Refreshingly flawed characters revisit a rom-com trope.
Pakistani Muslim Americans teens Kiran and Deen are reluctantly pulled together again when their siblings get engaged, three years after the end of their own failed secret relationship.
After Kiran’s mother died a year ago, all she’s wanted is to keep her father and her sister, Amira, close. But when Amira announces that she’s dating Faisal, with the intention of marriage and a move from the Northeast to California, Kiran is gobsmacked. Worse still is the revelation that Faisal is the older brother of Deen, Kiran’s ex who ghosted her. Deen, a sophomore at New York University, hopes that Faisal’s engagement will bring Faisal much-needed happiness, confidence, and standing with their status-obsessed parents, who see him as a failure, especially after the incident that caused them to leave Philadelphia. Discovering that Kiran is prying into the past and secrets that he and Faisal want to keep buried away—and possibly trying to sabotage the marriage to get to the truth—Deen is determined to protect his brother’s happiness no matter what the cost. Told in dual voices and text messages that cross time and virtual gaming platforms, Rishi weaves a multilayered coming-of-age narrative that addresses growth and identity, Islamophobia, struggles with faith, and capricious twists of fate (or divine intervention). Characters are mostly South Asian Muslim; Kiran’s best friend is Filipino, and Faisal’s best friend is Black and Muslim.
Refreshingly flawed characters revisit a rom-com trope. (Fiction. 13-18)Pub Date: Sept. 14, 2021
ISBN: 978-0-06-274148-6
Page Count: 432
Publisher: Quill Tree Books/HarperCollins
Review Posted Online: July 26, 2021
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 15, 2021
BOOK REVIEW
A heavy read about the harsh realities of tragedy and their effects on those left behind.
In this companion novel to 2013’s If He Had Been With Me, three characters tell their sides of the story.
Finn’s narrative starts three days before his death. He explores the progress of his unrequited love for best friend Autumn up until the day he finally expresses his feelings. Finn’s story ends with his tragic death, which leaves his close friends devastated, unmoored, and uncertain how to go on. Jack’s section follows, offering a heartbreaking look at what it’s like to live with grief. Jack works to overcome the anger he feels toward Sylvie, the girlfriend Finn was breaking up with when he died, and Autumn, the girl he was preparing to build his life around (but whom Jack believed wasn’t good enough for Finn). But when Jack sees how Autumn’s grief matches his own, it changes their understanding of one another. Autumn’s chapters trace her life without Finn as readers follow her struggles with mental health and balancing love and loss. Those who have read the earlier book will better connect with and feel for these characters, particularly since they’ll have a more well-rounded impression of Finn. The pain and anger is well written, and the novel highlights the most troublesome aspects of young adulthood: overconfidence sprinkled with heavy insecurities, fear-fueled decisions, bad communication, and brash judgments. Characters are cued white.
A heavy read about the harsh realities of tragedy and their effects on those left behind. (author’s note, content warning) (Fiction. 14-18)Pub Date: Feb. 6, 2024
ISBN: 9781728276229
Page Count: 416
Publisher: Sourcebooks Fire
Review Posted Online: Jan. 5, 2024
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 1, 2024
BOOK REVIEW
There’s not much plot here, but readers will relish the opportunity to climb inside Autumn’s head.
The finely drawn characters capture readers’ attention in this debut.
Autumn and Phineas, nicknamed Finny, were born a week apart; their mothers are still best friends. Growing up, Autumn and Finny were like peas in a pod despite their differences: Autumn is “quirky and odd,” while Finny is “sweet and shy and everyone like[s] him.” But in eighth grade, Autumn and Finny stop being friends due to an unexpected kiss. They drift apart and find new friends, but their friendship keeps asserting itself at parties, shared holiday gatherings and random encounters. In the summer after graduation, Autumn and Finny reconnect and are finally ready to be more than friends. But on August 8, everything changes, and Autumn has to rely on all her strength to move on. Autumn’s coming-of-age is sensitively chronicled, with a wide range of experiences and events shaping her character. Even secondary characters are well-rounded, with their own histories and motivations.
There’s not much plot here, but readers will relish the opportunity to climb inside Autumn’s head. (Fiction. 14 & up)Pub Date: April 1, 2013
ISBN: 978-1-4022-7782-5
Page Count: 336
Publisher: Sourcebooks Fire
Review Posted Online: Feb. 12, 2013
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 1, 2013
BOOK REVIEW
SEEN & HEARD
© Copyright 2024 Kirkus Media LLC. All Rights Reserved.
Follow
Popular in this Genre
We can’t wait for you to join Kirkus!
It’s free and takes less than 10 seconds!
Already have an account? Log in.
OR
Sign in with GoogleTrouble signing in? Retrieve credentials.
Welcome Back!
OR
Sign in with GoogleTrouble signing in? Retrieve credentials.
bookshelf