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A review by rknuttel
No True Believers by Rabiah York Lumbard
4.0
Thanks to the @kidlitexchange network for a review copy of this book - all opinions are my own.
NO TRUE BELIEVERS is out on FEBRUARY 11, 2020!
Whew. This book was quite the ride! Let’s do this in list form.
Things I Loved:
- The cover - it is sooooo gorgeous and powerful! Definitely catches your attention right away.
- The blurb. It is super intriguing and it made me request this book with no prior knowledge, which I rarely do. HOWEVER, the blurb is also a big part of my critique below. Stay tuned haha.
- Salma. Salma B. Girl kicks some serious butt and I love her. She is strong and sassy but vulnerable and scared all at the same time, which is very real. She loves powerfully and rages against injustice. She turns away from the opportunity to be cruel even when presented with easy and deserved opportunities. She uses her powers for good!
- Salma and Amir I love Amir! Amir is adorable! Amir can do no wrong. I love their relationship and how strong it is. I love that there is no drama about the relationship and that we fall into it when it is already strong.
- Family dynamics. The force is strong with this one, and I’m a sucker for good family dynamics in YA.
- Mysteries! Thrills! Questions! Answers! Secret societies. Scary plots. This story has it all, and once the plot picks up, man does it fly. However...see below.
- This story deals with some very relevant and important topics. It is so vital to hear from these marginalized voices and learn how to be an ally.
Critiques!
- The blurb is a bit misleading. Most of what it discusses does not happen until the end of the book or does not happen the way it leads you to expect. Which sometimes can be good but this time left me hanging.
- Pacing. This story is definitely a slow burn with loooots if set up. Most of the action happens in the last, like, quarter. Once we got to that last quarter, it was fantastic and heart pounding! However, because of what the blurb teases about the story, you spend a long time waiting for all of the action.
- I would have loved a glossary in the back to define frequently used Arabic words/phrases so that I wouldn’t forget what they meant!
- We never feet closure with some of the characters who give Salma trouble at the beginning. That’s life, but I would have liked it haha.
I was planning on giving this a 3, but the ending definitely brings it up to a 4. This story is for sure worth reading! It’s gritty and heavy and intense, but that’s what makes it great!
NO TRUE BELIEVERS is out on FEBRUARY 11, 2020!
Whew. This book was quite the ride! Let’s do this in list form.
Things I Loved:
- The cover - it is sooooo gorgeous and powerful! Definitely catches your attention right away.
- The blurb. It is super intriguing and it made me request this book with no prior knowledge, which I rarely do. HOWEVER, the blurb is also a big part of my critique below. Stay tuned haha.
- Salma. Salma B. Girl kicks some serious butt and I love her. She is strong and sassy but vulnerable and scared all at the same time, which is very real. She loves powerfully and rages against injustice. She turns away from the opportunity to be cruel even when presented with easy and deserved opportunities. She uses her powers for good!
- Salma and Amir I love Amir! Amir is adorable! Amir can do no wrong. I love their relationship and how strong it is. I love that there is no drama about the relationship and that we fall into it when it is already strong.
- Family dynamics. The force is strong with this one, and I’m a sucker for good family dynamics in YA.
- Mysteries! Thrills! Questions! Answers! Secret societies. Scary plots. This story has it all, and once the plot picks up, man does it fly. However...see below.
- This story deals with some very relevant and important topics. It is so vital to hear from these marginalized voices and learn how to be an ally.
Critiques!
- The blurb is a bit misleading. Most of what it discusses does not happen until the end of the book or does not happen the way it leads you to expect. Which sometimes can be good but this time left me hanging.
- Pacing. This story is definitely a slow burn with loooots if set up. Most of the action happens in the last, like, quarter. Once we got to that last quarter, it was fantastic and heart pounding! However, because of what the blurb teases about the story, you spend a long time waiting for all of the action.
- I would have loved a glossary in the back to define frequently used Arabic words/phrases so that I wouldn’t forget what they meant!
- We never feet closure with some of the characters who give Salma trouble at the beginning. That’s life, but I would have liked it haha.
I was planning on giving this a 3, but the ending definitely brings it up to a 4. This story is for sure worth reading! It’s gritty and heavy and intense, but that’s what makes it great!