A review by niftyreads
Four Eids and a Funeral by Adiba Jaigirdar, Faridah Àbíké-Íyímídé

Did not finish book. Stopped at 56%.

I don’t think I’ve ever regretted DNFing a book so much as I have FOUR EIDS AND A FUNERAL by Faridah Àbíké-Íyímídé and Adiba Jaigirdar. I made it 56% in the audiobook, and that was with me realllllllly pushing that last 6% because I was hoping something would magically pull my interest. It didn’t. I was sad. 

FEAAF has been on my tbr list since it was announced. It sounded like a fresh plot and a book I could enjoy and learn from. I was even so excited to be gifted an arc when I went to Faridah Àbíké-Íyímídé’s book signing for WHERE SLEEPING GIRLS LIE by a bookseller. I tried reading it a few times and couldn’t get pulled in. 90% of the time when I have this problem, the audiobook is my fix, so I was happy to see it on Macmillan Audio’s ALC list. 

It did not fix the problem. It wasn’t a narration problem. All the narrators worked well for the book. Again, I just couldn’t get pulled in. I made no connection with the characters or story. It seemed very disjointed plot-wise, and the characters said things because they should not because of the emotional movement of the book. 

Maybe I’m so used to Faridah Àbíké-Íyímídé’s thrillers that I expected so much more plot and character development, but this does not compare in either department. So, I take my responsibility in that aspect. 

But overall, I didn’t click with the book and have tried many times. I’m sad. Books by diverse authors about diverse issues are so important, so I hope this is more a me thing than an everyone thing. But I will say I can’t wait for what Faridah Àbíké-Íyímídé writes next! 

Thanks, Macmillan Audio, for the ALC!