A summer in Paris, a cute guy, some history, what more do you need?

This book was fun, interesting, cute, and splashed with a little bit of mystery. Told in two timelines, spaced 200 years apart we have Leila and Khayyam, both fighting to tell their own stories.

Personally I felt the beginning of this book a little slow, and it was hard to connect the two timelines together, but as the book went on I became more interested in the mystery, to Khayyam and Alexandre's evolving love story, and to the bits of Leila's story that we got to see.

Thank you to NetGalley for this ARC in exchange for an honest review of Samira Ahmed's "Mad, Bad, & Dangerous."

Ahmed found a way to successfully mix historical fiction with mystery WITH romance all in one book! Historical fiction because the story centers around two teens (romance) trying to uncover a lost treasure (mystery) that had to do with Lord Byron, Alexandre Dumas, Eugene Delacroix, and an unnamed woman present in several of Byron's infamous poems. I hope that these names gave you pause and, maybe, you went and Googled them just to be crystal clear on who they are. I probably should have done that, too, because I did spend a better half of the book confused about a lot of the allusions and, yet, I still didn't Google anything. I wanted to see how well I understood without any of that. Not well, is the answer, but that's mostly because I kept mixing up the allusions and losing track of who is who.

Aside from that, I love Khyyam (our protagonist). She's a spunky, half French, half American, Muslim nerd from Chicago who wants to attend the Art Institute of Chicago after she graduates. After applying for a contest through SAIC, that she not only loses but completely messes up, she spends her summer in Paris (with her professor parents) and she meets the argubably HOT French great, great grandson of Alexandre Dumas. As Khyyam shares an interest in the great Dumas mystery with grandson-Alexandre, Khyyam wants to solve the mystery so she can appeal to the Art Institute and still gain acceptance. Although she's spending her time with a hot Frenchman, she's still thinking about her maybe-sorta-kinda ex, Zaid, who is posting pictures all over Instagram with another girl. So, what does any reasonable teen want to do upon seeing this? Well, take pictures with the hot guy and herself and post that on Insta for the ex to see, right? See why I like her? My adult self is cringing at all this, knowing how WELL this is going to go but also smirking because, uh duh, I get it. Haven't we all been there? So, yeah, Khyyam is awesome and down-to-earth and she makes mistakes like all of us have done in our lives. She even questions her identity: in Chicago she isn't "American enough" but in Paris she's not "French enough." And don't get her started on the whole Muslim-American role either (girl, I get it as a Mexican-Puerto Rican-American girl myself).

The mystery itself is plausible and would probably have won me over more if I knew more about Byron, Delacroix, Dumas, and the girl with Raven tresses to begin with. Ahmed has done her job, at least, by intriguing me with these connections so you bet that I'm going to spend some time researching this but, at this present moment, I'm unsure as to whether this was a real-life mystery that was solved or a plausible mystery that maybe could be solved.

Anyway, 4 out of 5 stars and a recommendation for me to read it especially if you've liked Ahmed's other stories (i.e. Love, Hate, & Other Filters and Internment). She's definitely an author I'll continue to read and follow as she keeps writing.

An excellent YA romantic mystery. In the beginning, I thought it was going to be a piece of light fluff with a global perspective, a good summer read: A Muslim French-Indian American teenage girl meets a cute French boy who helps her recover from a broken heart. There is that, yes, but as they work together to unearth the mystery of "the raven-haired lady" and as Khayyam's story becomes intertwined with Leila's , the book becomes both deeper and more interesting. This is a fun read but also leads to questions about the overlooked stories of women in the past. Very good.
Review based on an ARC received from the publisher through NetGalley.

In Samira Ahmed's new novel, Mad, Bad and Dangerous to Know, Ahmed introduces us to Khayyam, a French, American, Indian and Muslim girl named for a famous poet. The child of academics, she is spending her August at her family's inherited summer place in Paris.

Khayyam is smarting at the start of the book from the criticism of a judge on her essay for a contest, for chance to make an impression and gain acceptance to the Art Institute of Chicago (where her family lives when not at their summer pied-a-terre in Paris). The judge called her a dilettante, not a true art historian, for her essay connecting artist Eugene Delacroix with author Alexandre Dumas. And an added kicker, Khayyam sees her boyfriend, Zaid, in Instagram photos with other girls on his lap.

However, things take a turn when Khayyam happens to meet the great-great-grandson of Dumas, also named Alexandre Dumas. After a brief getting-t0-know-you, Khayyam and Alexandre set off on a search for the truth - is there a secret Delacroix painting given to Dumas? In their search, they come across letters referencing a certain raven-tressed woman, whose story is told in alternating chapters with Khayyam's story.

The interlaced storylines of these two strong Muslim women makes for a book nearly impossible to put down. As an English major AND English teacher, I love the literary and historical references Ahmed peppers throughout the story. Another winner from Samira Ahmed for sure!

3.5, rounded up. Although the writing style was a little disjointed and was bogged down by some of the historical details, I enjoyed solving the mystery of the "lady with raven tresses" along with Khayyam (excellent interfaith/intercultural representation here) and Alexandre Dumas (yes, he is a descendant of THE Alexandre Dumas).

Ahmed describes the streets of Paris so vividly and with a lot of love--it gave me wanderlust, which is not ideal under social isolation during the current pandemic! I also appreciated that all the characters (even the side characters, aside from the mysterious uncle) have depth and are well developed.

Honestly, I think this book would be much better suited to an adult audience (with some changes of course). While I did enjoy the level of detail and historical research, i felt like this book was no cohesive, The love triangle felt forced and detracted from the rest of the book. I felt that this should have been a romance or pure art history mystery and splitting focus didn’t work. I also felt that at times the author was trying a little too hard to be relatable to teens (teen like feminism and love triangles right?) The tone kept shifting and it was kind of jarring. I did like the exploration of identity and how our narratives are shaped, I just felt that the message was murky. I also had to really really extend my suspension of disbelief over basically every plot point.

Mad, Bad, & Dangerous to Know hooked me from the first pages. It's full of personality and Khayyam's thoughts jump off the page. I love how quickly she establishes herself in your heart - her fierce ambition, her passion, and her heart. And she only gets better and better! The characters have to be my number one reason for loving this book. Khayyam is a complex character who is both driven, but also struggling to come to terms with her own feelings. At the same time, this dual POV book feature Leila a woman who is similarly struggling with matters of the heart as well as her own survival.

Leila and Khayyam are linked in a story that weaves art, forgotten women, and love. The way women are often not given a voice, the space to speak, erased from history and looking on from the shadows. Mad, Bad, & Dangerous to Know unravels Leila's story all while allowing Khayyam to evolve as a character, to make mistakes, and to speak her own story. Khayyam talks about the struggles not only of being a woman of color, but also being biracial and how it has impacted her sense of identity. Mad, Bad, & Dangerous to Know is a book rich with layers and full of heart.

I received this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

This book truly had everything: a compelling story, characters I genuinely cared about, and poignant messages.

The protagonist, Khayyam, is in Paris with her family after a particularly challenging few months, and she meets Alexandre, a descendant of Alexandre Dumas. What ensues is an engaging treasure hunt that causes Khayyam’s life to be entwined with a mysterious woman who lived well over a century earlier.

Through their quest, Khayyam has powerful revelations about herself and about the sisterhood of all women.

It’s a beautiful and important read.

I did not finish this title, but I've come to the conclusion that was more because I didn't vibe with the writing style than anything done on the author's part. The book was good and well written, but lacked that special something that snagged my attention. In the end, I would recommend it for fans of historical fiction and Ahmed's other works.

Samira Ahmed writes about the power of women's voices in a world that tends to listen to men. Mad, Bad, & Dangerous to Know is the story of two young women, Khayyam and Leila, fighting to have their voices heard centuries apart from one another. Khayyam is a French Muslim American spending the summer with her parents in France. With a passion for art history and a desire to uncover a mystery of a missing painting from the past, Khayyam happens to meet and fall for a descendant of Alexandre Dumas. Together they seek to find answers to Leila's story and her connection to the missing painting.

I am a huge fan of Samira Ahmed's work and this one did not disappoint. I loved the alternating narratives between Leila and Khayyam and how the mystery doesn't truly unfold until the very end. A huge thank you to NetGalley and SoHo Teen for this ARC in exchange for an honest review. I will be adding this to our classroom library and can't wait to book talk this one when we are back in the classroom after this "Coronavacation" is over.

I truly didn't expect to love this book as much as I did. The mystery really took me by surprise and sucked me in. The characters were three dimensional and seemed like real people struggling with some relatable issues.

I didn't love how soapbox-y the book felt at times, but I do really like the different messages the book was trying to send.

This is a really well-developed book that addresses some interesting topics with great characters and a fun romance. I love the way the story alternated between a past POV and present POV, as well as how it incorporated some magical aspects.

Khayyam Maquet has never quite felt like she belonged. Her heritage is American, French, Indian and Muslim. She has been raised in Chicago, spending summer vacations in Paris and speaks multiple languages. These things that sound impressive (at least to me!) have felt oppressive to her. She has always felt like she has no voice, and felt judged for her differences. She wants to change that.

A daughter of two college professors, Khayyam is intelligent and driven by a thirst for knowledge. For her college application to an art history program, she writes a paper on Alexandre Dumas and his connection to a famous painting by Eugene Delecroix, which is based on a poem by Lord Byron, that doesn't get her the praise she hoped for. In a bout of kismet during her family's summer vacation to Paris, she meets Alexandre Dumas, the six time great grandson of the famous author.

As Khayyam and Alexandre discuss the famous painting, she points out that in Lord Byron's poem, on which the painting is based, in over 9,000 words, the woman gets no speaking parts. The poem is about her, and yet she has no voice. That woman's name was Leila.

Leila holds the spot of honor in the Pasha's harem. But she knows this position only appears powerful. In truth, she feels like she has no voice. When Leila falls out of favor with her Pasha, for not bearing him any children, her life may be in danger. Then, she is assigned to a visiting poet, none other than Lord Byron, who rumor has it is, "mad, bad and dangerous to know."

Spurred by a shared interest in the Dumas history, Khayyam and Alexandre embark on a quest for answers to one of art history's greatest mysteries. Told from the alternating view points of Khayyam and Leila, this book is full of history, speculation, feminism, love, and so much more.


I LOVED both of the female leads in this book. I really enjoyed that this book not only mentions the different countries and cultures, but gives examples of their differences and how it is difficult for the main character to keep the customs of each straight, making it difficult to fit in perfectly when she's with each group.

This book quickly made it onto my list of favorites for the entire year of 2020.

Thank you NetGalley,Soho Teen and Samira Ahmed for the Arc of Mad, Bad & Dangerous to Know in exchange for my honest review.

This was really fun. It kind of reminded me a little bit of a YA version of :The Secret History of the Pink Carnation and a little bit of the book Under the Egg. It had the same back and forth in time with the characters in the present day doing research about the characters/story in the past trying to unravel a historical mystery and find evidence to support their theories as the Pink Carnation series, and the same type of art history connections as Under the Egg. In this book, Khayyam and Alexandre are trying to unravel the mystery of Leila, the subject of a Byron poem and a Delacroix painting. Is she connected to Dumas? Is she real? What's her story?

It totally made me want to research something and find out how much of this story is made up and how much is real. Really wonderful story.

With her newest novel, Mad, Bad & Dangerous to Know, Samira Ahmed has definitely landed on my list of favorite YA authors. All of her books contain powerful female characters of color with strong feminist ideals navigating modern landscapes with interesting stories. In Mad, Bad & Dangerous to Know, Khayyam finds herself spending the summer before her senior year in high school in Paris with her parents trying to recover from academic and personal disappointment at home in Chicago. Because of her French father, she speaks fluent French so she quickly resigns herself to exploring the city and attempting to fix her problems at home by continuing to research the subject of her failing paper. Ahmed knows how to write a great story, and she masterfully weaves in letters and flashback stories from Leila, the mysterious woman at the heart of Khayyam’s research. Of course, there are boys, romance, a lot of unbelievable coincidences and ridiculous situations, but that is half the fun of a good YA novel. At the center of Mad, Bad is a strong character, a great historical story and Ahmed’s fine writing style that should be appreciated by any reader.

Mad, Bad & Dangerous to Know by Samira Ahmed is the story of two modern day teens on the hunt for a missing work of art, interwoven with snippets of the story of the mysterious woman who was not only the subject of the painting but also the inspiration for some of the poetry of Byron. In current day France we meet 17 year old Khayyam, a Muslim american teen with an Indian mother and a French father. Every year they spend a month in Paris , and this year Khayyam is spending the time licking her wounds following a failed attempt to win a place at her dream college while also feeling frustrated by her sort of boyfriend back home , who seems to have ghosted her. A chance encounter with a charming young man soon turns into a historical treasure hunt. As a descendant of Alexander Dumas he is keen to reclaim some of his family's legacy and so the pair begin a quest to track down a potentially priceless painting which would not only change Alexander's family's fortunes, but might prove that Khayyam has the art history credentials she needs to win her way into college. Khayyam's story is interwoven with that of Laila, a mysterious courtesan who lived in an Ottoman Harem and inspired artistic greats including Dumas, Delacroix and even Lord Byron.
While I enjoyed Laila's story it definitely felt like the secondary plot, the majority of the book is focused on Khayyam. However I did like the point the author made about the many unwritten stories of women in history, the stories which have largely been lost because women were so rarely regarded as anything more than a second class citizen, Khayyam is a thoroughly modern young woman, whose family and faith are important to her, but who is determined to prove herself.. She is fiercely feminist, yet still struggles with placing too much importance on how others, particularly her ex boyfriend ,see her.
Overall a really enjoyable book, a good blend of romance and mystery.
I read and reviewed an ARC courtesy of NetGalley and the publisher, all opinions are my own.

This book ticked so many boxes for me based on the description. A contemporary YA romance set in France, a history mystery with art, Samira Ahmed - I thought for sure it would land perfectly for me. But... it just fell flat. I wasn't engaged with the present day timeline. Alexandre and Khayyam were nice enough characters, but I found myself just not caring what they did next. I held on because I did find Leila's story interesting enough. Overall, I didn't care enough about whether the present timeline would solve the mystery and tie everything together with the past timeline. If I had to choose a Samira Ahmed book to add to my library's collection, I would probably suggest adding additional copies of Interment or Love, Hate, and Other Filters over this one.

This was such an intriguing premise and I was really excited to dive in... until I wasn't. I picked it up and put it down in favour of other titles so many times. I finally made it to the end, but it wasn't because I wanted to know what happened, but so that I could write this review.

I'm going to preface this review by stating that generally, I'm not a big romance person and I came to this book more for the historical fiction/modern day sleuthing. Those parts of the book generally did not disappoint. It's a bit slow at the beginning, but it definitely picks up at the end and the last 40% or so are almost unputdownable. It's a beautiful story about history, the legacies we leave, fitting into places, and how women and people of color are so often erased from history. I especially loved the Leila chapters for this reason.

That being said, there's also a decent amount of romance in this book, and I found most of it melodramatic and dull. I'm not a romance person, so someone else might come to this book and like it just fine, so part of this is just my own taste. I enjoyed Khayyam and Alexandre's relationship, but would've been fine with them just being friends/fellow detectives. Some of the stuff that happens with his uncle and the essay were a little weird, but whatever. I didn't really care for Khayyam moping over Zaid either, and that little confrontation mostly left me bored and wanting to get back to Leila. But this might just be me not liking relationship drama so take this with a grain of salt. I genuinely enjoyed this book and recommend it for pretty much any YA fan, especially since it contains several different genres in it.

What's a 17 year old American muslim girl to do while in Paris? Have a romance and solve a centuries old mystery, of course. The book weaves seamlessly from Khayyam's current day summer of self discovery with Leila's story of survival and love lost. All round fun and luxurious read.

If you are a teen interested in other cultures and art history you will love this story. However, I am not sure if this will be as appealing to the general teen reader. Fairly realistic view of teens complicated relationships at this age . Positive, although repetitive, discussion of how women's often forgotten roles throughout history. With a decent library budget I will purchase this for the library and included a shelf talker to attract students of art history. However, if I had a limited budget I'd probably order a second copy of Internment first.