A review by aish_dols
Broken by Fatima Bala

emotional reflective medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

Broken: not a halal love story, captured what it aimed to. In over 300 pages, the author @aka.fatima.bala wrote about two imperfect young Muslims that are attracted to each other to the detriment of their faith until they cross boundaries and are tested. It goes to show that whatever is haram in our deen is only to protect our hearts in the long run. 

A love so maddening with a rush of desires is a madness that its cure is marriage. Interestingly Fa’iza and Ahmad try to outsmart their ways in sneaky, steamy ways out of doing things properly (I knew they’d regret it) but later learn their lesson. I applaud Fatima Bala for making the book revolve around Islam and its injunctions. On one side, there’s the human nature and another side, there’s Allah’s laws. In the end, did they put desires aside and use the Quran to guide their steps or did they sink so deep into haram? Guess you’ll have to find out.

This is good Muslim representation and I enjoyed learning more about the northerners too. Broken should be on your shelves.