I came to enjoy it. In particular, I really liked Ayesha herself.
If I’m going to read romance, this is how I like it. Ayesha at Last is down-to-Earth and doesn’t shy away from the ugliness of racism. There are a lot of shades of the Muslim faith in this book, and as someone who had very little knowledge on both the Muslim faith and Indian traditions, I really enjoyed the nuances to the world building. I also enjoyed the socio-economic differences between characters that added even more variety to the complex line-up.
Ayesha at Last is a Pride and Prejudice retelling, but I’ll tell you right upfront that you can be completely unfamiliar with Pride and Prejudiceand still enjoy the novel. If anything, this story reminds me of elements of Shakespearean comedies… a similarity that was undoubtedly intentional considering how often the Bard was quoted. In addition, mistaken identities always remind me of Shakespeare. 🙂 Yet more nuances to this book I enjoyed! Also Ayesha’s grandparents are purely precious.
All the family relationships were really interesting, and all very different! From role models to benefactors to babysitting to unequal balances of power, there’s a wide variety of connections between characters which adds to the richness of the story. Aside from Ayesha and her grandparents, I also really liked Khalid’s relationship with his sister. The importance (and frustration!) of family comes through really well.
I thought Jalaluddin’s writing was fantastic. While Ayesha at Last may not be a book I run out to the bookstore to get (once is enough for most romances, in my opinion), this skill that went into writing this book proves that Jalaluddin is skilled at her craft. I’ll definitely pick up more books by this author. In addition to that, Ayesha at Last is an easy recommendation that I’d give to most the readers I know in real life!
If you’re looking for a desi romance with frequent, adorable confusion and occasional dramatic gestures, then Ayesha at Last is certainly for you. The minor revenge side plot and the beautifully described wedding are just bonuses after that. I definitely recommend reading this one – by the end, you’ll be cozy and smiling.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Islamophobia, Bullying, Death of parent, Racism, and Religious bigotry
Moderate: Misogyny
Minor: Abortion, Alcoholism, Violence, and Pregnancy