Reviews tagging 'Outing'

The Henna Wars by Adiba Jaigirdar

249 reviews

bluejay21's review against another edition

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emotional hopeful 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

4.0


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britt_zonnebloempit's review against another edition

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emotional hopeful fast-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

3.75

This was absolutely adorable!! Plus, I have never read anything like this before, with such a mix of different cultures coming together, PLUS sapphic characters. It feels very wholesome and inclusive! 

I'm not exactly the target demographic for this book, considering I'm in my 30s, which led me to a lower rating...

The only thing that reallllly bothered me is the way the writer mentioned characters having "a frown on their lips" or Nishat's heart going "x miles a minute" every other page, but other than that it was a super easy, sweet read.

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meliemelo's review against another edition

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emotional funny hopeful lighthearted 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

4.0

I'd been wanting to read this book for a long while and was very happy to discover it amongst my birthday present. It's very sweet overall, although the second-hand embarrassment (mainly in the form of "nooooo don't do that!") can make it a tense read at times.

As in a lot of first-person POV romances, we suffer a bit from not getting much insight into the love interest's thoughts and motivations, making it quite difficult to understand and even, to a certain extent, like her at times. In the end though I was happy with the overall resolution.

I especially liked the emphasis on the bond with Priti, as well as family and friends in general.

I think this is a great read for teenagers, and I'm looking forward to adding it to my hypothetical-future LGBTQ+ classroom bookshelf.

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hollokim's review against another edition

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emotional hopeful 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


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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 against another edition

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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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bg_oseman_fan's review against another edition

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emotional medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? No
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

i enjoyed the realistic take on how high schoolers deal with issues of cultural appropriation and homophobia. the end felt a bit too quick tying things up, however. i do like that the focus was on the main character developing her own agency throughout the story. the romantic side of the story was not profoundly interesting in itself, but still helped to display the complexities of life as a young person when you are “different”

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lonely_leafairy's review against another edition

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emotional funny inspiring lighthearted reflective 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

I might change this rating, but for now, this is the best book I've ever read.
(By the way, I have listed all of the content warnings very carefully and made sure I didn't skip any, so this is a pretty trustworthy review to go by!)
Granted, that might sound a little dramatic, but I haven't read many books, so take that opinion with a grain of salt.
I loved the diversity of the characters, and I think it is so full of plot twists and things that will make you want to cry, scream or jump with joy.
It's got so many qualities, and I might be a little biased since the main love interest is Brazillian and I'm Brazillian, but it is still a great find. It's my favorite book for so many reasons, and I simply adore it.
But, that doesn't mean that it doesn't come with its flaws.
It seems like kind of amateur writing, mainly how they used the same description, "I pressed her lips against mine," and some other things. It's repetitive and seems like a beginner's mistake. It really did lose it's meaning when you use the same bombastic description so many times. But those really are silly mistakes that I can look over, and overall, it's a great book!


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bookish_kirst's review against another edition

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medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? It's complicated
  • Loveable characters? No
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

This book is based in Ireland and follows Nishat, a Muslim lesbian, who bumps into an old school friend, Flavia, and falls for her. For a school competition they have to start a business, Nishat decides to open a Henna business and so does Flavia, even though she isn't Desi.

Nishat was, at times, very self centered and honestly just kind of annoying.

The romance didn't really make much sense to me either, we understand how Nishat is made to feel everytime Flavia upsets her and yet she still forgives and falls for her, even when Flavia dismisses her discomfort at her starting a henna business and essentially appropriating Nishat's culture just to win a school cometition. 

I don't know, this book wasn't awful but it wasn't great either even though it had so much potential to be.

TW/CW: racism, homophobia, outing, cultural appropriation, bullying

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colorful_lulu's review against another edition

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emotional inspiring 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? Yes

4.5


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