I thought this was a sweet second-chance, childhood-friends-to-lovers romance!! I loved the South Asian Desi representation -- I'd love to hear from ownvoices reviewers too though! The standouts for me were the familial dynamics, and the connection the FMC had with her best friend.

There is an instance in the very beginning of the story where Sana goes to grab a manager at McDonalds because there are a group of racist kids harassing her and her younger brother (17 years old), Zia. While he is left alone, the love interest stumbles upon Zia and describes him as such: "He's a teenager but looks like he could be on the autism spectrum. He's covered his ears to shut out the noise and is rocking back and forth. Some asshat teenagers across the dining area are taunting him. He looks like he's about to cry. He looks like he's all alone. Who'd walk off and leave a defenseless kid by himself?" I do wish this was caught in some round of editing because the idea of someone "looking autistic" just doesn't sit right with me. There are indeed so many experiences of autistic people and I felt this scene painted the love interest as the "hero" who "saves" the "defenseless autistic kid".

cw: Islamophobia, hate crime, terminal illness, death of parent, cancer, death, infertility, toxic relationship, ableism

This was so much fun to read! It felt like I was watching a soap opera the whole time, wondering if the love interests would confess their love for one another!

This book had everything, family drama, childhood fiends to lovers, and representation!

I really loved watching the love between Sana and Daniel become more and more inevitable the deeper we got into the story. I also loved how much they cared for their family and would do anything for their happiness.

I also enjoyed the muslim & autism rep. that was mentioned throughout the novel so beautifully and wholesome.

Thank you to NetGalley and Alcove Press for an eARC in exchange for an honest review.

This is a sweet, second chance romcom. These childhood friends and sweethearts drifted apart when their families experienced a huge falling out, leading to a permanent rift and one of them moving to the other side of the country. Reunited on a work project years later, their chemistry is still there, but the trust isn't. While their years-long family, feud continue to keep them apart, or will they finally find their way back to each other. Or will Sana move forward with an arranged marriage that her family has chosen for her?

Set in a tight knit Desi community and in an environmental conservation company, Sana and Daniel are working together to protect the local community, this is a story about family, community and friendship.

Actual rating: 3.5, rounded up to 4.

Thanks to NetGalley and Alcove Press for providing this ARC in exchange for an honest review!

I was sold on the premise of star-crossed friends-to-lovers. The plot is loosely based on “Persuasion”, and I love that - Sana Saeed and Shahri Khalil, now Daniel, grew up together and became the closest of friends as their families entered into business together. Then Shari’s uncle made bad choices that left Sana’s family in dire straits, especially after Sana’s father passed away, and the Khalils fled.

Following her traditional Muslim mother’s wishes, Sana agrees to an arranged marriage so she can be secure future guardianship of her younger brother, Zia. Even though her promised fiance, Adam, is great on paper, Sana doesn’t feel the all-consuming love she wishes for - and that she once felt for Shahri. Until he shows up in her life again, as her boss.

There were many things about this book that were very sweet. Sana and Daniel pining for each other, Sana’s love of her brother, Daniel’s relationship with his adoptive mother and brother.

This book was overflowing with Pakistani and Muslim culture, from words to food to traditions, which I really enjoyed. I’ve seen discourse about how some people wish there were translations in books that include other languages so they don’t have to Google every few seconds. My approach to this is that I’m not here for a lesson and I’m not expected to Google everything - I can get a sense of the meaning of most things from context. I’m being invited into someone’s world, and I appreciate the author sharing it with me. I think this romance will make many East Asian readers feel seen, while also hopefully make others feel as glad about getting a welcoming taste of the culture as I did.

In terms of the romance, I was very frustrated with Sana and Daniel constantly going hot and cold on each other. There were a few times where I was left hanging, like there was something missing from the scene - where did this character go, why did nobody reply, when did they talk about this? There was a lot of miscommunication, which I wasn't a fan of, but I enjoyed the tension of the reasons why they didn't think they could be together.

All in all, the romance aspect was a bit lacking for me, only saved by the knowledge that these two people had been best friends at a time, and therefore building on a previous relationship.

I’m also not a fan of incredibly meddling families when that’s not problematized and boundaries aren’t set at some point, so I struggled with Sana’s family. I know that this is a strong aspect of many cultures, mine included, but that doesn’t mean we’re supposed to sit back and take it.

tl;dr: If you’re looking for a diverse friends-to-lovers romance with no smut, plenty of tension and a HEA, you might want to give this a chance.

A heartwarming, funny and inspiring read. Plenty of drama and lots of Bollywood vibes. This was my first read with a Muslim Hijabi MC and I learned a lot.
A well written story with great characters.

I really loved this book! It’s a heartwarming story that deals with topics such as grief, broken trust, family expectations, and family feuds. And the yearning!!!! I loveddddd it!

There was a really great side story dealing with the two main characters’ work. I do wish the resolution had been discussed more in depth- it was such a huge part of the plot and then it was just briefly mentioned at the end. This didn’t affect my star rating but I was a bit disappointed.

I will definitely be reading more work by this author- this was a beautiful debut novel.

This was an emotional rollercoaster! I loved the Muslim South Asian rep and the fierce love between siblings. The leading lady is strong, passionate and had to make some very tough decisions. The ending was very satisfying. I'm looking forward to more books by the author!

Thank you for letting me read this arc!!


The beginning of the book is good and shows a good understanding of what she is going through—I do love the representation and the way she struggles to find the balance.

The story felt hard to stay focused on throughout the middle of it.

This is one I really wanted to like. I loved all of the Muslim representation. But the over all story was boring to me. And I couldn’t connect with the characters.

I really enjoyed this and all the characters. The two leads were well drawn and written as was their world.

Even though I thought this would likely end in a predictable way, I still wasn’t sure till the end. Should Sana please her traditional Muslim mother and accept an arranged marriage to what seems to be the perfect man for her and for her family? Or will the sudden appearance of her best friend and teenage love lead her in a different direction, with all the rebellion needed to not follow her family’s wishes? Thanks to the author, publisher and NetGalley for a preview copy.

3* Irritating, but perhaps true to culture (I'm vaguely Asian and lived something similar).

This is quite a long-winded and at times annoying read, because the heroine in question isn't a malleable teen or YA, but a 30-something American, yet she allows her family to control her in far too many ways. Yes, it's partly a cultural thing, but hey, even Bollywood has moved with the times with what they call NRIs, and yet Sana Saeed hasn't.

The romance, well, there really isn't one, but there are annoying flashbacks to SS's childhood and her family's falling out with the male lead's family (I have already forgotten his name, he was that unremarkable) and how they came together again wasn't really believable. I think, and I might be confusing this novel with another at this point, that the most interesting part was when they kayaked to get a polluted water sample for a case.

What really got to me, at age 54 in 2023, is that SS's mother behaved like my father did in 1985, when in backwards Mauritius, 17yo me had a boyfriend. Yes, I got the emotional blackmail, the 'you're killing me', etc. simply because of an innocent teen romance. That that still exists in 'our' culture is deplorable, but that SS fell for it and fell into line, was equally so. She had no backbone whatsoever.

This book didn't work for me, but it was worth a read.

ARC courtesy of Alcove Press and NetGalley, for my reading pleasure.

Get ready to be swept off your feet by this amazing book which will give you the vibes of a Bollywood movie/Pakistani drama with non-stop plot twists 😉.
It has:
Arranged Marriage
Childhood Friends/Enemies/Lovers
Childhood Crush
Slow Burn Romance
Second Chance Romance
It has always been you
Co-workers
Families Feud

Sana Saeed is a Muslim hijabi woman from a Desi family living in New York City. She is 33 years old and constantly pushed by her mother to get married and accept one of the suitors or else she will take Zia's(Sana Brother) guardianship from here. Zia is autistic and Sana cares deeply about him and she will do anything for him. So when a handsome acceptable man proposes Sana is left with no choice but to accept even though she doesn't love him he is a good caring man and her family loves him. However, when her childhood crush and best friend Shahri aka Daniel Malik comes back into the picture after 18 years and starts working with her in the same firm on the same case things get complicated and Sana is torn apart between her heart and mind.

This is my first book about a Muslim hijabi heroine and I loved it so much. The author portrayed the characters beautifully recognizing our traditions and Islamic habits and conditions.  While also focusing on the hate crimes towards Muslims and how it affects them.
I felt deeply connected with the story coz I'm also a Muslim hijabi woman and I understood Sana's life, complications, and duties.
Daniel was everything a girl could ask for and I loved his personality a lot.
All in all the novel was perfect and worth every minute.
Thank you so much for the publisher for sending me an ARC of #TheMissArrangementOfSanaSaeed in exchange for my honest review @netgalley.

Xoxo💋

Absolutely gorgeous book!


"Thank you so much netgalley, the author and the publisher for the advanced review copy if this book💗 "I voluntarily read and reviewed the book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.”

What an absolute gem of a book!!

Meet Sana, a Pakistani Muslim who is caught in a hard place of being in a modern arranged marriage to a good man from a good family, while running into her childhood true love whose family is arch enemies with her family. She has to choose one for such a sweet family reason too!

I adored this debut novel! Noreen had such great characters with women in law, neurodiversity rep, adoptive family reps, but yet learning about the modern dating customs of their culture gained me a whole new perspective and respect to their values! Highly highly recommend if you're in to Rom-coms!

The Mis-arrangement of Sana Saeed by Noureen Mughees is about a Pakistani Muslim woman's struggle to get her family to accept her first (and only) love.

Sana Saeed is a 30+ year old woman working to help people that are affected by environmental pollution. She's being pressured to get married and so, settles for one man while her heart is still tied to another man, her childhood best friend whose father betrayed the family and left them in shambles (financially). When she meets the childhood friend again at work, it brings back all the feelings she'd been trying so hard to forget. And from there, comes everything else that's easy and quick to guess.

Alas, I did not really like this book. I'm all for diverse stories and I love reading books with people from all over the world. But this dry writing, the lackluster conflict, the way I didn't care to turn the page was so disappointing! I wanted to like this book, I wanted to rave about a Pakistani love story. It's just that this one did not serve what I was looking for.

The best part of the book is Sana's younger brother who has a spot in my heart because he is just adorable and lovely. Other than him, there wasn't much I looked forward to in the novel.

This book just wasn't for me.

⭐⭐⭐/5

I thought this book was so cute. It takes place in NY right around where I live! I was so familiar with all the places and it made me wonder if the author was from the same area. This story is about Sana and how for her mother will not let her become the guardian of her brother, Zia, who has an intellectual disability, until she marries. The love of her life, Shahri, moved away and she has not been with anyone else seriously since. When she meets Adam, a man that meets all of her mother's demands, she is pressured to move forward with the arrangement. At the same time, Shahri, who is now Daniel, comes back into her life and becomes her boss! The rest of the story is Sana and Daniel navigating this love triangle they've found themselves in.

The story has a dual POV between Sana and Daniel. I love when stories have switching POVs between both love interests. I definitely got Pride and Prejudice vibes from this story. There were some of my favorite tropes in here: love triangle, second chance romance, childhood lovers, fated mates. This is a desi romance with all the family drama you could want. I loved the Muslim and disability rep! This story had way more substance than just the romance. It talks about corruption, Islamaphobia, reconciliation, heartbreak, grief, obligation, and anger. Love a well-rounded story!

Thank you to Alcove Press and NetGalley for this ARC in exchange for an honest review!

3.5/5
I enjoyed following Sana and Daniel in this debut second chance romance! It was interesting watching them navigate their families' tumultuous relationship with each other as well as their own feelings for each other. There was definitely a middle slump where the story did seem to drag on, especially with Sana's constant back and forth on how she felt about Daniel vs. Adam when it was obvious who she was really into. I also wasn’t a fan of her best friend, I found her and her advice immature for someone who was supposed to be in her early/mid 30s.

Overall though, I think this story did a good job of showing a lot of the emotions and guilt relating to family and duty that go into an arranged marriage. Sana’s marriage in such a close-knit community isn't only about her and her potential partner, but also about the two families a coming together. As a result, Sana struggles to balance her options of someone who is a “safe” choice that’s approved by family but not someone she loves vs a childhood love whose family is at odds with her own. It’s the classic conundrum of following your heart or fulfilling your duty.

I did enjoy learning about the specifics of South Asian culture and the matchmaking process including biodatas, rishta, and chaperones. I loved the positive Muslim representation and the fact that some Urdu was interspersed in dialogue.

As a debut, I think this mostly hit the mark. Looking forward to seeing more work by Mughees in the future’

Sana wants a love like Anne's and Captain Wentworth's in Persuasion, but she is in her thirties, and her Pakistani-American family are anxious for her to marry. She also has an autistic brother, and needs to marry so that she can be his guardian. They matchmake her with the handsome, reliable Adam, but Sana has always yearned for her old childhood friend. When he appears back in her life, sparks fly! Can Sana find happiness?

I enjoyed this light romance about a Muslim heroine. Sana, Adam and Daniel are lovely characters, and Sana's concern about her autistic brother is admirable. However, some of the 'baddies' wore crucifixes, which was really noticeable. I felt that this showed an anti-Christian or perhaps just anti-Catholic bias? I found this annoying. It was also written in the first person, and in the present tense. I realize that this applies to most modern novels, but it almost always gets on my nerves.

I received this free ebook from NetGalley in return for an honest review.
EDITION Other Format
ISBN 9781639105113
PRICE $19.99 (USD)

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the opportunity to read an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I really enjoyed learning about a culture and religion different from what I was raised around. I really appreciated the accompanying explanations the author often provided when certain non-English words or religious/cultural events happened.

I really liked Sana as a main character and her personality was much like my own. I loved her relationship and devotion to doing what she could for her little brother, Zia. It was sweet and honorable. I liked the drama and sort of love triangle that happens with her, Daniel(Shahri) and Adam.

While we’re supposed to root for Shahri, I can’t help but having secretly preferred Adam!! Shahri was a good character but I just didn’t really enjoy his chapters and personality as much as I’d hoped.

If you’re looking for a romance that’s closed door, family drama based and centers around religious topics, this might be a good book to pick up. While I’m not of the religion or culture myself, I really enjoyed learning about these characters and their beautiful stories.