What is it about revisiting our favorite story?
Be it movie, book, fairy tale, particular episode of The West Wing or Scrubs.
There is something so wonderful about rereading/watching something you love.

I’ve mentioned before that I love retellings of stories when they are done well.
Clueless is Emma, She’s the Man is Twelfth Night, The Lion King and Sons of Anarchy are Hamlet, 10 Things I Hate About You is Taming of the Shrew, Easy A is The Scarlet Letter, and there are so many more.

Unmarriageable is one of those retellings done exceptionally well.

With retellings, I thoroughly enjoy the game of identifying the new characters that correspond with the characters I know. It’s not just the matching and aligning; I also love when an author makes those well-known characters his or her own. Ms. Kamal does this very well. The characters are modernized and set in a new culture and still retain the importance of the known and the adaptation. This is not just Colin Firth’s Mr. Darcy plunked down in Lahore, Pakistan; this is a Pakistani Darsee who still exudes the pride, prejudices, misunderstandings, and character growth that we know, expect, and truly love. Alys’ Elizabeth is outspoken, incredibly smart, fiercely loyal, stubborn, prejudiced, and also grows throughout the book – just as she should.

Nothing about this book is boring, though it is a familiar story. Ms. Kamal’s infusion of all things Pakistani – food, clothing, cultural norms – make this book an amazing read by immersing the reader into her culture and never lightening up. She does not let us feel like these are English characters set in Pakistan. No. These are truly Pakistani characters going about their lives, which happen to coincide with a story written by an Englishwoman.

Stars - 4.5
Would I Recommend? Yes

This was so good! Pakistani culture, even in the 2000s, lends itself well to the similar types of tropes in the original Pride and Prejudice. It was a pleasure to read, all the while knowing what to expect and wondering how it would play out. Kamal does a fantastic job creating the world where Alys Binat teaches at a British school in Dilipabad, "Bungles" sisters are as terrifically horrid as Jena is sweet and Mrs. Binat will never tire of worrying over the future of her five daughters while Mr. Binat tends to his garden.

I thought this P&P retelling was a straight-up delight. I’m a HUGE fan of Austen retellings and #ownvoices fiction, and when the two intersect like they have here, Magic is made. While I found the over-the-top-ness of some characters a little grating, I do think it’s in keeping with the heart of the story– and while some of that may have bothered me, in the grand scheme, it made sense and worked well. . I read this one quickly and will be on the lookout for future works by this author.

I'm an American-born Pakistani and I enjoyed this book immensely with being familiar with the culture and tradition. My only gripe was that I wished that romance aspect was amplified.

This retelling of Pride and Prejudice set in modern-day Pakistan started a little slow. As I got into the book it was charming and comical. This was a fun read for Pride and Prejudice fans.

I received this galley from NetGalley.

I love a good adaptation of Pride and Prejudice. I'll read every single one, honestly. But there's something so special about a South Asian adaptation of P&P because the themes of Austen's story are so. damn. relevant. to our culture. I loved Kamal's characters and the way she described the Pakistani traditions with nuance.

The first half of the book is not very well-written and I found myself rolling my eyes many times, especially at the many mention of 'you-you' eyes. However, the writing gets better and more mature later on and it kept me reading to the end. The exact way the book mirrors Pride and Prejudice is unsettling. While I found myself anticipating the turn of events and the context in which it takes place here, I also wished that it was a little different than the scene by scene adaptation. The best aspect of the book was of course the many books referred to. I think I would pick up some of those later. Overall a fun reading though not great literature by any means.

Great book!

I read just about any Pride and Prejudice retelling/variation. This one is very good and is about WOC. I learned alot about the different culture and country of the Elizabeth Bennet character.

Very glad to add this to the list of recommended P and P related books!

This book is a beautiful marriage between the muslim culture and Jane Austen's Pride and Prejudice. A modern look with a little flair.

Unmarriageable by Sonia Kamal is a modern retelling of Pride and Prejudice by Jane Austen set in Pakistan. The plot follows Pride and Prejudice almost exactly.

I felt there was a difference in the character’s personalities but unfortunately that difference was not good for me. I did not like Alys (Elizabeth) for most of the book, she felt uptight and so forceful of her opinion on marriage and women that I just didn’t care for her at all. I understood that the author was sharing her views on the culture of women and marriage but unlike the more subtle way Austen shares those themes I felt like the views were being told and shown to me. I generally prefer to discover on my own when reading rather than having things spelled out to me. Though I love many of the characters in Pride and Prejudice, I can’t think of any character that I liked in Unmarriageable. The Binat sisters were so horribly mean to one another that I cringed whenever they were around. There was also so many rude comments from every character that I came away wondering if that really is the way people speak to each other in Pakistan and if so, I now have no desire to ever go there. There also seemed to be a big focus on the way people looked, from weight to clothes. The author did try to resolve some of the weight focus at the end but by then it was to hard to get the theme of, you have to look perfect to be of any worth, out of my head.

The setting of Pakistan was what made the book for me. I found the details of life in modern upper class Pakistan fascinating. I have never read anything in such a setting and came away with a very different view and perspective of Pakistan.

Reading this retelling of Pride and Prejudice set in a different time and culture helped me to see that so many of life’s challenges and themes are universally the same. I loved the reminder that we often have more in common with people different than ourselves than we think.

Another great take on Austen’s Pride and Prejudice. Set in modern day Pakistan, the daughters of the Binat family struggle to overcome scandal and impending poverty to fulfill parental and societal expectations. If you enjoy family comedies, stories based in other countries or Jane Austen remakes- you'll love this novel.
There are a fair cultural and social details that make this a fresh take on a classic. A witty and charming version of a favorite with interesting peeks into a non-western culture with rules not unlike those imposed on women pretty much everywhere else in the world in the not too distant past.

I received an ARC of this book through NetGalley in exchange for my unbiased opinion.

The Binat family lost their wealth after a falling out between Mr. Binat and his elder brother. They still have their house in Dilipabad, and the eldest two daughters, Jena and Alys, have found work as English teachers at the British School of Dilipabad. When the family is invited to the biggest wedding of the year, a former student of Alys and Jena, Mrs. Binat has her hopes set on finding her five daughters rich husbands at the event. Alys, however, is not interested in marrying. Jena catches the eye of Bungles at the wedding, and the family hopes for a match between the two of them. Bungles' friend, Darsee, however, is unimpressed with the family, and Alys quickly dismisses him as another arrogant rich man. As their paths keep crossing, Alys may discover a different side of Darsee.

This story is a modern retelling of <i>Pride and Prejudice</i>. For as many retellings of <i>Pride and Prejudice</i> I have read, I have not made it around to reading the original. I need to do that soon! I suspect this remake follows the original more closely than other modern retellings I have read. I liked that it was set in Pakistan and gave me a chance to learn more about their culture. The book went into a lot of detail about things like the food (yum!) and clothing (which I didn't care so much about, but given the emphasis put on wealth and class, was to be expected). The story was a bit slow at times but overall enjoyable.

Pleasant retelling of Pride and Prejudice, without the underlying seriousness of the original. The supporting characters are particularly well drawn; Ms. Kamal's light hand does very well here.

Unmarriageable by Soniah Kamal is a fun and witty retelling of Pride and Prejudice set in modern-day Pakistan. You will definitely make connections between Kamal's characters and those in the classic story since many of the names are similar. In Unmarriageable you see how Austen's stories about relationships and societal expectations about women and courting truly are "universal" and still experienced today. I loved learning about Pakistani culture and I felt Kamal did a great job in retelling this Austen classic. I found it a little difficult to keep up with the names and nicknames of some non-main characters, but I still enjoyed the story and could follow along just fine.

All the main characters and their personalities resembled the Austen characters pretty well, even their interactions with each other and storyline followed the classic story closely. There is still plenty of Pakistani culture infused into Kamal's story that makes it a lovely and unique retelling that I would recommend to any Austen fan. From hypocrisy and double standards to survival and security, Kamal did an excellent job showing us all sides to the cultural aspects of women and marriage. An enjoyable story from start to finish! I would love to read a Pakistani retelling of Persuasion as well!

I very much enjoyed this book. Not only the new take on P&P but the cultural information. I enjoyed having a glimpse into the culture of Pakistan. It was a great read.

This modern retelling of Jane Austen’s Pride and Prejudice set in Pakistan is a delight! I found the setting and characters refreshing and likable. I liked these strong Pakistani women and the mother made me chuckle. I felt it was a very good adaptation of Pride & Prejudice and enjoyed that the characters stayed true to the original!

I absolutely adored this book. The characters felt so real and relatable--just what i need in an Austen retelling. While it moved a bit slow at points, I think this book stuck with the overall feelings of P&P fairly well.

If you enjoy modern adaptations of Pride and Prejudice, you'll like Unmarriageable. Kamal's take on Austen's classic novel is bold and original, with a setting in a restrictive Pakistani society and depicting the life and times of the Binat family, a long-married couple with five daughters. Alys, the most clever of the bunch, shudders at the idea of an arranged marriage with a rich man, which is all her mother dreams about. Her convictions are even more justified when she meets Valentine Darsee, a snobbish and arrogant man who rubs Alys the wrong way from the get-go.
If you've read Pride and Prejudice, surely you know what follows and how this book will end. But even if you know the original, it's worth giving this Middle Eastern rendering a try.

Interesting story that provides an inside view of a different culture. An enjoyable read with enough to keep you reading page after page.

Many authors have rewritten Jane Austen's Pride and Prejudice. In this entertaining version by Sonia Kamal, the story takes place in Pakistan. The Binat family has five daughters, a father who would rather garden than confront issues and a mother who knows that marriage is a, maybe the, most important status for women.

The family has fallen on hard times so the oldest daughters are teaching English at a school in their town. Alys wants her students to have a wider view of their lives and to think of university, for example, but this is an uphill battle. Alys does not feel that she needs to marry but, of course, she meets the Darcy character, just as Jena meets the Bingley one.

The settings and descriptions are fun. As someone who has not traveled to Pakistan, I enjoyed reading about the clothing, foods and weddings.

This book will be enjoyed by fans of Pride and Prejudice and can also be a gateway for readers who will then go on to read the original.

Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the chance to read this book in return for an honest review.