Reviews with content warning for Hate crime - The Henna Wars

I raced through this book! What a sweet novel, that took me less than a minute to devour.

Although the main character Nishat can be bratty, I think it’s important to realise she’s a teenage girl and their thoughts and actions may not be as well thought out or logical as we’d like them to be.

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featherinthewind's review

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emotional hopeful reflective sad medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

I felt that this book had some problems, but nothing that couldn’t be overlooked by the overall enjoyment I had while reading. There were small hiccups in the beginning, and the characters didn’t feel right, but as the story continued, the quality increased. I am left with a bit of dissatisfaction of the relationship in this book because it didn’t feel quite right, but by the end, I was satisfied. The real reason why I gave it 4 stars was because it made me angry. The way the characters and their actions were portrayed made me feel angry, making me want to stand up for the MC, Nashat. The book did a wonderful job portraying the hardships of being outed and being different than everyone else.

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annorabrady's review against another edition

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hopeful medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.75

I can see why a lot of people like it, especially teens. But it wasn't really my jam. I think it would be particularly important for both POC and LGBTQ youth, especially those who don't have the best coming out experiences. Though, it should be noted that there are both forced outings, overt racism, and nonviolent hate crimes in this story so people should approach it with caution.

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lucyhargrave's review

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emotional hopeful fast-paced

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

3.75

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bookswithmaia's review against another edition

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hopeful 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? N/A

4.75

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ophycore's review

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emotional 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

4.25

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emily_mh's review against another edition

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emotional 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? No

4.5

I think the main reason I adore Jaigirdar’s romance books is that the story is never just about romance. The MCs always have a full life outside of the love they may be pursuing which makes for dynamic characters and a layered story.

Nishat and Flávia were so sweet together. I think a few more conversations between the two of them would have been nice, but this wasn’t a biggie. I loved the way Jaigirdar described how a crush feels, and I was so impressed that she got me to like Flávia and root for her romance with Nishat after the way she acted in the beginning/middle of the book! Alongside the romance the book confronts cultural appropriation, exhibiting its hypocrisy and how it feels to have your culture stolen. Additionally, the story shows what coming out looks like, both when you’re accepted or not, or have have a choice in it or are outed, and also the complicated role family can play in it all.

Nishat was such a great MC. I liked how she stuck to her guns but also went through personal growth, too! I loved that the writing made me feel what she was feeling. Her relationship with her sister Priti was amazing and exactly like what my relationship was like with my sister in our teens.

On top of all this I really liked reading about henna, especially the descriptions of Nishat’s designs and how henna can be passed down as a tradition in Bengali families. I cannot wait to read more by this author!

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tinyjude's review against another edition

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emotional lighthearted reflective fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

I really liked the tension between the characters and the social commentary (white privilege, racism, homophobia, etc), although it didnt make me giggle as hard as her other book (i am still in love with the sapphic couple in that book). I loved the sibling dynamics and the support they showed to each other, it was beautiful. Also, I liked how most of the characters come around, admit their mistakes and become better people.

My only complains are: WE NEEDED MORE SCENES OF THEM BEING SO CUTE, SO AWKWARDLY IN LOVE THROUGH THE BOOK, THE YEARNING and all the HP references, which hurt a lot my non binary heart, bc JKR is a massive TERF and I hate when people make any reference to her work, something that could easily be replaced by another kids story whose author doesnt literally threatens the lives of trans people ever day. But this last complain is more general, to the whole book community and writers.

Please, your nostalgia of a fictional work written by a TERF is not as important as literal trans lives.

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