#KamilaKnowsBest:

“I’ll never understand why people pay for therapy. They need to hang out in animal shelters.” “I’ve spent thousands on therapy, and I agree—puppies work just as well. Better, actually.”

Farah Heron will always be an auto buy author. There’s no question about that. She is such a talented writer and her characters will always be some of my favorites. Add Kamila to the list of characters I want to be friends with, because she does know best (most of the time) and is one of the best.

I adored Rohan and Kamila so much. So much. Almost too much that I wanted more? Like cool, awesome everyone else, but I want more K+R action? Let’s me continue to swoon over them. Don’t get me wrong, I love that we discussed Kamila feeling less than with work life balance, because that is something I have dealt with. That is me being selfish, I can’t help it. I loved the love. I can believe I loved Friends to Lovers so much, but here I am, throwing my Judd Nelson fist in the air for them.

Thank you so much @forever for the gifted copy. Kamila Knows Best is out 3/8!

This book was such a fun read! I’m a sucker for a good friends to lovers romance and this one delivered! The storyline was a little slow at first, but then it took off with Kamila’s many professional obligations and fun social gatherings. Kamila’s character was so colorful and wonderful while also showcasing her talents and intelligence, which was great to see. I loved that she found her voice and came into her own by the end. The friendships and family relationships were great and the romance was sweet. Solid romance read for me!

As a huge fan of Farah Heron, I was so excited to receive an advance reading copy of Kamila Knows Best. I loved this book from the very beginning. Kamila is such a loveable main character who manages to balance working at her father’s accounting firm, throwing weekly Bollywood movie parties, fundraising for a local animal shelter, taking care of her father’s health, and of course, falling in love.

This book was such a comfort read for me and I loved getting to follow Kamila and Rohan’s story, in addition to the many loveable side characters (and pets!). I also really appreciated the discussion of mental health in this book. I would highly recommend this book to any fans of cozy romances. Thank you to Forever (Grand Central) Publishing and NetGalley for this advanced reading copy.

Thank you to NetGalley, Farah Heron and Forever Publishing for the free e-book in exchange for an honest review.

I loved this novel, it's totally unique and all the characters are so loveable and interesting. This book made me hungry and made me want to sit down with friends and watch Bollywood movies. It was incredibly hard to put down because I was wanted to badly to know what was going to happen next. The whole story is just so heartwarming and made me want to hug the main characters. I'd definitely recommend reading this one.

Retelling of Emma in Toronto!

Kamila Hussain hopes that by taking on more accounting clients her father will take her advice and start working part-time to help manage his overall health. Between her regular weekly Bollywood movie nights with her friends especially Rohan Nasser, playing matchmaker and some meddling for her friends with some success, her dog Darcy and charity work Kamila was busy. But when her childhood nemesis returns early from working with a nonprofit overseas and puts a kink in Kamila’s plans especially when she starts to see Rohan as more than a friend.

Kamila Knows Best is a retelling of Emma, but you will love Kamila and Rohan mixing their friends and family in Toronto plus Darcy and Potato!

I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book from NetGalley. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

One of the better modern retellings of Emma with the added bonus of being in a Southern Asian community setting. Kamila Hussain likes her life. She enjoys working as an CPA with her father and having time for volunteering as well. She’s loves hostessing friends for weekly Bollywood nights and thinks she is a good matchmaker. She is concerned for her fathers health and would like him to slow down. Long time family friend Rohan Nasser is a constant in her life. He is a successful tax attorney and runs a larger company their fathers founded. I’m not going in to get into all the details other than to say this is fun. I liked watching the author spin this modern version. My heart broke at some extras she adds like Kamila’s relationship with her mother or her father not totally understanding her dreams. But just so I don't get too sad there is Darcy the pampered pooch and extra puppies to save too. I spent a lot of time googling the food just so I knew what treats they were enjoying. Even if you’ve never read Emma you’ll still enjoy the story. It is a good, slow burn, friends to more romance. Minimal language and heat with a couple kisses and one scene behind closed doors. Thank you to NetGalley and Forever (Grand Central Publishing) for an eARC in exchange for an honest review. (4.5 stars)

This was a really fun modern retelling of Emma! I loved all the friendship and family themes in this, as well as the friends-to-lovers romance between Kamila and Rohan. Kamila was such a feisty leading character - she is ambitious and smart, but yet underestimated by everyone around her because of her love for parties, dogs (there are so many puppies in this!) and fashion. It was great to see her overcome her own insecurities throughout the book and develop as a person. Rohan, on the other hand, was a reliable, supportive friend to Kamila, and I loved their natural chemistry. The supporting characters in this were great too - I loved all of Kamila's friend group, especially Asha, and the enemies-to-lovers relationship she had with Jana.

(PS - I really want boba and beef noodle soup now? The food descriptions in this made me really hungry!)


(Posted on Goodreads. Will post to Instagram during pub week.)

4.5⭐
PG for a mostly closed door romance

I could consume all the rom coms Farah Heron comes out like candy and this book is no exception! Kamila Knows Best is a modern desi retelling of Emma and it has all the classic hijinks of Emma from botched matchmaking to confusion of who loves who, but add a few very cute dogs to the mix too. Fans of Farah Heron know that she her books typically have quite a few romantic hijinks and so Emma fit her storytelling just so beautifully.

I will say, the start to this book was kind of slow. I forgot how annoying Kamila (Emma) is at the start of her story and I felt like I was busy trying to figure out who each character represented from Emma. But once the story got going, it was absolutely impossible to put down! I was dying to know how the story would end and see Kamila and Rohan (Mr. Knightley) wind up together.

Rohan as a love interest was the perfect contemporary Desi Mr. Knightley. He was the right level of caring and critical and I loved seeing his relationship with Kamila turn from friendship to more. I also loved all the supporting characters because I felt like Farah was able to delve into their personalities in different ways than Emma.

If you're a sucker for a good Austen adaptation, I think you need to read this one because Emma will always be a classic and Farah Heron made me fall in love with the characters once more.

Read this if you like: bollywood, puppies, slow burns, and food.

Kamila (and some of the other characters) had a lot of unlikable characters which is always a little confusing and hard for me to decide how i feel about the book but i know that was the point. Everyone underestimates Kamila and assumes she is only cares about herself/clothes/dogs. I enjoyed the part of the story where she learns to stop doubting herself and do what she wants. This book was definitely a slow burn and felt more like a coming of age novel. Most of the story feels like it happens at around 85% of the way through.

The recipes at the end of the book were a great touch! Overall, i enjoyed this book and would recommend it.

A huge thank you to Forever for providing me with eARC in exchange for an honest review!

4⭐️ 2🌶

What I LOVED: This was my first book from Farah Heron and definitely not my last! I fell in love with her engaging writing and lovable characters!

Kamila wast he best! Between her love for fashion, dogs, her friends, family, and her talent for throwing the best Bollywood night parties, it was easy to love her. On top of all that, she’s also a kickass accountant and she’s passionate over what she does in helping women and small businesses. I also related to her being from an asian household which entails judgemental family members and being underminded. My heart broke for the way she was still healing from the trauma her mother gave her and admired her taking care of her dad amongst other things in her life.

Then comes in, Rohan, the sexy, businessman, best friend whom Kamila has grown up with. I enjoyed every moment with him especially when he would show up to just be there for Kamila every moment between helping out her father, throwing parties and being supportive in the dog events

Their romance made me remember exactly why I love a good ol’ friends to lovers trope and everything that comes with it from the secret pining, natural chemistry and friendly banter, the constant attempt to not cross the lines of friendship and the whole “everyone can see they’re in love but them”, I was swooning so much and there were moments even when I cried from the light angst.

What I LIKED: My dog loving heart enjoyed this so much! Alongside the scenes spent with dogs and the animal shelter, every moment with Darcy was my favorite! From the doggy photoshoots, outfits, Tiktok vids and even the dance performance, she was the cutest dog ever! (and she’s on the cover of the book even!)

Though the family relationship here wasn’t as toxic and was actually wholesome, I’m a sucker for a great, supportive friend group and that’s what Kamila had. I love Asha especially!Maricel was nice and her side romances was adorable. The side plot regarding her rivals to friends relationship with Jana was the most interesting, I enjoyed seeing them work out their differences and eventually be there for each other.

I liked the recipes in the end as well, I’m tempted to throw a Kamila-approved and inspired party too! The party scenes she had made me wish I was invited to them!

What I DIDN’T ENJOY: My heart broke from the toxicity of Kamila’s mother which is a thing that happens in conservative Asian households. Along with the judgements and constant criticizing, I’m sad she had to got through that.

THIS BOOK IS PERFECT IF YOU LOVE:
- friends to lovers, forced proximity
- cute doggy companions
- great friend group
- south asian rep

Kamila loves her life. But with her father's health failing, it could all come crumbling down. Thankfully, family friend Rohan is there to help. As she and Rohan spend more time together, the attraction between them comes roaring back to life. Does Kamila dare to give in to these feelings? Or is the romance one-sided?

This is a sprawling novel about love, family, and best intentions gone wrong. The romance starts out slowly, with Rohan in the background while Kamila frets over her father and her charity work. But the pace quickly picks up, and an intricately woven story emerges. As a Bollywood-meets-EMMA retelling of the Jane Austen classic, there's a lot going on. Yet the author manages to keep it all under control so the reader doesn't become overwhelmed or confused. Kamila and Rohan are adorable together, and I enjoyed the slow burn aspect of their romance.

Thanks, NetGalley, for the ARC I received. This is my honest and voluntary review.

I loved this modern retelling of EMMA with Bollywood vibes and a seriously swoon-worthy hero. I absolutely adored Kamila and her big, bold, colorful style and personality. I could relate to her feeling as if she needed to tone it down for her traditional career, and loved seeing her growth as she learns to embrace her personality and find a way to make it work for her, regardless of what others might think. And I totally swooned for Rohan, and his steadfast friendship. This one is a sloooooow burn, but it definitely burns in the best way.

You may not know this about me, but I LOVE Emma retellings. I will take them in any form which is why I was so happy to get my hands on an early copy of Kamila Knows Best by Farah Heron.

Kamila is best known for her fantastic weekly Bollywood movie parties and her internet famous dog, Darcy, but she’s also a fantastic accountant at her dad’s accounting firm. When she’s not going viral on social media or recruiting new clients, she’s also terrorizing her sort of brother-in-law Rohan who works at her father’s company. I loved how fierce and unapologetic Kamila was and the relationships in this book were so much fun to watch develop even if this was a relatively faithful adaption of the Jane Austen story.

I really like that this version went deeper- why Kamila is such a people pleaser and why she wanted to matchmake- needing to be a part of her friends’ happily ever after as a reaction to an overly critical and emotionally abusive upbringing.

I loved watching Kamila grow in this book and realize she is worthy and not just to others but to herself- shaping the world in a way that she wants just for her.

The ending big realization moment felt so beautiful and cinematic. I had giant heart eyes the entire time. I always thought I didn’t love friends to lovers but the Emma/Kamila-Knightley/Rohan story does it for me all the time. Rohan was fantastic - I fell in love with him along with Kamila.

This was such a fresh and lovely retelling of a story I will never get bored of and I think Austenphiles and romance lovers will definitely appreciate getting lost in its pages.

Thank you so much to the publisher and NetGalley for letting me read an e-arc in exchange for an honest review.

Retelling of Jane ‘s Austen’s Emma with a dash of Bollywood spice makes this novel a sizzling and tantalizing read!

Kamila, our Bollywood Emma has her life all put together with comfort and love of her family, parties with her friends and a cute dog! She has nothing to worry about as her life is all set until her secret nemesis, return to town and has an eye for her best friend Rohan, who is so handsome and charming!

The chemistry of Kamila and Rohan was so refreshing and I cannot stop from falling in love with them both! I enjoyed Farah’s writing very much in this book and her previous release Accidentally Engaged! Coming from South Asian background and culture, I could totally relate to Kamila at so many instances. I really loved her feminism and how she fought her own demons.

I highly recommend this cute retelling to all the Jane Austen’s fans out there when it hit the shelves on March 8, 2022

Thank you @readforeverpub and @netgalley for the gifted copy and the digital galley! Can’t wait to see what Farah has in store for her fans in her next release!

Thank you Netgalley and Forever for the opportunity to read an early copy of this book. I absolutely loved it! I had read Farah Heron's previous adult books and I absolutely loved them as well. I have not yet read her young adult book, but I will. I cannot wait to read what Heron's publishes next!

KAMILA KNOWS BEST

PLOT -
Kamila Hussain leads a hectic not so perfect life full of ellaborate Bollywood parties, a rocking Instagram profile of her dog, a job she loves and close set of family and friends ..one of whom is Rohan Nasser...who could just be a little more than friends...
Suddenly..her arch nemesis returns and the more Kamila tries to plan the more things start to unravel and her near perfect life starts turning upside down.
MY THOUGHTS -
This book is full of family drama, great friendship , dogs (esp the Dog Prom) , the Indian food and bollywood movie references..the Indian in me was totally digging it!!
Kamila s character has been well crafted and all her flaws and strengths are explored beautifully.
Even the side characters esp Asha and Jana gave a move balance to the story.
I only wish we could have more romance between Kamila and Rohan and more depth into Rohans mind.
So if your are a fan of Jane Austen Emma..do check out this retelling.

I love Farah Heron's writing voice and I have greatly enjoyed her previous books. This one did not work that well for and it's partly my fault for not paying attention that this is a contemporary Emma retelling. As I am not a fan of Emma (nor the book, neither the heroine), and this was very close to the original Emma story, I did not like it as much as I wanted to.

That said, if you are an Emma fan and love the Legally Blond movies, I am fairly certain you will enjoy this book much more than me.

On the plus side, this story had a lot of things I liked - great friendships, complicated families, Indian movies and food. I really liked that we get an older character (Kamila's dad) who deals with depression and anxiety. Mental illness is treated as the serious issue it is, no miracle cure, just persistence and constant effort to be better.

Kamila's friends were all awesome, the support and care that they had for each other was great to see,. At the same time, I felt Kamila went over the top, bending herself out of shape to please everyone around her. Her match-making was the thing I found most annoying. I liked how dedicated she was to her work, but also hated how she constantly played a role and hid her true self in order to make others happy. She was easy going and fun but also so certain of her being right all the time in everything she did, I hated it. The way she was so sure that she knew best how to care for her dad, how to treat Rohan, how to react to her nemesis, how to bring two people together. There was never a moment she questioned herself, never allowed the possibility that other people around her might be right and she might be wrong. She cared deeply for the people in her life but in a sort of controlling, tiring way.

I didn't get to know Rohan as well as Kamila. Her remained distant, a bit enigmatic. The focus was so much on her that he felt not so well developed as a character. The third act break up was all his fault but he was in a difficult situation and then he did his best to make up for it. In a way, I feel Kamila was hiding so much of herself from everyone that they just made the wrong assumptions about her.

The story started slow and then the ending was really busy. I enjoyed the final third though there was still a moment there where I wanted to slap Kamila, she acted so irrationally, I couldn't believe it. It seemed she hadn't changed or learned anything from her mistakes.

Overall, this contemporary Emma retelling is too close to the original and as such not my favourite. Sill, the writing is solid, the cast is fantastic, I am just not the right reader for this.

CW: child abuse (in the past), mental health issues, hospital stay (side character)

I didn't expect to like this book so much, but it has so much heart I couldn't resist. In a faithful modern Muslim adaptation to Emma, the side characters unfold as expected but the setting really sparkles. The family closesness felt lived in and I appreciated the tackling of mental health and independence. Though aspects of the Emma storyline felt squished in there at time, especially as everything wrapped up, I was enjoying the characters enough that I wanted to see them happy.

I adored Accidentally Engaged last year so was looking forward to Kamila Knows Best by @farahheronauthor!

Kamila is an accountant at her dad's firm but in her personal life she has an insta famous pup, loves throwing Bollywood parties each week and volunteering at a local animal shelter. She cares deeply for her father and her friends. She's busy trying to prove to everyone that she can do serious things between planning the shelter’s biggest fundraiser, trying to land a new client all while worrying abut her dad's health. When she realizes she's leaning on Rohan a family friend a little bit more will that change everything?

This was a super slow burn and a little bit more of a self discovery than a full romance but I loved seeing these friends to lovers realize there might be something more. Plus I liked that we saw the Kamila look at her relationship with her parents and how that has impacted her as an adult. The food descriptions will have you craving Indian food!

This is a loosely based Emma adaptation and I loved the reference in the author's note to Clueless as I totally got some of the Cher vibes in Kamila.

What a great retelling of a Jane Austen classic, with other Austen references thrown in! Heron writes wonderful yet flawed characters who grow and become the best versions of themselves. Kamila Knows Best follows the form of Emma, where Kamila is an accountant who does volunteer work, while enjoying setting up her friends on the side. Her brother-in-law, Rohan, whom she's known since birth, helps her and her ailing dad a lot at their house, and also works alongside her father at their family business. Kamila needs to prove to her dad that he can step back from work by taking on...everything anyone asks her to do. When a childhood nemesis comes back to town, she feels the need to take on even more, while at the same time realizing that she feels a bit too attached to Rohan.

I loved it! For it being a regular-sized book, there were so many characters that were still fully fleshed out. The big romantic grand gesture scene was set up early on in the book, which was SO cute and got me really excited when I saw it start happening. I also felt more satisfied by the ending of this one than I did with the ending of the original Emma!

Recommended for you if you love Jane Austen, enjoy friends-to-lovers, you appreciate a good Bollywood movie, or if you would totally go to an event called Dog Prom.

Thanks to Netgalley and Forever Publishing for the e-ARC.