I read and enjoyed Kismet by this author and was eager to read her latest; she did not disappoint. How would you deal with attempts on your life when you are sorta well-known? And what would you do when those who were after you are found dead?

The story is told from three different perspectives, which is challenging for any author, but once I found my reading groove with the "writing cadence" of the book, the reading experience was good. I always love reading about other cultures, especially when the author is of that culture. Akhtar does a good job of dropping a few cultural nuggets of beliefs, fears, folklore, which added to the story's believability. If you enjoy thrillers and have an interest in other cultures and their beliefs and thought processes, you will enjoy this book!

I was soooo pulled in at the beginning. By 10% in, I was ready to start suggesting people read this. I could not put it down. But then it lagged. And I just couldn't get through it. The main twist I totally saw coming. The rest of the ending was semi-interesting, but I didn't go wild for how it all wrapped up. I really don't want to be mean, but the writing was not strong. It felt juvenile, and the book read like a first draft. I couldn't take all of the exclamation points. Much of the narration was unnecessary and too on the nose. Disappointed overall, but I really wanted to like this one!

What a great book! This was not what I was expecting, but I loved it! I was immediately drawn into Dunia's life and was desperate to know who or what was trying to kill her. I listened to the audiobook which was mixed media. It was like listening to a whole movie. There are also many taboo topics touched on throughout the story, giving it depth and producing thought provoking moments. I truly enjoyed the cultural aspects of this story and the delicate way it was woven throughout to create a wonderful thriller. I will definitely be following this author!

Thank you NetGalley and Mindy’s Book Studio for an ARC in exchange for my honest and voluntary review.

A young woman investigates paranormal attempts on her life. South Asian folklore, disorders and mental illness, community fear and abuse. The plot is powered by two podcasters who though hilariously vapid, I think some of their chapters could’ve been replaced with more info on the paranormal entity. Considering this is the highlight of the novel it had a too simple origin, a vague intention and unexplored abilities. Also the reason behind the h’s attacks seemed weak and the final attack seemed underdeveloped since in hindsight the person had such close access to her all along. The h also starts and ends as the same passive, terrified character which I didn’t like. Though there are many good reveals this novel lacked a true resolution which I think hurt it the most. It was well paced and easy read through. It was also really good to see a monster through a different cultural lens. A thriller with sprinkles of The Exorcist.

*It was a pleasure to read the ARC for, Almost Surely Dead. Thank you A. Akhtar and Mindy’s Book Club.

Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for this eARC.

A clever and enjoyable mystery that is certainly unique (even bizarre, but in a good way). It is a bit of a "ghost" story, as well as a mystery that goes back and forth in time (but it is easy to follow) concerning a presumed dead missing person, and the friends and family she has left behind.

Definitely worth a read!

I was so grateful to be granted access to Almost Surely Dead by Amina Akhtar courtesy of Mindy's Books and MBC Books. This is a supernatural read and told in multiple timelines.

Dunia is having what she thinks is a normal day until she's pushed onto subway tracks by a stranger. After narrowly dodging certain death, Dunia starts to question everything she knows. Years, later, she's become the topic of a crime podcast that promises to reveal new information about the disappearance of Dunia Ahmed.

I enjoyed how Amina Akhtar revealed pieces of the puzzle like an onion through the podcast, Dunia, and her recollections as a child. The supernatural elements threw me a bit, but as I read further, I found they made the plot.

Initially brimming with promise, Almost Surely Dead started off on a high note, capturing my attention from the very beginning. The infusion of South Asian folklore was a refreshing touch, offering a unique backdrop to the narrative. However, as the story progressed, I found myself grappling with its pacing and structure.
While the exploration of folklore was intriguing, it began to overshadow the main plot, leading to a sense of repetition and monotony. The narrative's constant back and forth between the perspectives of a five-year-old Dunia and present-day events became tiresome, detracting from the overall flow of the story.

Moreover, the revelation of the "whodunit" moment lacked the element of surprise I crave in a mystery novel. From the introduction of the character in question, their suspicious nature was evident, diminishing the impact of the supposed twist. As an avid reader of thrillers, I yearn for unexpected plot twists and gripping suspense, both of which were sorely lacking in this instance.

While I appreciate the opportunity to delve into the world of Almost Surely Dead, I cannot overlook its shortcomings. Despite its promising start, the novel ultimately falls short in delivering the riveting mystery and suspenseful twists I had hoped for.

I extend my gratitude to NetGalley for providing the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

The opening was super strong, such an interesting set up that really drew me in. A stranger tries to kill you, why? The mystery around it was so intriguing I just had to keep reading to figure it out. I loved the spooky undertone of the story and I very much enjoyed reading and learning about a culture I'm not very familiar with and it's mythology. That was probably my favorite thing about this book, I love reading fiction but if I can learn something new and broaden my horizon in the process that's a big plus.

So onto what I disliked about the book. The podcast. Reading the synopsis and finding out that the story contains a true crime podcast in fact really attracted me to this book. I was curious how that would be done. But to tell the truth I feel like that part was not executed well enough. I do understand what the author was trying to convey with it, but it was just so over the top that at times it was almost comical. If it had been toned down a bit I feel like it would've been better and more believable for me.

This book has a lot of lessons you can learn from. The biggest one for me being: you can't push your trauma down and pretend it doesn't exist, it will haunt you until you face it.

Recommend.

I really loved this! It was so suspenseful. I loved the main characters and really cared about what happened to them. Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the opportunity to read this ARC.

I love a good thriller and this Amazon First Reads book from Mindy Kaling’s Book Studio did not disappoint. The podcast element was a creative way to keep the story moving that I haven’t seen done before. The hosts were absolutely insufferable - which I know was the point! :)

I enjoyed learning about Desi folklore as the plot progressed - the supernatural elements were fun and different for the genre.

While I did call one of the end twists early on, overall I was entertained by this book and would read this author again.

Thank you NetGalley and Mindy's Book Studio for this copy in exchange for my honest review.
it's a thriller with a double point of view, with a mix of horror and a lot of suspense.
The ending left me a little doubtful, but it's definitely worth reading and trying to guess who the culprit is and what happened.
I really liked the Podcast idea, very original, i'm curious about how the audiobook is.

I had high expectations for this book, the plot is very compelling, and I have read many books from "Mindy's books",
some little gems that left me with good memories after reading. But for "Almost surely dead",
I have to admit I'm a little disappointed. It starts with a bang, one day, Dunia, the protagonist,
risks being killed in the subway, one day, months later instead, she becomes the protagonist of a True crime podcast,
because she disappeared.
Where is Dunia? What happened to her?
The story has two PoVs, i do like that in a thriller, it increases the suspense, but in some points is a little slow,
and above all I didn't like the ending,
I would have preferred a different ending.
Thank you NetGalley and Mindy's Book Studio for this copy in exchange for my honest review.

Dunia Ahmed led a normal life until a seemingly random attack on her life. Now, she is the subject of a popular true crime podcast as the hosts try to unravel what happened to Dunia. The hosts describe her life leading up to her disappearance with the help of friends and the detective assigned to her case. The pharmacist was mourning the loss of her mother and a broken engagement when multiple attempts on her life are made. Why does it seem that someone, or something, wants Dunia gone?

Wow, I loved this book so much. I found certain parts predictable but it did not take away from the story at all. I found it hard to put down and I really loved Dunia and the people in her life. I enjoyed the perspective changes of Dunia before the disappearance, Dunia age 5, and the podcast hosts.

Thank you NetGalley and Mindy's Book Studio for this copy in exchange for my honest review.

TITLE: Almost Surely Dead
AUTHOR: Amina Akhtar
RELEASE DATE: February 1st 2024
PUBLISHED BY: Mindy's Book Studio
FORMAT READ: Kindle
# OF PAGES: 298
RATING: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
RECOMMENDATION: 💯 Yes!

This book!!! I can't stop thinking about it!
I'm not going to lie, I grabbed this on stuff your Kindle say and then got the ARC from Netgalley. I picked the book because it was in the Mindy Kaling collection (sorry, Amina) and the cover is beautiful too!! I read the synopsis last and thought "huh, why not"? I'm so glad I chose to read it and can't wait to read other works by Amina last Akhtar. This book was:
⭐️A Fresh storyline!
⭐️Has a main character that's interesting and likable!
⭐️Not predictable.. well maybe a tiniest bit here and there of predictably. However, honestly, the things I thougt I'd figured out (and I did guess right) quickly changed because the author had me second guessing everything.
⭐️Great Chacter Development
⭐️Easy read! I didn't want to put it down and I didn't want it to end! ♥️♥️♥️

I don't give many 5 star reviews, but this read is one that I'll recommend for a long time!!

Thank you to:
Amina Akhtar
Mindy's Book Studio
Netgalley

BOOK DESCRIPTION:
A psychological thriller with a twist, Almost Surely Dead is a chilling account of how one woman’s life spins out of control after a terrifying—and seemingly random—attempt on her life.

Dunia Ahmed lives an ordinary life—or she definitely used to. Now she’s the subject of a true crime podcast. She’s been missing for over a year, and no one knows if she’s dead or alive. But her story has listeners obsessed, and people everywhere are sporting merch that demands “Find Dunia!” In the days before her disappearance, Dunia is a successful pharmacist living in New York. The daughter of Pakistani immigrants, she’s coping with a broken engagement and the death of her mother. But then something happens that really shakes up her someone tries to murder her. When her would-be killer winds up dead, Dunia figures the worst is over. But then there’s another attempt on her life…and another. And police suspect someone close to her may be the culprit. Dunia struggles to make sense of what’s happening. And as childhood superstitions seep into her reality, she becomes convinced that someone—or some thing —is truly after her.

Dunia Ahmed is a name on everyone's lips, at least since the beginning of the popular podcast devoted to her disappearance. Dunia, whose parents immigrated to the US from Pakistan, is a pharmacist living in New York City when strange things begin to happen to her. A man she exchanged glances with on the subway tries to push her in front of a train. When he's not successful, he then jumps to his own death. Shaken, Dunia tries to work with the police to find out why this stranger wanted to kill her. She's recently broken up with her controlling boyfriend, David, but was he angry enough to want her dead? Unfortunately, things go from bad to worse for poor Dunia as that isn't the last attempt on her life. Not only that, but she also starts receiving vaguely threatening anonymous notes outside her door. When she was a child, Dunia had problems with sleepwalking and since her mother's recent death, it seems that has started up again. Who or what is after Dunia and why?

The story is very engaging, told in alternating chapters between Dunia's life now, events surrounding the death of her father when she was five (for which she believed her mother blamed her), and the present-day podcasting team who are interviewing people who interacted with Dunia before she disappeared. The chapters are short and the action moves along at a quick pace. The explanation for Dunia's threat wasn't what I was expecting, and I'm not sure I was completely happy with the explanation. Still, this book was certainly different from other thrillers, so I enjoyed it for its unusual resolution.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for providing me with this book in exchange for my review! All opinions are my own.

Title: Almost Surely Dead

Author: Amina Akhtar

Publisher: Mindy's Book Studio

Pub Date: February 1, 2024

Rating: 3.5

Brief Summary: Dunia is a Pakistani American woman who leads a normal life, until one day she vanishes without a trace and becomes the subject of a true crime podcast

What I Enjoyed: The mystery was very suspenseful and well executed. It reminded me of Celeste Ng novel.

What I Disliked: Some parts were a little boring.


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Thank you!

I am a big fan of Amina and so I was very excited for Almost Surely Dead... and it did not disappoint! I loved the mix of timelines and the element of the true crime podcast. I honestly did not guess a lot of the twists. I also liked learning more about jinns and the book went in a creepier direction than I thought it would... and I'm here for it. I loved it and I'll definitely be recommending the book to people!

More often than not, I dislike multi pov books. However, this one did not disappoint me. I love a great thriller and toss in the podcast aspect and I was engrossed in the story. I loved how Amina Akhtar put a cultural aspect into the story as well.

Dunia is almost killed on the subway. Got the next few months, crazy things happen happen to Dunia. Then one day, she just disappears. A podcast pocus up her story to try to solve the mystery.

This was an overall good story that held my attention. The writing wasn't the best so I figured a 3 star was a good rating.

A big thanks to Netgalley and the publishers for the ARC in exchange for my honest and unbiased review.

I am not sure why, but I didn't like any of the characters in this book. For me to really enjoy a book, I need to like someone. This one had no redeeming people in it for me.

This involves more of the supernatural than I am comfortable with. It wasn't like a Stephen King, but it did have aspects of the paranormal and or folklore that makes me uncomfortable.

This is one of those I would recommend to those that like more horror and not just a cut and dried mystery.

I am giving this 4 out of 5 stars. The writing was good, but it was not my kind of book.

Overall, I really enjoyed this book!! I think with slightly deeper (or perhaps slightly different) editing, it could have been a masterpiece. And I will admit, the fact it comes sooo close to greatness (in my opinion) makes the fact it just fails to reach it more disappointing. This should be higher than a 4 star, but I can't quite call it a 5.

My personal qualms with this book are very few. The podcast portions may serve much better in an audio format. (Admittedly,I am someone who doesn't listen to true crime podcasts! So hey, maybe the author is recreating things more than I could ever know.)

There were a (very few) moments of dialogue that sent me out of the narrative, but thankfully never for too long. My main quibble keeping this book from being a 5 star is just that the pacing felt a little uneven. Or perhaps it's better to say that it changed for me. When I first started reading, the story felt paced like a thriller, and I was absolutely devouring it. Coming back in after having to stop, however, I noticed the pacing felt a lot more mystery. I still think it's a very good book; I just think that the rest of the story doesn't quite hold up to how iconic the set up is.

This story has a 5 star opening, for sure. If you have a couple of hours available and think you could just read this book straight through, it is very possibly a 5 star read for you.

You may love this book if:
- you enjoy South Asian folklore or are interested by it
- you enjoy unreliable narrators, struggles with mental illness, feeling disconnected from your family + culture of origin, and complicated family dynamics
- you enjoy interwoven timelines (this story has snippets of a podcast dedicated to Find Dunia, Dunia herself during the time she was dealing with almost being murdered, and Dunia as a 5 year old)
- you enjoy your mysteries with a strong paranormal twist
- you enjoy an ambiguous ending