3 stars

This book is a retelling of Emma from Jane Austen, and I adore Jane Austen's books and stories. Emma, to me, is the ultimate fitness to lovers book when the female MC doesn't even know she wants the male MC, and we're going along for the ride until she discovers the truth about her feelings. It's interesting to see it in a modern setting mixed with the Indian culture!

Darcy has to be my favourite part of this book. That little, cute, white dog on the cover?? That's Darcy! I love how the author named him Darcy (sticking with the Jane Austen theme!) And how Darcy knew right from the beginning who Kamila was going to end up with!

One think I love about Farah Heron's books is that they're set in Toronto! I really enjoy books that are close to home, it's fun to see areas you know in a book! I also love how each of Farah Heron's book show food and cooking. Food is an important factor in her books and I love how she puts the recipes at the end for all of us to enjoy as well!

I don't often read retellings because I already know the story behind them. This book was definitely sweet and cute with aspects that I loved, but it just got boring for me. Emma has a lot of characters, and that's prominent in this book too. Also a personal opinion, I don't love totally clueless characters like Kamila and Maricel. I know Maricel is basically meant to be like that, but it's just not my cup of tea! Gotta love Rohan though!

Thank you to NetGalley and Forever Pub for the earc in return for an honest review.

Oh my god--Austen's Emma + Indian culture?! Yes!! Both of these are two of my favorite things in the world. I've adored and admired Indian culture for years now, and Austen, well---she's the absolute best. The thing about the original Emma is that most readers despise her (even though she was Austen's favorite heroine.) It was the same in Kamila Knows Best. I was not a fan of Kamila at first (she has a scheduled photo shoot of her dog for Instagram), but Heron does that on purpose to give us the same feeling that readers have for Emma--she's spoiled and used to getting her own way. The author does a good job with these parallels. I was seriously irritated at her, but I love she's supposed to be that way. Paraphrasing Jane Austen's own words, "Nobody will like her (Emma) but me." It was such a good story of life and love, and I'm so glad that I got to read it!

I so enjoyed KAMILA KNOWS BEST by Farah Heron. It’s got Emma and Clueless vibes: Kamila matchmakes her friends with the best of intentions, even though she sometimes gets it wrong. Kamila cares deeply for her friends, family, and work that she’ll often put all of them before taking care of herself. She’s also dedicated to taking care of her father while trying to grow their accounting business and the clients she takes on. Basically, Kamila’s got a lot on her plate, but she does everything with humor and positivity. I loved this about her, even when I was rooting for her to say ‘No!’ sometimes.

I was a fan of how confident Kamila is, her passion for throwing together Bollywood movie nights, and I particularly appreciated that she never gives up on learning how to make specific food dishes (even when they turn into disasters). I was swept up in this friends-to-lovers romance with Rohan, who was sweet and helpful, and was charmed every time he and Kamila were on the page together. If you like dogs, fun movie nights, and delightful, ambitious characters who are just trying their best, this book’s for you!

KAMILA KNOWS BEST will be out on March 8, 2022, and you can pre-order it now. Thank you to Forever (Grand Central Publishing) and NetGalley for this book. All opinions are my own.

Kamila Knows Best is a sweet, fun Emma retelling based in Toronto. If you love Austen adaptations you will enjoy this one! The author did a great job of paying homage to Austen’s Emma, but at the same time she still created her own wonderful story. I loved the characters here - especially Rohan, the perfect Mr. Knightly-esque love interest. I loved seeing the relationships between Kamila, her family and her friends. Kamila was easy to root for and I’m glad she stood up for what she wanted in the end.

In terms of the romance this was a great friends to lovers story. There was not a lot spice (though plenty of forearm smut if you’re into that :)), but the banter between Kamila and Rohan was excellent. You could feel the passion and connection even if we didn’t see it. .

I also loved the recipes included at the end of the book! Reading about all of the food at Kamila’s Bollywood Night parties was making me hungry. I can’t wait to try making the biryani.

Thank you to NetGalley and Forever for an advanced copy of Kamila Knows Best.

Unfortunately this one was a miss for me. It has such good ratings already on goodreads and I wanted to love it so much, but I just couldn't connect with Kamila. I found her to be annoying and frustrating. :( I never really got swept up into the story.

Kamila is kick ass in every way. She is successful in work, has fabulous style and can throw the most epic fundraisers and dinner parties. The problem is that her dad and her enemy won't take her seriously and they think her head is up in the clouds. Kamila has to prove herself to everyone including herself.

I thoroughly enjoyed reading and immersing myself in Kamila's world. I can't wait for pub day to recommend to all my friends.

I haven't read Jane Austen's Emma but I've seen the movie adaptations. Based on what I remember from the adaptations I can tell that Farah Heron did a great job with this Emma retelling.

It took me a few chapters to warm up to Kamila. She is a lot. She comes off as a bit superficial in the beginning of the book. She cares too much about her looks, her dog's too. But then she won me over with her dedication to her dad and her friends, And also who would't want to be invited to the Bollywood movie viewing parties she throws and eat all the yummy food. Farah's previous book Accidentally Engaged made me crave freshly baked bread and this one was all about biryani. One of my favorite scenes in the book was Rohan and Kamila preparing Indian food for a party. Foodie characters in contemporary romance are my people:) And her books wants me visit Toronto so bad, You can tell Farah loves the city.

The book was slow in the first half, but I was invested enough to keep going. There are multiple storylines interwoven to the main one here: Kamila is constantly trying to match make her friends, volunteering at the dog shelter, facing her nemesis (Jana) from her past, while trying to prove to her dad and Rohan that she takes the family business seriously and wants to take over even though everyone else thinks her heart's not in it and that she cannot be interested in being an accountant.

There is a lot going on on this story and sadly the romance between Rohan and Kamila takes a backseat which is sad because they have great chemistry and banter. While I wanted to see them together more, I liked that the romance wasn't rushed. They are almost family (nothing icky about it, their siblings are married to each other) and spend so much time together, You could tell Rohan cared about Kamila deeply.

If you are in the market for a lighthearted, sweet, feel good, friends to lovers romance (or more like women's fiction with heavy romance elements) you might like Kamila Knows Best.

For the most part, I did really enjoy this book. Emma is my absolute favourite Jane Austen novel and I love seeing the adaptations and retellings of it. I loved the parallels between the source material and this final product and all the nods to Austen. The characters were wonderful, specifically Kamila and Rohan, but also the side characters who felt like fully fleshed human beings. This did, however take me forever to get into. We’re talking 5 days to get me 20% into the book. However, once I got past that point, I loved it. I also do think the last chapter could be a little longer or have another after, just to tie things up in a less rushed way. But overall, a lovely retelling of Emma, made even better by having it set in Toronto. Yay for Canadian content!

A huge thank you to Forever Publishing and NetGalley for the advanced copy of this book!
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Having just worked on a theatrical production that is centered around Bhangra dancing and the southeast Asian-American experience at the collegiate level this past Fall, it was with great joy to enter this culture from a different viewpoint through Heron and Kamila. Kamila is the perfect blend of honoring the desi heritage her family has instilled in her, while also being a Canadian millennial. She loves dressing up her pup and taking photos for Instagram (sounds familiar, just replace pup with books!), and plans extravagant Bollywood movie nights for her friends, while also being extremely dedicated to her ailing Father and her job as an accountant. Someone please explain to me why girls can't be all of these things together.
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This is a friends-to-lovers trope that is apparently a retelling of Jane Austen's Emma. Admittedly, I've never read Emma (please don't come for me), but this book almost makes me want to give it a shot. The author's note makes is beyond clear just how much Heron adores the Austen novel. I really enjoyed Heron's Accidentally Engaged last year, and was excited to give another one of her novel's a shot. I can't say that I fell in love with Kamila and Rohan as much as I did with Reena and Nadim, but I'm excited to see what Heron creates in the future!

Kamila Knows Best is an Emma retelling with Indian characters, weekly Bollywood movie parties, delicious food descriptions and lots of DOGS!

Emma in my opinion is a difficult book to adapt, in many of the adaptations I've seen or read, from Clueless, to this book, the main character always comes off very unlikeable from the beginning, has a lot of missteps and has to go through a big event to make her realize the error of her ways. This book stays true to the Emma plotline, so if you like the Emma plotline, you most likely will like this book and vice versa.

What I thought worked very well is Kamila's strive for perfection, the pressures she feels from taking care of her dad, making sure people around her are all good, before worrying about herself. But this also comes with the problem that she always thinks she knows what's best for others (thus, the name of the book). And that she has to always be right. In true perfectionist form, she also takes on too much at once. Trying to be an amazing accountant, while sometimes dealing with sexist a-holes, and trying to also balance that with her other hobbies like her dog Instagram and her weekly Bollywood parties, no wonder she struggles with balancing everything. All of this felt very relatable to me, though at times I wanted to shake her and tell her to not take on the whole world!

I really liked Rohan as the love interest. He was a great book boyfriend, he was supportive, dependable, but he also challenged Kamila, and pushed her to be a better version of herself. And *forearms* 😍 He does make a few missteps, and causes some miscommunications but overall, I thought he was good for Kamila.

I appreciated the fact that Kamila's father was struggling with depression, mental health in the older generation is rarely addressed, especially in terms of therapy, so I thought this aspect was great. Therapy is discussed not only for Kamila's father but for Kamila as well. Any time a book puts in an effort to normalize therapy is just great in my opinion.

Those who like foodie books are also sure to enjoy this since there's so many descriptions of delicious Indian food. It will make you want to eat everything they're talking about!

I appreciated the emphasis on friendships throughout the book. Kamila has a great friend group, but I especially liked one plot-line of enemies to friends. Positive women friendships especially after rivalry are always great to read about., and sadly not very common in books.

One of the reason this wasn't a full five stars was because I just wasn't able to connect to the characters or the plotline in the beginning of the book. It has a pretty slow beginning, especially because in true Emma form the main romance isn't really established for most of the book, though the two having some history definitely helped in this aspect. So it took me a bit to get through the beginning parts. Once I got through the first 40% or so though, I breezed through the rest.

Also, like I said above, it didn't help that Kamila wasn't a very likeable character. She also seemed a little superficial. Of course adapting from Emma means that some of this has to happen automatically, but I would have enjoyed a retelling where she's more likeable. On the other hand, this does make her growth more satisfying, as she learns the error of her ways.

Thank you to Forever and NetGalley for giving me the opportunity to share my honest opinions on the book before the release date.

I had a lot of fun reading this one. Having read Accidentally Engaged, I came into it as a fan of Farah Heron's writing. I didn't know, going into it, that it was a retelling of Jane Austin's Emma, but saw the similarities pretty quickly and think it was done really well.

Kamila is a strong leading character, but she's underestimated by everyone because she also likes the fun stuff, parties, social media and fashion. She works her behind off because she loves her job also, but no one sees that. I loved the pining. This is definitely a slow burn. It's always fun when we know, but they don't know.

I loved the Bollywood aspect, as well, which was fun. I'd love to see this as a movie adaptation. And the food, OMG. Was I looking up recipes online while reading? Yes, yes, I was. Farah is kind enough to include a couple recipes in the back of the book, which I always think is a nice touch.

Overall, I love Emma, so it wasn't hard to love this adaptation. 4.5 Stars

Thank you to NetGalley and Forever (Grand Central Publishing) for providing an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I didn’t realize that Kamila was a retelling of Emma until about 30% into the story, so the first few chapters were a struggle for me. Kamila wasn’t very likable. At the start she has an idyllic life with a satisfying job, a caring and close relationship with her father, and a close knit social circle, but she is so focused on what she believes is the right path that she doesn’t stop to think about what decisions she’s making and whether or not they’re right for all parties involved. She doesn’t seem to pay attention; she railroads everyone into doing what she feels is best.

I went into this novel feeling hopeful for one similar to Accidentally Engaged, and while I knew in my brain that these books are completely different, in my heart I hoped to have the same feelings of delight. It’s hard not to compare the two sets of characters. Kamila’s natural attraction progression to Rohan felt forced and superficial, unlike the relationship between Reena and Nadim. There was too much repetition of Kam’s feeling that Rohan was only around out of obligation, as well as the redundancy of not wanting anything to change with him because she relied on him too much. I wanted more of Kam and Rohan’s relationship on the page to be natural and engaging rather than familial and obligatory.

Kamila Knows Best was an enjoyable story overall. I think it has great cultural representation and again makes me want to learn more about the Desi community, not to mention be invited to one of Kamila’s parties. I don’t see myself rereading this book though.

Thank you to Netgalley and Forever for this ARC.

While an enjoyable read, it was definitely slow to start and wasn't necessarily plot-driven enough for me personally. I would say that if you're looking for something light and fluffy, this would be a great choice. However, I just don't think it's memorable enough.

3.5 stars rounded up.

Kamilla knows best was just an ok read to me. It started to get very slow for me early on and I didn't stay invested.

I wanted to like the book because it had a cute plot idea though.

It was just a two star rating. Thank you Netgalley and publishers for allowing me the chance to read and review.

Kamila has a huge heart. From throwing Bollywood parties every week to caring for her dad and loving on puppies, she has a very full life. But is it the one she really wants? She’s constantly worried about her dad and really relies on her best friend Rohan.
I was looking forward to catty exchanges between her and Miss Perfect Jana and I got a whole lot more.
I adored all of the puppies, but especially that one little rascal.
Two of my favorite scenes are the Aim High event and rainy gazebo.
It’s a sweet story and perfect for anyone who enjoys romance.

This is such a sweet romance story! I loved the relationship between Kamila and Rohan. They have such entertaining banter and a mature connection. Best friends to lovers plots are a favorite and this one does it in a very believable way. I don’t know how I missed that this is a retelling of Emma but I see it now! All of Farah Heron’s books are great reads and this one fits in perfectly. I highly recommend for a thoughtful and fun love story.

Thank you to Farah Heron, Forever (Grand Central Publishing), and NetGalley for an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Kamila Knows Best is a super cute retelling of Jane Austen's Emma with low steam. Farah Heron's writing of Kamila and Ruhan complimented Austen's Emma and George Knightly super well. Their banter and personalities were on point.

However, I found myself skimming a lot of the book in search of scenes with Kamila and Ruhan. I adored those two and my romance heart was fully invested. The other subplots did not hold by attention as much as I would like though.

Warning: this book will make you HUNGRY. I don't think there was a chapter that did not have food. Also, where can I find some old Bollywood movies? I'm intrigued.

Thank you Forever Publishing and Netgalley for the advance copy.

This was a sweet retelling of Emma set in an entirely different setting. I loved the setting, the characters were likeable, but I think the main thing missing for me was the pacing/how slow it was.

I could not really connect in with the characters or feel invested in their story.

I wanted more! I wanted the crazy connection/magnetism/chemistry/banter/tension, etc.

Thank you NetGalley and Forever for the opportunity to read this one early. I think I might actually revisit this in the future, because I know the right ingredients are here, it just didn't click with me this time.

Kamila Knows Best is marketed as a romance, but I would say it is more a contemporary novel with some romance thrown in. This was a light-hearted, feel-good novel that was perfect for the cold winter weather.

Kamila is such a likeable character in this book. She is working so hard to keep her father happy and prove her deceased mother wrong. A lot of people underestimate her in this book, but I totally understood her desire to do everything for everyone, and not being able to say no. Kamila is a great main character and I felt myself rooting for her in all aspects of her life. She shows Kamila as a real person who is working to silence the critical voice in her head and be the best person she can be in all aspects of her life. I like that the author doesn't only focus on the romance in the book, but rather the development of Kamila as a character.

I like how Farah Heron normalized therapy in this book and also talked about mental illness in relation to Kamila's father and the impact it has on her, her father and her family. She had a respectful discussion, while also showing how mental illness is often stigmatized in many communities and cultures.

I found the other characters in the book well developed. Of course, there was swoon-worthy Rohan (I mean how did Farah Heron make forearms seem so sexy?), but there were also the friends and frienemies like Asha and Jane. I also love her little dog Darcy and the puppy Potato!

Farah Heron continues to be an auto-read author. I loved her previous book and have her first novel on my TBR. Kamila Knows Best is a wonderful addition to her repertoire. Thank you to NetGalley and Forever Publishing for an advance copy of this book in exchange for an open and honest review. All opinions are 100% mine.

I love Pride & Prejudice as much as the next person, but there’s something about Emma that just hits differently. One of my favorite Emma retellings/adaptations is Emma Approved, which I watched back when I was in high school and have rewatched countless times since — although we won’t acknowledge the failed Emma Approved revival back in 2018. I just loved that Emma was played by an Asian woman, that she got such a beautiful love story, and that the cast of Emma Approved was so diverse. When I heard that Farah Heron had written an Emma retelling, I instantly knew I had to get my hands on it!

Kamila Knows Best is a delightful Emma retelling that I simply couldn’t put down. Filled with heart and soul, tension and yearning, dynamic and witty characters, mouthwatering food descriptions, and everything that makes Emma a classic, Kamila Knows Best has singlehandedly beat out every Emma retelling in my book.

While Emma at its very core is a romance, it’s also a journey of self-improvement and a coming of age story. Kamila is learning who she is at twenty-seven, and all the parts that make her who she is. In addition to working to help small businesses, unlearning her trauma, taking care of her family, hosting Bollywood movie nights, dedicating her time to Puppy Prom, and helping with other fundraisers, Kamila really does it all. She’s constantly trying to make the world better, whether that’s through self-improvement, or actively uplifting and supporting her loved ones. While sometimes her actions are misguided, her heart is usually in the right place. Sometimes she meddles, especially when it comes to matchmaking, but in the end, all Kamila wants is for her friends to be happy, loved and treasured.

One of my favorite aspects of Kamila Knows Best was the strong friendships. Kamila’s weekly Bollywood movie night party was so lovely to read about, and you could tell how much time and dedication she put into fostering her friendships and her community. In the end, Kamila’s strong friend group isn’t just a group of friends, but people she can depend on, and people that she can call family. I also loved reading about Kamila and her secret nemesis, their conflict, and how they were able to move on and ultimately support one another.

Kamila and her father were also such an endearing duo to read about. They were so tender with one another, and I loved how Kamila was able to show a softer side with her dad. Despite being thought of as selfish or shallow, Kamila always put her family first, and I really respected and admired her for that. At times, Kamila even says that her first priority is her father, simply showing how deep their bond is.

Of course, this review would be amiss if I didn’t mention Rohan, our love interest. Rohan and Kamila’s dynamic was everything I was looking for. The tension, the chemistry, the banter and yearning — it’s literally perfect. In a way, they reminded me of my all time favorites, Blair and Dan from Gossip Girl, and Elle and Emmett from Legally Blonde (more so the musical than the movie). I spent a good portion of the book just waiting for the line, and was not let down in the slightest. Rohan and Kamila truly make each other better, and watching them grow together, and individually was simply heartwarming.

Readers familiar with Emma know exactly how this story will pan out. And yet, Heron manages to put her own spin on the story, and makes it her own. Overall, I couldn’t recommend Kamila Knows Best more, especially if you’re looking for a wonderful Emma retelling, filled with lovable and diverse characters, and adorable romance. Oh, and puppies!