Scan barcode
scienceworks's review against another edition
challenging
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.75
diquinn's review against another edition
challenging
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
2.0
This had so much potential to be a great book, however it relied so heavily on the reader having a working knowledge of both Islam and Indian culture that it became hard to follow.
gabriellabuba's review against another edition
5.0
I adored this book, the setting was so real you could see smell taste and hear the city of noor bustling around you. I honestly loved Fatima so much, really connected with her in a way I haven't been able to mesh with a YA heroine in a while. I loved how she refused to be cowed by anything or anyone. I loved how important her faith was to her in a way that felt very intimate and real without seeming too evangelical? Wrong word Christian word but the book doesn't try to convert you its a beautiful window into the lives of others and thier world views. I also adored the love interest?? I'd try to spell his name but confession I listened to the audiobook and don't know how!! The emir was the brooding YA hero we all wish we had, I live for strong capable men who have tiny internal meltdowns when they make social gaffes, who have stress nausea and have to not eat before important social engagement so they can't puke. The romance was so absolutely positively darling, it was every trope I love handed to me on a silver platter sprinkled with gold dust. I cackled with glee during the proposal scene. I was living my best life when he had to then go get her father's blessing. I really really loved how everyone took thier social responsibility to protect Fatima miles over making any concessions to the emir. Like yes give me more strong family/found family units who look at dude whose come to take you away and are like, but will you cherish her?? And all the amazing women characters who loved each other through disagreements and disaster and were friends and family anyway? So many women who were friends and were also amazing independent people doing great cool things with thier lives?!??? I want more of it. I also adored the magic in this it was beautiful and I really enjoyed the tidy ending all the many threads tied into a very neat. This book told a lovely story it may not have thrown in any crazy wild twists but honestly??? I was so glad! It told me a beautiful tale and I was jumping up and down in excitement waiting to see the characters react to each reveal and honestly that's better than a shocking twist. This book was a treat from beginning to end as lovely as all the delicious deserts Fatima and the emir are always eating and I'm so happy to have read it
lsparrow's review against another edition
3.0
I am not a huge reader of romance - however this was enough of a book about magic - and magic of the Djinn tradition which I love - plus although set in a fictional city - it felt very familiar especially with many of the Urdu words.
jnwunder's review against another edition
2.0
I wanted to love this so much. But between the jargon/vocabulary and the extremely detached narrative style, I just couldn't get into it. So disappointed.
chibs86's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
inspiring
lighthearted
mysterious
reflective
relaxing
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
skybs's review
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
emlove's review against another edition
3.0
3.5 stars
The only thing keeping this from a 4 star rating is how terribly long it took for the story to get going. I think I was 50 pages in before I was able to really get invested. Once I did, the pace was great, and I did really enjoy the plot and the characters, but it just took so long to get there.
Also, there is a bit of a language barrier here. There are a lot of Arabic and Muslim religious terms here, which is wonderful! Obviously, this is a great title for representation, and the fact that it is an ownvoices book is fabulous. But I was not familiar with hardly any of these terms, which may have been what made the first 50 pages so difficult for me. I loved that there was so much discussion of food, and that the real names were used, but I didn't actually know what any of them were, so I felt myself kind of skimming most of the time. And, for myself personally, I chafe at religion in general, so the constant prayer schedule got annoying. But that's obviously just my own thing.
Fatima is a super strong lead, especially once she becomes Fatima Ghazala. Her recognition of her own power is a wonderful thing to see, especially since it never goes away! She never doubts her own abilities, just the consequences of her decisions, which I think is just a badass way to go about life. The scene where she shows Aaruv exactly what she's going to do about him touching her is an inspiration.
I found her romance with Zulfikar to be a bit...underwhelming, though he was very sweet. His announcement to Tali was very romantic, but other than that, I didn't really see them together enough to feel solid about their relationship. And the constant discussion of what was "proper" or "decent/indecent" definitely kept it from "sizzling" status for me. Of course I recognize that that is most likely a cultural difference.
I also found the conclusion to be a tad rushed, though I didn't notice it as much as I was reading because for some reason I thought this was a series. But once I read The End I kind of blinked like....that's it? I feel that there is so much potential, so many things left to be explored, that I am definitely not satisfied with the ending as it stands.
All in all, I liked the story, but it did leave something to be desired for me.
The only thing keeping this from a 4 star rating is how terribly long it took for the story to get going. I think I was 50 pages in before I was able to really get invested. Once I did, the pace was great, and I did really enjoy the plot and the characters, but it just took so long to get there.
Also, there is a bit of a language barrier here. There are a lot of Arabic and Muslim religious terms here, which is wonderful! Obviously, this is a great title for representation, and the fact that it is an ownvoices book is fabulous. But I was not familiar with hardly any of these terms, which may have been what made the first 50 pages so difficult for me. I loved that there was so much discussion of food, and that the real names were used, but I didn't actually know what any of them were, so I felt myself kind of skimming most of the time. And, for myself personally, I chafe at religion in general, so the constant prayer schedule got annoying. But that's obviously just my own thing.
Fatima is a super strong lead, especially once she becomes Fatima Ghazala. Her recognition of her own power is a wonderful thing to see, especially since it never goes away! She never doubts her own abilities, just the consequences of her decisions, which I think is just a badass way to go about life. The scene where she shows Aaruv exactly what she's going to do about him touching her is an inspiration.
I found her romance with Zulfikar to be a bit...underwhelming, though he was very sweet. His announcement to Tali
Spoiler
about his intention/reasons for marrying Fatima GhazalaI also found the conclusion to be a tad rushed, though I didn't notice it as much as I was reading because for some reason I thought this was a series. But once I read The End I kind of blinked like....that's it? I feel that there is so much potential, so many things left to be explored, that I am definitely not satisfied with the ending as it stands.
All in all, I liked the story, but it did leave something to be desired for me.
lilbirdh's review against another edition
4.0
Very interesting viewpoint on the whole YA theme of girl discovering some great power within her and enemy turning into lover. I enjoyed the diverseness of the setting and characters (especially with the women who were extremely strong willed given the oppressive environment they come from). However, the four star rating is due to the fact it was really slow to read and there were times where the book didn’t do much to stand out from other similar YA novels. I did enjoy it, though, if you’re looking for something diverse with great visuals.