4.5 rounded up

Cuuute besties->to academic rivals -> to lovers.

Meghna has always come second to her old bestie Rani even before they had a falling out. She is hopeful that at this year’s science fair she will finally beat her. While at the competition she finds out her boyfriend is also dating Rani behind both of their backs. Meghna wants to work with Rani to take him down and maybe take Rani down with him?

I liked that this was in dual pov and that the reason for their falling out included their families. It was a fun story and the narration was great.

Thanks to netgalley and Macmillan audio for an alc

I thought this book was very interesting and cute! I giggled, I blushed, I gasped. I thought the premise of the book was very interesting and I really enjoyed the STEM aspect. I also appreciated that these WOC don’t exist in a vacuum, and they do mention things like colorism and misogyny. The cultural aspects of this book were really lovely, and I also liked the representation of multiple LBGBTQ+ characters outside of the main characters (Meghna’s friends). Overall, I would absolutely recommend this book! A cute little sapphic YA novel.

This was a quick and easy read, but it was missing something The Henna Wars and Hani and Ishu had. I didn't really feel invested in the romance, and the scene where Meghna realises she might like Rani felt rushed. It came across as though the author was trying to convince us of Meghna's attraction, rather than that Meghna herself was having the realisation. The whole concept for the app was also unethical and I'm not sure it was realistic that they'd have been able to compete with it, but at least that was addressed towards the end.

If you loved the movie Do Revenge, you need to read this book!! I've loved every Adiba Jaigidar read, and this is no exception. Rani and Meghna are rivals with a mysterious back story created by jerk boyfriends, rumors within a small community, and two girls constantly compared by their parents against their peers. This is a heartwarming story about two young women grappling with constant marginalization and a world that wants to pit them against each other. Jaigdar does an amazing job highlighting what it is like for Bengali-Irish teen girls to exist in science and tech spaces that are still dominated by men, and often white men.

-1 star: the app designed by Meghna and Rani seems like it would be illegal due to the privacy and consent issues. They address this a bit toward the end, but it's glossed over quite a bit. I also wish the queer and relationship storylines had been developed a little more throughout the book.

Rani and Meghna are ex-best friends who team up when they realize they are dating the same boy, Zak. They team up to get revenge and beat him in a science exhibition. While working on their app to expose cheaters, the girls realize they have more than platonic feelings for each other.

I really liked the idea of this book. However, the execution was a little bit off. I enjoyed the characters of Meghna and Rani and how the story switched between their points of view. However, I feel like both of their characters were a bit underdeveloped. It also took way too long to get to the romance part of the book. Overall, it was a decent read. I would recommend it to anyone that enjoys the enemies-to-lovers trope. I give it 3/5 stars.

Adorable audiobook. Sweet teen love just wish they fell in love sooner and that their romance was more of the plot! Love women in stem parts too. Thanks netgalley for the ARC!!!

Adiba Jaigirdar works her magic again, featuring another absolutely beautiful cover!

In what I'm coming to recognize as her signature storytelling, Adiba weaves a story of Bangladeshi teens in Ireland wrestling with the complicated pressures of family, identity, and queerness.

Meghna is tired of being constantly compared to Rani, against whom she can never win. She feels isolated from the tightknit community who turned against her family years ago.

Rani wishes her family supported her half as much as they do Zak. She struggles with her parents' high expectations and stringent rules dictating how to be an appropriate young woman.

Both girls love their Bangladeshi heritage and incorporate it into science projects they work very hard to perfect for an important competition. Oh, and also? both girls are dating the same guy. Cue a rivals team-up to win a science competition and get revenge on the two-timer.

The science competition is a bit confusing for someone like me who has no personal experience with the system. The transition from individual schools to entire country to continent wide felt fuzzy, but I'm not sure whether that was a story problem or a me problem. I also got hung up on the changing projects from one competition to the next - were students selected for the superiority of their project or for their individual skills?

The story relies heavily on a project that is a major invasion of privacy. I can see why the main characters might not see an issue with that, but I am confused as to how adult advisors okayed it. Thankfully the ethics of the situation are eventually pointed out, even if it happens late and feels a bit cursory.

On the plus side, I love how the author creates layers in her story and crafts characters who feel real. I love the way she writes siblings and parents as a daily part of life and includes meaningful relationships with genuinely interesting friends.

The recurring joke of "do you know another Meghna/Rani?!" quickly had me anticipating the line and giggling every time.

The audiobook is a very pleasant listen thanks to dual narrators Chandrika Narayanan-Mohan and Shubhangi Karmakar. While not a perfect performance (ill-timed phrase breaks and delayed dialogue interruptions, for example), the narrators' voices are distinctly different while sharing light Irish accents that are very enjoyable to listen to. The audiobook edition I received a few days before publication was in strong need of a clean-up editing pass - I hope what I got was an early file version rather than the actual finished product.

Haven't met a book by Adiba Jaigirdar I didn't like! It's always an easy 4 stars at least, and this one is too!
Here's what I had a problem with though - it was so tech-utopia-ish that I think will date it. It already sours me a bit. I think the characters acknowledge this too, and their growth arcs past the book would probably reflect that.
It's also basically a sapphic version of When Dimple Met Rishi by Sandhya Menon. I'm neutral about this, sort of, except of course this is better in my books because Dimple and Rishi annoyed me to no end and I loved both Rani and Meghna.

All this to say, desi sapphics stay winning. It's giving Tina and Anjali ditching Rahul to have a chill life together (the ending we all demand!).

This was super cute and so heartwarming! I love when a revenge story evolves into something more, especially when those seeking revenge find their own HEA and gain peace and clarity.

The entire cast of characters was delightful (not Zak, he’s THE worst) and I was so encouraged by how supportive the friend group was - I wanted to wrap them all in a hug! My heart broke for the girls as they grappled with the consequences of their parents’ decisions, but it was so beautiful to see their friendship renewed and strengthened in the end.

I do wish more time has been spent on the romance. The ending felt a little rushed and I wanted to see Meghna and Rani happy for a longer period, especially since they spent the majority of the book as rivals.

The audiobook was a fun listening experience and I really enjoyed the dual narration!

RANI CHOUDHURY MUST DIE is a sapphic rivals to lovers YA romance about two ex-best friends who find out they've been cheated on by the same guy, so they decide to work together to expose him by designing an app for people to catch two-timers. but as they spend more and more time together, they stop caring so much about exposing him and instead start falling for each other. adiba jaigirdar is hands down my favorite sapphic YA author, so i knew i was going to love this book and i was not disappointed! rani and meghna's relationship developed so beautifully and i loved seeing their development throughout the story.

read if you like:
- john tucker must die
- academic rivals to lovers
- women in STEM

thanks to netgalley and macmillan audio for the advanced copy!

4 stars

This is another hit from Adiba Jaigirdar!

Meghna and Rani share dual POVs in this charming best friends-turned rivals turned-...you know the trope! Both of these young women are smart, curious about and engaged in the world around them, and definitely reflect that they are whole people, despite a peculiar mutual obsession with one particular dude: Zak. What's extra gratifying is that the interest in Zak actually brings both protagonists together; he's much more of a vehicle than a character who has much meaning on his own (and ya, especially in YA, I'm living for this narrative).

While this is definitely a YA romance, there's so much more to these characters and this novel in general than just this romantic plot line. I expect age-appropriate readers will really appreciate the explorations of friendships, romantic relationships, and evolving understandings of identity.

I'll be recommending this one to students and to readers of all ages looking for a solid YA romance with substance. I'll especially be recommending the audiobook, which is excellent.

I loved this book so much! I’ve been really into audiobooks and I knew I would be able to consume this really well.

I think the narration was stellar. Since it was dual POV, it was read by two different women and it added a special element to the story. I would still love the story if I had read it in any other format, but I think the audiobook will forever be my favorite.

You can tell the distinct difference between the voices and the characters’ personalities, which I enjoyed a lot.

I usually listen to books in 2x speed, which I did with this one and I liked that I could still understand what was happening and the emotions in the narrators voices during certain scenes. Whether it was frustration, anger, sadness, or anything else, the narration made sure to make that clear. Pacing was great in my opinion.

It said that the book was about 9 hours long but to me, it felt shorter due to the great way the story went and how smooth flowing it was. There was never a point where I got bored and that’s amazing. The flow was good.

Adibas writing is so beautiful and snappy. I’ve only read one other book by her, which was a collaboration with Faridah, but I will definitely be looking to read her other books sooner.

I enjoyed all of the representation that Adiba adds to her stories. The two main characters, Rani and Meghna, are Bangladeshi/Bengali. Meghna also has two best friends, one who is trans/nonbinary and another who I’m pretty sure is Filipino. I heard it mentioned but I am not 100% sure on that.

I liked that Meghna was sort of coming into her queer identity. There was a conversation she had with a certain person that was like one of my favorite scenes here.

Every character feels fully fleshed out with their own personality/likeness. I liked almost all of them (besides that stupid cheater) and other very minor characters.

This is also set in Ireland but there is a trip to Amsterdam in here as well, which was so much fun! I love reading books that aren’t just set where I am (US) all the time.

The plot of this sort of resembles John Tucker Must Die (which is mentioned), but it’s also unique and so unlike that at the same time. It has childhood best friends to strangers/enemies/academic rivals to sort of friends to lovers!

I won’t give away anything that happens in this, but I was shocked at some of the things that happened/what the people did. It’s like disappointed but not surprised (or least shouldn’t be surprised lmao).

I would definitely say that audiobook would be the best way to consume this book, but once I read the physical version, I will come back and see if that’s better.

But for now, if you could get a hold of the audio format, run!!!!

5 stars from me!

I could not put this one down! Sapphic girls in STEM with a revenge plotline is something I didn't know I needed until I saw this book would be coming out. I adore the way Jaigirdar centers queer Bengali-Irish teens in her stories, and this one is fantastic!

The two narrators were also so good that I felt immersed in the story from the onset. I thought it was interesting that the morality of the project wasn't examined a little more closely prior to the contest, but the two got there in the end. The build-up to the romance was so subtle that the girls didn't even realize their own feelings until it was right in their faces, and I love that for them. Rani and Meghna were so much fun to read!

Thank you to NetGalley and publisher for the opportunity to read and review.

4.5 stars! Thank you to NetGalley and Macmillan Audio for this advanced copy! You can pick up Rani Choudhury Must Die on November 12, 2024.

This was such a cute and heartwarming YA sapphic romance! I loved the growth our two main characters, Rani and Meghna, experienced throughout the story, and I was thoroughly hooked on their revenge plotline for their shared cheating ex. The emphasis on them recovering their friendship and realizing there was something more behind it was so well done, and I'm glad they realized that Zak LITERALLY does not deserve the time of day (though I wouldn't have been disappointed by a bit more humiliation on his part).

The narrators also crushed it with their portrayal of Meghna and Rani, and it was really interesting to read a YA story set in another country besides the US. Just goes to show how I can expand my reading even further! But I loved the blend of Bangladeshi and Irish culture we witness throughout the story.

Definitely pick this one up for a rivals to friends to lovers sapphic story about two competitive STEM nerds!

Another highly charged, dual POV, British South Asian YA enemies to lovers Sapphic romance from a fav author of mine. I enjoyed this bi-awakening love triangle with complicated family dynamics and expectations.

Former best friends turned rivals, Rani and Meghna team up after they both place well with their Young Scientists Exhibition projects. Upon discovering mutual friend, Zak has been two-timing them, they decide to create an app to detect cheaters and enter it in the European competition. The women in STEM, revenge plot was great and the slow burn, forced proximity romance had me rooting for the two girls right to the end as they worked through hurt feelings and new romantic realizations.

Good on audio narrated by Chandrika Narayanan-Mohan and Shubhangi Karmakarand and perfect for fans of books like My mechanical romance by Alexene Farol Follmuth. Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an early audio copy in exchange for my honest review!

4.5/5⭐️ I have been wanting to read from this author for a while! Very happy I was able to be approved for this audiobook! This a was a premise and executed the way I thought it would! No spice which is a plus! But that’s also the culture! The writing was on point and medium paced! The boy is of course the a**hole! So good!

Sadly I found this to be kind of boring. I didn't really care for the characters and the romance was basically just none existent for a book that is advertised as a romance. Overall this was just slow and I didn't care for it.