When S.K. Ali's debut, Saints and Misfits, was released in 2017, I was a big fan. It really snuck up on me. I loved reading about the a girl embracing her Muslim culture, instead of a teen rebelling against it. I was shocked to learn that the author was writing a sequel and despite enjoying both books—after a reread of the first—I don't really find the sequel to be necessary. Saints and Misfits, as well as the characters, doesn't leave that much of a lasting impression to warrant any kind of follow-up. While it is a solid stand alone, I wasn't yearning to learn more.

Misfits in Love picks up two years after the first book for the wedding weekend of Janna's older brother Muhammad. Janna is ready to accept Nuah's affections and can't wait to be reunited when two more boys are thrown into her orbit. She ends up moving through the weekend tackling her feelings with new, old, and familial relationships.

What I enjoyed: Muhammad and Janna had such an incredible relationship. He constantly supported her, while still giving her the room to make her own decisions and mistakes. The sisterhood that blossomed with her new sister-in-law was something that developed really beautifully from the first book. There were some interesting conversations regarding internal racism within the Muslim community. I've noticed more of these conversations in books recently.

What I didn't like: The characters felt a little dull. By adding two more "potential" love interests, Janna had become boy obsessed. I wanted to see her take this important weekend to be with her family and she kind of takes it for granted. I really expected more from the character and the story in general.

ARC was provided by the publisher via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

This was surprisingly a DNF for me. I tried very hard to get into it, especially because I loved the first book so, so, so much, but I guess the number of love interests got too much for me. I've seen a lot of people say that the story doesn't revolve around all these boys and I really wanted to read more to see that happen, but I didn't get there.

It's definitely a book that many people would enjoy, but it's not for me.

I was provided an arc by the publisher via Hear Our Voices and Netgalley, thank you all so so much!!

S. K. Ali is one of my all time favorite authors. Her books just go straight to my heart, they bring me so much joy and happiness and I feel at home when I'm reading them . Misfit in Love was one of my most anticipated books this year and I really enjoyed it. It was a combination of Muslim joy, wedding planning, discovering more about one's self, life and family, healing, and important topics like racism and anti-Blackness. It's what I've come to expect from S.K.Ali's books and she does it beautifully.

We start off at Jannah's dad's house during the summer of Senior year, before she's getting ready to head of to college. Janna had her summer planned out, she was going to tell Nuah her feelings, watch Muhammad and Sarah get married and spend some time with her mom before college, but things don't exactly go as planned.

Nuah isn't acting as usual and two new guys enter the scene, which makes things even more confusing for her. Then there's her mom meeting up with old friends who might become something more, and she's trying to figure all that out.

Throuought the book Janna goes through a lot of development. You can already see that she's grown since Saints and Misfits, but she's still growing. And for me personally that helped me understand her more because, aside from being introvert bibliophiles, we're quite different and so I didn't always understand why she was doing certain things. She's a flawed and realistic main character and I liked that she addressed these flaws, she acknowledged that some things are on her and decided to do better.
So through her development I understood her more, and I was able to relate to some of the feelings she felt in this book. My heart broke for her at times and then was happy at others, and by the end I was proud of her. Proud of the decisions she's taken, how she's going to take more risks and try to change her world and make life better, for her and others. She's happier, calmer, and more determined and I know she'll go off to do great things, and face many other challenges too, but she'll get through it all.

I loved her relationship with her mom here. It was challenging for her, imagining something other than their usual for her and her mom, because that is what has become her safety net. The possibility of welcoming new people into their life was scary for her, but I love how they talked, about everything really, but especially about remarriage and finding happiness and the challenges her parents went through and the divorce. The healthy mother-daughter relationship was amazing and I'm happy with how things turned out in the end.

I also loved how the book handled Racism and anti-Blackness in different communities. It addressed how condemning all the injustice and brutality that's the result of anti-Blackness is crucial but not enough. We must act upon our beliefs, strive to change things around us, in our communities and beyond if possible. We must learn and have the right skills to address people and situations and have important conversations. I'm happy that Janna realized this and took action. And I loved the conversation she had with her mom too.

When it comes to romance and matters of the heart, I was very surprised. But I like the way it turned out, it's what's best for Janna I think and it leaves room for possibilities that I'm on board with. I'd be interested to see how things go there. I feel like that's a running theme for me with many things in this book though, it's a sequel but I feel like it leaves room for more? I don't know if anyone else got that feeling but yeah, I'd definitely be interested in exploring all these possibilities.

The Muslim representation is hands down the absolute best as expected from S.K.Ali, her books are it for me when it comes to rep. I like how she shows and explains parts of our religion, incorporating even parts of the Quran, and shows how Islam is a way of living and so it's there in every aspect of our life, but also shows you how many of us might approach things differently and have personal decisions about things that are different because we're humans so of course we're different!! And it's all done with respect for our religion and the different cultures shown in the books.

And I love that we got to see Amu again and have him explain the nikah (islamic marriage ceremony) and have him help a certain character as well, he's one of my favorite characters in these books.
And Tats was a ray of sunshine as usual, I loved her friendship with Janna and how she cares for her so so much. I'm glad she got to go swimming amidst the wedding chaos 😂💖

Last but not least, Adam & Zayneb and Muhammad & Sarah. I wanted to end my review with these four that just made me so happy with the little tiny things they said or did, as individuals and as couples.
I loved seeing my Adam and Zaynab again so so much I was squealing when they were there together. They were soft, wholesome, adorable scenes as expected 🥺🥺💖💖💖
But I also loved how Zayneb came in at the perfect time spreading joy. She helped Janna and did something beautiful for Sarah and was overall amazing!!
And then Sarah & Muhammad💖These two are cuties and I wish they got their own book.
Muhammad is amazing honestly, yes he's the annoying older brother to Janna 😂but their bond is beautiful,. They care for each other so much and I loved seeing her want to give him the wedding he wants. And I just love when he quoted our prophet in regards to weddings 💖
And I love how Sarah listens to Janna and advices her when she needs it, I love how their friendship grew and they're now sisters.
Sarah & Muhammad are genuinely good and wonderful and I loved seeing them get their happy ending and loved seeing all the parts of a Muslim wedding 💖

I received this free e-arc from hearourvoicestours for the bookstagramtour. These opinions are my own.
Synopsis: Janna is all excited for her brother Mohammed's wedding with his sweetheart Sarah . Janna feels her lovestory is about to bloom, but things turn haywire with the entry of newfaces into her life. Her relationships change and she learns to look at life with a different perspective.

Review: I'm not someone who is pretty into romance books. But, I really enjoyed this one . Being an Indian muslim, I could relate to the Big fat Indian wedding, with a joyful gathering of relatives and close friends. The joy, the food , the mehndi , dance preps - the songs and simplified steps, oh! my Gosh; were all on point. Celebrating life while following the rules of Islam was well hinted at. Janna's complex love story, her coming of age story is surely a reflection of the modern teen. I loved how the topic of racism(anti-black) and prejudice among South Asian ethnicities was executed. We often play the underdog and comment on the muslim vs non muslim and white vs brown racism, but fail to notice the prevalent anti-black sentiments in our immediate vicinity. This book also reflects on keeping aside our prejudices and trying to be empathetic.

All in all, if you need a lighthearted cute romance book with laughable moments but with deeper lessons , this is a great pick.

Rating: 4/5

I would recommend this to anyone who likes books that start important discussions of anti blackness and antiracism, big family weddings filled with big family drama, and flawed characters that have growth.

TW: racism, anti-Blackness, Reference to sexual assault, minor cursing

This book was a really fun read and I’m so glad I picked it up! I’m obsessed with any book that follows a big wedding (nikah) because there’s always drama and mishaps that follow the character around and I think that’s pretty realistic when it comes to planning and executing a big South Asian wedding.

This book felt like it had a lot more development and thoroughness in both the plot and the flushing out of most of the characters. I enjoy Janna’s voice and growing with her as she learns certain aspects of her dad that she doesn’t disagree with. I will say I still don’t like Tats. I don’t want to spoil anything, but she’s a shady best friend if I’m being completely honest. I will also say, I did enjoy following Janna’s interactions with the three potential love interests, however, I think some of their actions didn’t completely seem logical and I was left a little confused when specific events occurred. With all that being said, the thing I absolutely loved about this book were the familial relationships and conversations that were explored between Janna and her mom, Janna and her dad, and Janna and her brother. Janna is faced with all these new situations in which she realizes that her brother is getting married and she might not see him as often, her mom has potentially started dating again, and her dad is rooted in some culturally aged ways of seeing the world. The way Janna faces these new changes made me feel very proud of her, especially when it came to talking about changing one’s view from being anti-Black to anti-racist. The author does state in this regard that she is not Black and she focuses the character’s conversations on how non-Black people can stay educated and realize their internal biases so they can learn from them and hopefully transcend down the path of being anti-racist.

Overall, I had such a fun time with Janna and all her friends and families. Coming from a big family myself it made me feel at home reading this book. I highly recommend you check it out!

'Mercy is love that lets us be, that grants us the serenity and refuge of true love.'

As much as I call myself an introverted person, my first thought after reading this book was how I MISS GOING TO WEDDINGS SO MUCH! *makes a sad face with puppy dog eyes*

Misfit in Love was just the perfect feel-good YA escapist novel one craves for while staying at home amidst a pandemic. The big fat Muslim wedding aaaah. You have cozy hotel bedrooms, swimming pools, delectable desserts, traditional dresses, dance practices, wedding décor, late-night Dunkin Donuts sprees, reunion of friends, annoying aunties, beautiful people (both inside-out) flirting with each other, movie nights, photography sessions and tons of wholesome family moments, obviously preceded by drama. Even as I'm writing this review, I'm so sad that not only have I finished reading this book, but it has left me craving a wedding so bad.

SK Ali beautifully captures the complexities surrounding human relationships and the nature of entrenched prejudices in this sequel of Saints and Misfits. The backdrop of the book is our protagonist Janna Yusuf's brother Muhammad's wedding to Sarah. Janna's parents are divorced and she is involved in a love square, with the entry of the soft Haytham and the brooding Layth. Plus, her original love interest Nuah is acting weird and distant around her. And on top of that, Muhammad has made some decisions regarding the organization of the nikah without asking Sarah, and Janna has to step up and fix them. Add these cute yet serious hassles to the glamor I described in the previous paragraph and you have one gorgeous book.

So after reading Saints and Misfits, everyone was rooting for Nuah. But my pick was actually Layth, who in a very short time captured my heart. I loved the addition of the new characters. It's like there's a LOT happening in the book, but none of it feels out of place. SK Ali's witty way of dealing with racial and cultural prejudices also stole my heart. So light, yet deep enough to make a lasting impact on you so as to force you into reassessing whether you're really as unprejudiced as you may think yourself to be. Far better and cheery than the prequel, but it's highly recommended to read Saints and Misfits before picking this one. Loved it!

3 stars

Please take this review with a grain of salt. I am that naughty reader who read this one before having read its predecessor. Yes. I paid.

Though I fully admit my own misstep in missing out on the original, I also think that a sequel should be completely readable as a self-contained work. It's not challenging to follow the plot by any stretch, but I did find myself overwhelmed by characters and feeling the whole time like I was missing small pieces of info that would have been helpful, to say the least.

So, obvious tip here: Read the first book before this one!

Once you've done that, come to this book knowing that you're going to get a lot of characters, a lot of wedding talk, a lot of eating (these folks only rival their counterparts in a Jasmine Guillory novel in terms of how much food they're enjoying - and to that I say "Props!"), and a lot of opportunities for character growth.

I enjoyed this overall, but I suspect I would have felt much more positively had I done the homework.

Let me preface the review by saying that you *need* to read the first book (Saints and Misfits) to better understand what's happening and what's going on with the characters, and to connect more with them throughout.


This book took me through a roller coaster of emotions, all in the span of a week. Pretty fast-paced, though realistic, as if happening in our real world. The epitome of the ride being: Muhammad's and Janna's relation and their banter, and their love. That was truly to die for.


Also, *A BIG FAT MUSLIM WEDDING*! How awesome is that?! The environment setup was done wonderfully, and I must say it was pretty accurately described. I may not be Muslim myself, but I know many wonderful people who are (my BFF being one of them. Hi Sofia!), and I can say that Janna's inner dialogues and struggles were relatable and real. Them being described so effortlessly, yet being given so much importance, I was truly in awe of the writing style.


I was afraid it might lead to a big love triangle, but thankfully, it turned out to be much more than that - much deeper, and heartfelt issues were dealt with.


It deals with a lot of heavy and important issues as well, one of them being discrimination within the community, which was again dealt with heavily in the first book as well. I love how the struggle between Sarah and Muhammed was portrayed (and I must tell you, that struggle is real!) and how it began and where it led, I found it to be a satisfactory arc. This was an important discussion as well, I think equally as important as all the other topics dealt with throughout the book.

"Misfit in Love" is a companion novel to "Saints and Misfits" one of the most popular works of S. K. Ali. Since many advocated it as a standalone, I went blindly without even checking what happened in the first book. Well, surely you can read it as a standalone, but not knowing Janna's back story clearly puts you at a disadvantage.
It took me half of the pages to warm up to her character. Even with all her grand ideas of studying British lit to deconstruct it, I felt she is just a regular love struck teenager who cannot make any sense of the undercurrents in her own family. In a way, that is true. But what makes her different is the way she comes in terms with the realities around her, determined to be the liberal minded being she always preaches of.
A girl who is hard on herself having the courage to analyse her own actions must surely be applauded. A braver man would have floundered in a similar situation. It does make you look at weddings in a different light. No doubt they are scary with all the family drama getting unravelled, but it could be an occasion for a happy beginning too. And I do love the way the love story proceeded. It is not always I get to be right about the suitor among all the misdirections.

This book is the sequel to Saints and Misfits and is best read in order.
Janna is helping her family prepare for her brother Muhammad's upcoming wedding to Sarah when one by one, she begins finding out secrets her family and friends have been keeping from her. She also discovers that relationships are complicated and require a great deal of work and communication. In the midst of heartache, anger, and sadness, Janna will realize that her family and friends will be there for her in good times and bad and that there is more to life than meets the eye.

I enjoyed this book as much as the first one, but in a different way. Janna seemed sadder, yet wiser from her experiences and the realization that people are not as they seem to be. I learned quite a bit about different cultural wedding traditions, as well as intrinsic prejudice and racism. Though I didn't personally agree with some of the views presented, I think there are great lessons to be learned about life, relationships, and the way people should be treated with kindness and sensitivity. I enjoyed the realistic characters, funny moments, and the love of family and friends portrayed in the book, and I highly recommend it. I'm hoping there will be another book about Janna's adventures soon.

I received a copy of this book from the publisher through NetGalley. A positive review was not required, and all opinions expressed are entirely my own.

Misfit in Love is the sequel to Saints and Misfits! But it’s ok if you haven’t read the first one, like me 😊. This is a YA romance and is about Janna. It’s the summer after senior year and she is finally ready to declare her love for her crush at her brother’s nikah (Islamic marriage contract).

Nothing happens as she envisions it - her love interest might not like her and there are some other really cute other boys that are invited. It’s so fun and explores friendship, relationships, and families.

This own voices book gives you insight into a lot of South Asian cultures. I loved the interwoven aspects of being Muslim and a teen. This is a quick paced read that also covers heavier topics of loss and trauma.

Thank you to @hearourvoicestours, @netgalley, and @salaamreads for providing me an advanced reader’s copy!

I love all of S.K. Ali’s books, and this one is no exception! There is just something about her writing and her stories that leave feeling so content and represented.

Misfit in Love picks up right where Saints and Misfits ends. Janna’s brother Muhammad and his fiancee Sarah are getting married the summer before she goes to college and Janna is excited, espcecially because she’s finally ready to tell Nuah how she feels. Things don’t go as planned however. Two of the new characters, Haytham and Layth show up and throw Janna into a love square, leaving her confused about her feelings.

All of the characters had such depth and really came alive. I love how well Haytham and Layth complement Janna’s personal and I enjoyed reading about the love square much more than I thought I would (I’m not usually one who enjoys love triangles/squares, but this one worked). I really liked reading Janna’s exploration of love.We also get to see Janna explore her relationship with her parents. She really demonstrates a lot of growth from book one in how she perceives her parents.

One of my favorite things about S.K.Ali’s books is how she incorporates such important topics in them. Misfit in Love focuses on internalized prejudice, especially anti-Blackness. I feel like we often forget that even POC have internalized prejudice, specifically anti-Blackness that no one ever broaches the topic. I really admire S.K.Ali for including this as these are such important topics that we need to have.

Misfit in Love did not end the way I thought it would, and honestly, it made me like it more. This book is not about ships, but is an exploration of love, and I think it stays true to Janna’s character. I don’t think you really need to read the Saints and Misfits (the first book) to understand what’s happening but I do think that it gives you a greater insight to what’s happening. I also really loved the Zaydam (characters from Love From A to Z) cameo!

This story was so impactful and I highly recommend it! If you haven’t already you should definitely be adding this to your TBR and preorder a copy of this amazing book!

I recommend this book for anyone who enjoyed any of Sk. Ali’s other books. I also think it’s great for fans of A Very Large Expanse of Sea, Hanna Khan Carries On and Ayesha at Last.

Janna is hilarious and awkward and completely adorable. I love her. Every time I sat down to read for a few minutes, I got pulled straight into this story and its big, quirky family and all the drama of getting ready for the wedding. I love the way Janna has this community of women surrounding her and building her up. She also spends some time asking herself really hard questions about love and forgiveness, and I love that the story pursued those threads, too. It was fun getting to revisit some of my favorite characters from SAINTS AND MISFITS and adding some new characters to the mix.

I think one of the reasons I enjoy faith-positive stories like this one so much is that I feel like I can really easily connect with a character whose faith is deeply important to them. I guess I just feel like I really connect with characters whose faith drives a lot of their everyday decisions and motivates them to try to be a better person to others. I’m glad to see faith-positive stories in young adult literature.

I think fans of HENNA WARS by Adiba Jaigirdar or TODAY TONIGHT TOMORROW by Rachel Lynn Solomon will enjoy this book.

Note: I received a free copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.

I loved S.K. Ali’s debut novel Saints & Misfits when I read it a couple of years ago so I was beyond excited to hear that we would be returning to that world with Ali’s latest novel, Misfit in Love. I adored Janna, the protagonist from both books, just as much this time around. She’s a little older now and will be off to college soon, but before that, she has a big family wedding to attend. Her beloved brother Muhammad is getting married, which means that Janna will soon be surrounded by family and friends, including Nuah. The last time she saw Nuah, Janna had told him she wasn’t ready to start a relationship, but now that she’s about to see him again, she thinks she has changed her mind and hopes he’s still interested even though he has been away at college.

There’s so much to love about Misfit in Love. I really enjoyed reading about all of the wedding traditions as well as the preparations and, of course, the fun shenanigans, as well as some of the drama between Muhammad’s family and his bride’s family. It was also so much fun to see old friends from Ali’s first two books. I was especially excited to see Adam and Zayneb from Love from A to Z as wedding attendees. I would love to revisit their world with another book at some point too. They’re just so sweet together. In addition to the fun surrounding the wedding, I also enjoyed watching Janna continue to grow and mature. She is still somewhat of a misfit when it comes to love and relationships but she’s finding her way, and I was especially proud of her when she has a very difficult conversation with her father about his racism. She makes a statement that many of us should take to heart. If you see someone being racist and hateful, you can’t just sit there passively. If anything is ever going to change, you have to speak out against the hate. Misfit in Love might be a light summer read about a wedding and falling in love, but it also packs a strong punch with that message from Janna. I don’t want to say anything else because of spoilers, I think fans of Ali’s other books will adore this one too and I’ll be sitting here hoping that we get another book that follows Janna when she goes off to college. 🙂

Review will be available on my blog, The Reading Fairy, on May 21st.

Disclaimer: I received an eARC from the publisher via Netgalley, in exchange for my honest review. This does not affect my opinion whatsoever. 

TW: Racism (challenged), Antiblackness (challenged), sexual assault (mentioned)
Rep: Muslim Egyptian & Indian MC, Syrian-Americans prominent characters, Black prominent characters, Indian & white side characters

"But maybe I don't need to break away. Maybe I need to start talking more about things that bother me. Talking in a steady, brave way."


I've been really excited for this book ever since I heard that Saints and Misfits was getting a sequel and it featured Zayneb and Adam from Love From A to Z!!! Imagine my excitement when I saw the email notification that I was approved for this book, and honestly the more I read S.K. Ali's books-the more they improve, and get more entertaining.

I wasn't a huge fan of Saints and Misfits-but Misfit in Love takes place two years after the events of Saints and Misfits. Janna's brother is getting ready to marry Sarah, and Janna has now graduated high school and entering college in the fall. This book is basically, "big fat Muslim wedding" as Janna likes to describe. 

Much like other novels written by S.K. Ali, this book has a lot of drama. Janna not only works up the courage to go talk to Nuah, but there's two more guys-Haytham and Layth, who may or may not be interested in her. Of course, the usual wedding chaos in this book which made it oddly entertaining. 

I feel like I really connected with Janna in this book. The one thing I have really loved about Janna, is her relationship with her parents. I don't have a good relationship with my mom or anyone for that matter. I love how she's so protective about her mom especially in this book and wants to spend time with her despite her mom's old friend that showed up for the wedding. Janna has a rocky relationship with her dad, and she wasn't afraid to call him out on his antiblackness. 

Janna is less fierce than Zayneb and she's completely different, but I seriously love the fact that Janna addresses the fact that she has flaws and addresses them. It makes her such a realistic character especially after the trauma she had experienced in Saints and Misfits. 

This synopsis sounds like a romcom, but I really feel like it isn't. Misfit in Love is about growing as a person, family relationships, faith and friendship. Obviously, there is some hints about romance especially with what is referred to as a love square, but that's not the main part of it and I loved it. 

Love Triangles and love squares are so difficult to like, but this is probably one of my favorite ones. Like I said before, there's three guys that shows interest in Janna: Haytham and Layth who are probably two of my favorite characters in this book and of course, Nuah. I wish I could talk about Janna's choosing which didn't isolate this aspec reader, but it'd be consider spoilers-but I promise you will be happy with this decision. 

I think one of the best things about S.K Ali's books is that she portrays Muslims in such a positive light! The mentions of Allah, Qur'an versus, duas and prayers along with highlights that's it's the women's right to cover herself if she chooses too. It's just so special especially since most Muslim books are usually the stereotypes of what people think Muslims are. Misfit in Love shows how special faith can be and how important it is to these characters.

Title - Misfit in Love

Author - S K Ali

Genre - YA Romance

Plot:

The book revolves around Janna who is all set to spend more time with Nuah at her brother's Nikaah celebration. The last time they met, she wasn't ready about Nuah but her thoughts have taken a better clarity in the time they have been away from one another. With so much work to do in preparing for the Nikaah to Janna finding her mother being warm towards a stranger to her, this ceremony is not just that normal.

My Thoughts:

I had my doubts while picking this book up since Goodreads claimed it be a sequel but the author herself cleared the doubts that it is more of a companion novel and one can pick this one up without reading the previous one. I had my doubts but did go ahead thinking if I'm unable to grasp the plot I'll pick up the first one but the book was pretty much a standalone on its own and one cannot find themselves abandoned while reading it.

The plot is quite straightforward and pretty much a lot of plot points does not come as a surprise. For a novel in romance genre, what matters is the execution of those plot points and the author has done quite a commendable job in doing the same. There aren't many places that one feels that the book stretches out a bit too far or is turning redundant.

About the characters, Janna is beautifully described throughout. Her every emotions are so well nuanced that one can empathise with her throughout. Since, the entire novel is written from her perspective, not much can be said about the development of other characters atleast in one book but they are pretty relatable with what one gets to see within my household.

My recommendation - Pick it up if you love to read a cozy romantic novel that will surely melt your heart.

My Rating - 🌟 🌟 🌟 🌟 (4 out of 5 stars)

I really enjoyed this companion book that follows our fav MC, Janna, through a timeline of getting ready for her brothers wedding all the way to the wedding. The way the author weaves in topics like racism and stereotypes, is just done so well and organically. I loved the surprise “Easter eggs” placed throughout the book and even feel like it was left open at the end for another sequel. (Squee!)

Featuring many of the same characters as Saints and Misfits, this one is a much happier book, as could be expected. One of the things I truly appreciated about the novel is how Ali writes each character - main and supporting - with depth, and real struggles they are grappling with. When the novel concludes, we do not necessarily have closure on all of them, but we do get a sense that the characters have grown, and are going to try to deal with the things that have weighed on them. As a non-Muslim reader, I am thankful to gain a window into this world, and am excited for a novel where some of my students will see themselves.

TW: racism

This book was a really fun read and I’m so glad I picked it up! I’m obsessed with any book that follows a big wedding (nikah) because there’s always drama and mishaps that follow the character around and I think that’s pretty realistic when it comes to planning and executing a big South Asian wedding.

This book felt like it had a lot more development and thoroughness in both the plot and the flushing out of most of the characters. I enjoy Janna’s voice and growing with her as she learns certain aspects of her dad that she doesn’t disagree with. I will say I still don’t like Tats. I don’t want to spoil anything, but she’s a shady best friend if I’m being completely honest. I will also say, I did enjoy following Janna’s interactions with the three potential love interests, however, I think some of their actions didn’t completely seem logical and I was left a little confused when specific events occurred. With all that being said, the thing I absolutely loved about this book were the familial relationships and conversations that were explored between Janna and her mom, Janna and her dad, and Janna and her brother. Janna is faced with all these new situations in which she realizes that her brother is getting married and she might not see him as often, her mom has potentially started dating again, and her dad is rooted in some culturally aged ways of seeing the world. The way Janna faces these new changes made me feel very proud of her, especially when it came to talking about changing one’s view from being anti-Black to anti-racist. The author does state in this regard that she is not Black and she focuses the character’s conversations on how non-Black people can stay educated and realize their internal biases so they can learn from them and hopefully transcend down the path of being anti-racist.

Overall, I had such a fun time with Janna and all her friends and families. Coming from a big family myself it made me feel at home reading this book. I highly recommend you check it out!