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rmaha's review against another edition
2.0
I wanted to like this book soooo bad, but ultimately it just wasn’t for me.
haafsy's review against another edition
5.0
Asfandyars my man, Durkhanai needs a better family.
Moral of the story: Everyone’s fake and blood is in fact, not thicker than water. Kill dem hoes
Moral of the story: Everyone’s fake and blood is in fact, not thicker than water. Kill dem hoes
thepagelady's review against another edition
3.0
This was a great story of forbidden love with some mystery! The descriptions of the settings and what was going on was really good! The characters were good but I never really got invested in them. Durkhanai is spoiled and stubborn but it fits her character and she did grow and change as the story went on and that was nice. Overall it's a story rich in culture, mystery and some interesting twists! Thank you Let's Talk Books for sharing this book with me!
burning_constellations's review against another edition
3.0
there was literally no need to make the characters muslim
crownofwishes's review against another edition
3.0
gorgeous gorgeous read! the forbidden love aspect of the story was amazing, and the world was so rich. I love how filmy the book felt, it really made me happy
radeyahc's review
adventurous
emotional
mysterious
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
arwareads's review against another edition
5.0
Love is love,” he said, voice low. “No matter how it started, what I feel is true.”
this book was so amazing and beautifully written, i fell in love with everything about it.
the characters were written so well, durkhanais feelings and what she felt her place in the world was so explored so greatly i couldnt help but love her. asfandyars character slowly finding a purpose and us realising what it was and how he felt for durre made my heart so full. i loved watching their relationship bloom as well as both their individual characters do what they needed to do for themselves and their people !!
as someone who is a pakistani muslim herself, this book felt a bit like home. all the reminders of home and the glimpses of pakistan with the language and traditions shown was something so special to me <3
this book was so amazing and beautifully written, i fell in love with everything about it.
the characters were written so well, durkhanais feelings and what she felt her place in the world was so explored so greatly i couldnt help but love her. asfandyars character slowly finding a purpose and us realising what it was and how he felt for durre made my heart so full. i loved watching their relationship bloom as well as both their individual characters do what they needed to do for themselves and their people !!
as someone who is a pakistani muslim herself, this book felt a bit like home. all the reminders of home and the glimpses of pakistan with the language and traditions shown was something so special to me <3
aashna's review against another edition
4.0
THAT ENDING IM SCREAMING FULL RTC
ok so i love saying full rtc and never posting the review but i love this book SO much it's like . yeah such a book fr
ok so i love saying full rtc and never posting the review but i love this book SO much it's like . yeah such a book fr
fauxvais's review against another edition
2.0
I keep forgetting to review this, and by now, my memory isn't as sharp so as to be able to go in-depth with a proper review, but I'd like to point out my major takeaways.
CW: anti-Blackness, colorism, semi-graphic violence, and one instance of sexual assault.
REP: all Pakistani MC's and SC's.
Qureshi is someone who has a wonderful way with words, and her prose brings every aspect of the novel to life, from the character interactions to the descriptions of clothing and scenery. That being said, I don't think that talent for prose is enough to buoy the novel itself, which, while it has a very attractive premise, is let down by the fact that the major plot points feel all too predictable. Predictability doesn't necessarily have to be a problem in a novel, but it's particularly significant here considering an important part of Durkhanai's personal arc is about proving herself worthy of engaging with politics so that she will be taken seriously rather than be condescended to by older members of her court. The accomplishments she makes in an effort to prove herself are too easy, and she's never challenged in a way that would warrant her experiencing significant setbacks that she would then have to navigate with developed smarts and skills. Her goal is to not be treated like a naïve princess who can only offer presence and platitudes, but I don't see how she makes any moves to actually accomplish this goal, because narratively, nearly everything is handed to her. I think it is one thing to want to write about political intrigue in a novel and another to actually possess the skill in order to execute it, and Qureshi to me lacks the latter, to the point that I ended up more invested in Durkhanai's cousins and their bare bones mentions, because the premise of their subdued deception is ultimately more interesting, especially with the revelations made at the end. Durkhanai's relationship with Asfandyar is also filled with loads of chemistry and sexual tension, but the political foundations of their initial antagonism are more or less lost to the wind because Durkhanai is rarely concretely challenged with regards to the colorism and extremism of her court. To the end, she makes excuses upon excuses for her grandparents, their prejudice, and their oppressive violence. Admittedly, this is something I hope the next novel in the series will try to address, but it's nonetheless incredibly annoying to read about an MC who is so pampered in her own worldview and her desperate need to be taken seriously that she ends up constantly justifying her family's bigotry and proving even moreso why she shouldn't be taken seriously at all. This is made even worse by the fact that Qureshi constantly inserts instances of anti-Blackness expressed towards Asfandyar by members of Durkhanai's court without any substantive follow-through; there's no concrete effort made to question her family's anti-Blackness and colorism and it feels almost as if these instances are sprinkled out to prove that the phenomena exist and nothing else. The antagonism between Durkhanai's court and Asfandyar's court is treated purely as one of political social standing and borne of the tenuous status quo that exists between bordering nation states, and colorism's impact is never brought into the picture despite clearly existing within the world and impacting how people interact with each other. It feels irresponsible of a non-Black author to engage with anti-Blackness and colorism in this way, and if possible, I hope these phenomena are addressed more conclusively in the sequel.
FINAL RATING: 2.5
CW: anti-Blackness, colorism, semi-graphic violence, and one instance of sexual assault.
REP: all Pakistani MC's and SC's.
Qureshi is someone who has a wonderful way with words, and her prose brings every aspect of the novel to life, from the character interactions to the descriptions of clothing and scenery. That being said, I don't think that talent for prose is enough to buoy the novel itself, which, while it has a very attractive premise, is let down by the fact that the major plot points feel all too predictable. Predictability doesn't necessarily have to be a problem in a novel, but it's particularly significant here considering an important part of Durkhanai's personal arc is about proving herself worthy of engaging with politics so that she will be taken seriously rather than be condescended to by older members of her court. The accomplishments she makes in an effort to prove herself are too easy, and she's never challenged in a way that would warrant her experiencing significant setbacks that she would then have to navigate with developed smarts and skills. Her goal is to not be treated like a naïve princess who can only offer presence and platitudes, but I don't see how she makes any moves to actually accomplish this goal, because narratively, nearly everything is handed to her. I think it is one thing to want to write about political intrigue in a novel and another to actually possess the skill in order to execute it, and Qureshi to me lacks the latter, to the point that I ended up more invested in Durkhanai's cousins and their bare bones mentions, because the premise of their subdued deception is ultimately more interesting, especially with the revelations made at the end. Durkhanai's relationship with Asfandyar is also filled with loads of chemistry and sexual tension, but the political foundations of their initial antagonism are more or less lost to the wind because Durkhanai is rarely concretely challenged with regards to the colorism and extremism of her court. To the end, she makes excuses upon excuses for her grandparents, their prejudice, and their oppressive violence. Admittedly, this is something I hope the next novel in the series will try to address, but it's nonetheless incredibly annoying to read about an MC who is so pampered in her own worldview and her desperate need to be taken seriously that she ends up constantly justifying her family's bigotry and proving even moreso why she shouldn't be taken seriously at all. This is made even worse by the fact that Qureshi constantly inserts instances of anti-Blackness expressed towards Asfandyar by members of Durkhanai's court without any substantive follow-through; there's no concrete effort made to question her family's anti-Blackness and colorism and it feels almost as if these instances are sprinkled out to prove that the phenomena exist and nothing else. The antagonism between Durkhanai's court and Asfandyar's court is treated purely as one of political social standing and borne of the tenuous status quo that exists between bordering nation states, and colorism's impact is never brought into the picture despite clearly existing within the world and impacting how people interact with each other. It feels irresponsible of a non-Black author to engage with anti-Blackness and colorism in this way, and if possible, I hope these phenomena are addressed more conclusively in the sequel.
FINAL RATING: 2.5
tomblythenthusiast's review against another edition
2.0
the plot was super interesting even though it was slow at first but the writing made me cringe and the Muslim rep felt like a mockery