I really wanted to like this one; Faridah Abike-Iyimide is one of my favorite YA authors and Adiba Jaigirdar is one of my most read YA authors. I knew this would be an unstoppable duo. Unfortunately, I was just not jiving with this plot at all. I don't think second-chance and a co-parenting trope can really work in YA, I think it needs to be adult to make it feel more meaningful.

I found the plot of the book to be entertaining and nuanced. The writing style and pacing were enjoyable. I know that my readers will enjoy this book and it is a great example of well written, diverse Muslim representation.

I've been waiting for this book since it was announced and let me tell you, it was so worth the wait. These two incredible authors came together to make one of my favorite reads of the year. This book is a sweet story about Tiwa and Said, two friends who fell out years ago. As fate brings them back together, they navigate the hurt and love they have towards one another. This book was so wonderful. I loved all the characters, including the side ones who were well-developed. They did a great job at building a believable community. I also loved the format of the story, with its occasional flashbacks. It kept me engaged in the history between these characters while still firmly rooted in the present day. Their writing styles work so well together. I liked that while the story covered some traumatic/heavy topics, it maintained a sense of hope and even lightness to it. Despite the darkness, there is always something to remain hopeful about. It was a beautiful reminder and a lovely story. I hope the two combine their forces again in the future.

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for providing me with a copy of this title to review.

Thank you so much to NetGalley and Feiwel & Friends for sending this book for review consideration! All opinions are my own. Content warnings for character deaths, anti-Black racism, Islamophobia, and tragedies throughout the novel.

"Four Eids and a Funeral" revolves around Tiwa Olatunji and Said Hossain, two former friends who are forced to come together after years of fighting to save their town’s Islamic Center from demolition. Alongside dealing with their own family dynamics—which now includes balancing their relationships to Safiyah, Tiwa’s best friend and Said’s sister, as well as taking care of a cat together—Tiwa and Said have to navigate their complicated feelings for each other.

I love both these authors and their books (specifically "The Henna Wars" and "Ace of Spades" from Adiba Jaigirdar and Faridah Àbíké-Íyímídé respectively, in no particular order), so I was super excited and grateful to receive this ARC!

As expected from these two writers, both of the characters’ voices shone through well— especially through the humor and dialogue. There were a lot of moments where I laughed out loud, and the bickering between Said and Safiyah as well as Said and Tiwa felt especially natural.

The levity paired well with the more grief-stricken moments, of which there were also a lot of standout lines that I highlighted and felt especially seen by. The two characters navigate different levels of loss, and the way the book voiced Tiwa’s feelings and anxieties of being outgrown throughout the instability of loss felt particularly poignant to me.

I did have a bit of trouble with this book’s pacing — the beginning and ending really held me, but there were moments throughout the middle where my interest was lost. This really happened with plot points that had to deal more with logistics, which made the stakes hard to grasp; sometimes the characters’ actions felt like they were planning a to-do list rather than going after their goals (and falling for each other).

I also wished some of the other side characters had more development and time to explore their relationships with the protagonists — specifically more scenes showing each of their individual relationships with Ms. Barnes.

By the end of the book, the big plot reveals absolutely had me fully emotionally invested, and I was properly angry for, sorrowful for, and rooting for both of the protagonists at that time. When the plot hit the more climactic moments, their chemistry sang; it was just harder to feel in the more logistical operational scenes.

Despite the pacing, I definitely still enjoyed the book and would still recommend it to others!

An easy read for a YA romance. I loved that includes varied Muslim perspectives, it has a number of humorous moments and your usual enemies to lovers plot. It was a bit hard to get into the story at first because it goes back and forth between Tiwa and Said's POV without much context but sticking with it, definitely pays off. It does feel like the resolution is quite fast and the book ends right away but is still a very adorable story.

I'm not much of a YA reader but the cover and the blurb caught my attention and I was so excited to read this!

The Good
I loved both Said and Tiwa and understood their struggles so much. So much of Tiwa's life was centered around the community center and when it goes up in flames it feels like her life is as well. Said struggles to reintegrate into the community he left behind and part of that is his inability to tell his parents what he wants to do with his life and how much he loves art. For both of them, you can understand why the Islamic Center was so crucial in their lives. Its importance was felt and emphasized throughout the story.

For the romantic aspect, I loved Said and Tiwa's relationship. From the beginning, they had great banter but you could tell behind the sharp words and barbs they loved each other. The flashbacks and stories of their shared past were great, it was woven so well into the story. Tiwa and Said had natural chemistry and it was easy to root for them to be together. I also liked the sapphic subplot between Safiyah and Ishra.

The Bad
While I liked the reveal towards the end, I did not like how it was resolved. Years of misunderstanding and hate caused by others resolved and forgiven in one conversation with bare-bones reasoning? It was not a satisfying conclusion at all.

Tropes:
— Ex-friends to lovers
— Second chance

Format: Ebook

The Rating
I give this book a 4/5🌟 rating. As someone who doesn't read much YA, I loved this! I need to read more from these authors.

Following former best friends, Tiwa and Said, who in a string of events must work together to save the Islamic Center in their hometown, this book was a delightful read. I enjoyed the dual perspective. It was fitting to have some scenes from Tiwa and others from Said and see what each character was thinking. It provided more insight into their history, but I appreciate that we still had to unravel the mystery of how everything went down that led to them becoming ex-friends.
I enjoyed the flashbacks. I thought they were all timed in the pacing and events of the story nicely.
This was a masterclass of emotional balance. There were heavy moments in this book and they were treated as such, but there also moments that were light. This perfect balance demonstrates the human emotions Tiwa and Said experience and also brings light to the depth of the intercultural and Islam community depicted in Four Eids and a Funeral.
I have read and loved everything Faridah Àbíké-Íyímídé and Adiba Jaigirdar have written. Their styles and skill blended so nicely together creating the perfect concoction in this book! Made me ride the rollercoaster of emotions from nerves to frustration to anger, happiness, and sadness. I hope they write more books together forthcoming!

I also just wanted to say thank you for the positive depiction of libraries! So needed right now! I loved hearing about Tiwa and Said's childhood memories of Ms. Barnes and her positive impact on the community.

Thanks to the authors and NetGalley for an e-ARC!

If you follow my reviews at all, you know that I’m not really a romance reader. If I do read romance, I want a story where the romance is a vehicle to tell larger stories. Four Eids and a Funeral is exactly that kind of romance. This is a sweet story of two best friends—Said and Tiwa—who’ve had a falling out but come together in the wake of the death of their favorite librarian to save their beloved Islamic Center after a tragic fire. In the process, Said and Tiwa not only learn the truth of why their friendship fell apart, but also find their way back to each other. And discover something more.

What makes this story so strong are the multiple POVs and the clever plot techniques employed. By going between Said’s and Tiwa’s POV, we get a little bit of each side of the present-day story. The addition of a third person POV that tells the story of past Eids helps fills in some gaps of why Said and Tiwa’s relationship is where it is. Combined, we get a tale that unfolds with the right amount of information just when we need it.

My favorite parts, however, are Laddoo the Cat and the Islamic Center. Laddoo is an adorable plot device that forces Said and Tiwa together, which also forces them to be in the right place to figure out how to save the Islamic Center. The Islamic Center is great setting that helps Àbíké-Íyímídé and Jaigirdar highlight the importance of community, cultural exchange, and celebration.

When all of these elements are put together, what unfolds is a story of betrayal, loss, and teenage angst, but also a story of hope, love, and centering yourself in community.

I would love to interview both of these authors on my podcast in June 2024 or summer 2024. Four Eids and a Funeral lived up to my high expectations. This was such a fun read and I loved that it’s about ex friends. The tensions were high and it’s a fun read. Closer to the date I’ll talk more about the religious aspect of it but for now I want to keep this as spoiler free as possible.

These are two of my favorite authors, and together, they wrote a really sweet story. I enjoyed the childhood-friends-to-enemies-to-lovers trope as well as the casual banter throughout the story. There was a nice mix of scenes about saving the mosque and saving their relationship, and the parallels of saving those two things was really well done throughout the story. I loved the side characters, especially Said's somewhat complicated sister. Overall, this was a really sweet and beautiful young romance novel that I think many teen readers will enjoy.