I’ve been wanting to read this for a long time and I absolutely loved my experience. This is a truly special story.

Thank you, NetGalley and the publisher for the chance to read this book!

Rating: 3.5 stars

I adore Pride and Prejudice, so whenever I come across retellings, especially modern-day retellings, I’m instantly intrigued.

I loved the writing style and the story was engaging, but the two main characters, Ayesha and Khalid, stole the show for me. I thought they were amazing! I especially loved Ayesha.

However, this book featured two of my most hated tropes; miscommunication and meddling family members with bad intentions. I don’t mind a little bit of miscommunication here and there, but this was very frustrating and went on way too long.

Also, the pacing felt off to me. Not much happened in the first half and then the last half, so much happened that it was hard to keep track of everything.

Overall, I enjoyed this diverse P&P retelling and I’ll definitely read more by this author in the future.

By saarahn
‘A Big-Hearted, Captivating, Modern-Day Muslim Pride and Prejudice, With Hijabs Instead of Top Hats and Kurtas instead of corsets.’

I read this book thinking it may follow Austen’s P&P and so, it would be entirely predictable. I was glad to find this to be not the case. In fact I’d say it was quite unlike P&P. I didn’t find it nearly as clever, nor witty.

It was a little more like ‘You’ve Got Mail’ but again not nearly as gripping. I just wish it was a little more gripping. Or plot-driven.

I didn’t like the Amir and Tarim storyline, what they were involved in. (Pornography- yuck!) But I have to commend the writer for her Indian cultural creation: Khalid. He was quite different and I’d say far removed from any South Asian stereotypes.

The story finished neatly but I honestly didn’t enjoy it enough to think of reading it again. It is set in the Muslim community and at its heart it’s about family.

Unfortunately, I have not been able to read and review this book.

After losing and replacing my broken Kindle and getting a new phone I was unable to download the title again for review as it was no longer available on Netgalley.

I’m really sorry about this and hope that it won’t affect you allowing me to read and review your titles in the future.

Thank you so much for giving me this opportunity.
Natalie.

There's so much heart and well-meaning intention behind this book that I wanted to love it. It places its Muslim characters unashamedly front and centre but Jalaluddin’s writing just isn't strong enough to carry everything she wants to do. At first I was impressed by the traditional way that she portrayed Khalid who lives his life according to his devout faith. This changes later in the book but it bothered me that this change was less about him willingly discovering a different balance for his faith and more about having to make changes in order to integrate in a hostile environment. Of course, this is a sacrifice that many devout Muslims must find themselves making but in this book this didn’t come across as a sad reflection of Islamophobia in society in the way that it should have. In the end it looks like a judgement that “moderation” is the antidote to extremism without making the proper distinction between devotion and extremism. These are complex issues and need a complex treatment.

Many of the characters devolve into pantomime heroes and villains, representing particular virtues and vices and this soon becomes unbearable. I honestly began to struggle with it within a few pages. The lack of complexity and exaggeration of character traits overwhelmed many of the positive elements and sadly, part of the problem seemed to be the Pride and Prejudice element. Jalaluddin’s characters were forced to follow a similar path to Austen’s and because the characterisation lacked depth it felt like they were constantly making choices that didn’t make sense. Worst of all, the more original parts of the story, the bits that had the most potential for solving some of these problems, were never fully explored. I would have loved to have understood more about several of the women, Hafsa, Zareena and Farzana. Exploration of their situations and characters could have achieved many of Jalauddin’s aims far better than the final result.

A last word on the poetry. Ayesha dreams of being a poet but authors should really stay away from this character trait unless they're accomplished poets themselves. Ayesha's attempts are excruciatingly bad.

She's set it in Toronto's South East Asian Muslim community, with characters that challenge readers perceptions as well as book characters. It's not a retelling - Ayesha doesn't have loads of sisters for a start, but there are the recognisable tangles of P&P plots points & characters and the stirring of the mix works so well in the context of rishtas, arranged marriages and the struggle of how to be a practising Muslim in modern workplaces

I loved the characters and the story

Enjoyable enough story and an interesting adaptation of the Pride and Prejudice plot but I had some worries about who this book was actually written for? I found my enjoyment of the story was continually being interrupted by definitions - of foods, clothing, Urdu words and Islamic practices - which could have been better dealt with in a glossary. I was being reminded of the (very good) writing advice 'show, don't tell' every few pages....Oddly enough I was aware that whatever audience Jalaluddin was writing for they were Canadian - poutine? Tim Horton's? I needed Google for those.....

Ayesha At Last is a modern retelling of my favorite book Pride and Prejudice with Muslim main characters, set in Toronto. Sounds like a recipe for success, right? And it was (partly).

First of all: I did overall enjoy this. Our two main characters, Ayesha and Khalid, each had a lot to learn, both about themselves, their family members, and the world around them. It was also pretty funny overall and I even laughed out loud from time to time. I also really liked how well the ridiculousness of the Bennett family (and friends) translated to the matchmaking mothers (and relatives) - it worked a lot better than I expected!

Another thing that stood out positively to me was how Ayesha At Last emphasized that keeping secrets might not be such a good idea - there would've been very little conflict had the characters talked to one another, and it seemed like they realized that.

Now, on to the things that didn't make this a 5 (or 4) star read for me: There were just too many characters in general. It felt like every single minor character got their own plotline, which there was absolutely no need for. What did the drama with Clara & Rob or Amir's issues contribute to the development of Ayesha's and Khalid's characters? Very little. There was just too much going on at once and I didn't always understand why we suddenly changed POV for three paragraphs to someone not Ayesha or Khalid.

Sometimes, the story meandered so far away from the Pride & Prejudice plot that we all know and love that I began questioning whether it was actually a retelling or whether I was just imagining things. Other times, storylines like Tarek's are clearly relating back to the source material, but still feel forced and unnecessary within the grand scheme of things.

There was one thing about the ending that really rubbed me the wrong way: Why did Khalid have to adjust to Western clothing/grooming? Wasn't the point of his traditional clothing that he was actually proud of it? I get that it was framed in a "he wears these clothes as armor" kind of way, but that wasn't unwrapped when he agreed to the new style? It just seemed so counter-intuitive and quite rushed.

Overall, Ayesha At Last was still a fun read and a cute romance with a bit of a different angle and characters than what we're used to, and for that alone I think it's already worth the read.

Ayesha At Last is the best Pride and Prejudice retelling I have read.

Ayesha is a young Muslim woman living in Toronto who, like the other young Muslims in her community, is stuck between the traditions of her religion and being a modern young woman. The characters are all wonderful. You will definitely see the traits of the original characters in many of them, but done in a fresh and unique way. I especially loved Khalid and his progress throughout the book.

If you are a fan of Pride and Prejudice, I highly recommend this fresh and exciting take.

I was hesitant but intrigued about this one when I first saw it. Retellings of Pride and Prejudice always have alarm bells ringing for me as I adore the book and it has a special place in my heart for me as my nan is the one who introduced me to it as she was eager for me to read any and all classics. This was never her favourite (I think that title belongs to Little Women and for my shame I've still not read the book… I've owned a copy since I was 11, but I digress) but I know she was happy for me to show interest in reading classics and we had a memorable day together when I wasn't at school watching the BBC adaptation. So, like I said, retellings have me a bit wary. But I as soon as saw the cover had a woman in a hijab on it I knew that it wasn’t going to be your typical retelling. In fact, I’d hardly label it a retelling at all, that’s doing the book a disservice thinking it needs to be attributed to another fantastic book when there’s a wholly original story within these pages. If you must say anything about Pride and Prejudice you may say this book is an ode to it.

The whole book centres on two people, Ayesha and Khalid, and their friends and extended families. It’s spectacular.

Ayesha is a Muslim woman living in Canada who doesn't know what she wants. She has a large Indian family and she is finding her way learning who she is whilst also wanting to meet her families expectations. I instantly liked her and knew I could respect a woman who hid in the toilet on the first day of her new job questioning if she’s doing the right thing (I’ve returned from the first day of a new job crying saying I don’t like it… I can relate). She felt real in that she had nothing sorted and was fumbling through life trying her best, but she also totally needed to be called out by her friends and family because she was scared and needed a push to get her shit together. As I met her family and friends I grew to like them and care for them too. As the book progressed I became more and more invested and found myself shouting at folks who were mean and shouting at Ayesha for being judgemental of Khalid and accusing him of things she has done herself. I was totally in the story and didn’t want to look away from the page for a second in case I missed something.

And then there was Khalid. He came across as boring at first, almost as if he didn’t have the backbone to stand up for himself and instead allowed his mother to dictate for an easy life. I thought I might not like him. Even if he was staring longingly at Ayesha out of a window if he couldn't follow through and speak to her I wasn't gonna like him. But then we had racist Sheila and then I was there with Carla wanting to smack that bitch down and telling her not to be racist ass whilst keeping my fingers crossed she would get her ass fired. I came to understand Khalid more after that. I had to respect a man who was as devoted as he was to his beliefs and overlooked dicks like Sheila who judged him without knowing him. Dude had to put up with a lot and if he could do that and still be a nice guy (who put his foot in it a lot and came across like a judgemental asshole) good for him. I would be angry as hell and fighting folks… I’d probably be arrested. But seeing Khalid and his progression throughout the book to be a good person but also a person who recognises his flaws and acts accordingly to do better, well damn, I want to be more like Khalid. Even if Khalid was a little quick to judge Ayesha before he had even spoken to her, he more than made up for that error within the book. The man grew and learnt from his mistakes and I adored him for that.

And the romance between Ayesha and Khalid is the best kind of slowburn! I love me a slowburn romance and theirs was brilliant. They went from hate (on Ayesha’s part), to colleagues, to friends, to a wonderful confusing area of something more and hopped around until finally, the romance happened…. right as the book finished. It was great. And there were sparks flying between the pair throughout the book. Even when one of them claimed to dislike the other (again, Ayesha) they still have scorching chemistry. And considering the pair barely touched it’s amazing how strong the romance game in this book was. It definitely shows that sex is not everything when it comes to romance, romance is just as strong when it’s just a small touch or a longing look. Seriously, romance game was strong.

Honestly, the book itself is spectacular and that’s not just because Ayesha and Khalid are such strong personalities, but because every character is distinct and stands out. There was not a single secondary character whose name I was confused by. Each time a name was mentioned I instantly knew who it was and that is a rarity. And each character, no matter how minor their role, had a good storyline. They were not throw away characters but had their own side story, from Clara and her many quests to help folk (from Ayesha to Khalid) to Amir and his many issues (which do not excuse him for being a dick, but who I forgive because he was genuinely a good friend to Khalid).

Honestly. It was not just a brilliant retelling it was just a brilliant book. I loved that there were obvious scenes inspired by Pride & Prejudice, I was grinning from ear to ear each time I spotted one, but the book never felt like an off shoot of it. It always felt its own.

I really enjoyed reading the story of Ayesha and Khalid. It’s not a straight retelling of Pride & Prejudice as the author has chosen to change certain parts of the plot and some of the characters and their relationships with others. It’s more a homage to it, although I certainly recognised enough of the original in this retelling. The restrictions on interactions between the (unmarried) sexes in Jane Austen’s England really struck a chord for me with the Muslim families described in the book. The author made it easy to understand the bits of Urdu she used in the book and the food she described certainly made my mouth water!

I found Khalid’s rather stiff formality for most of the book very reminiscent of Mr Darcy. I’m not sure Ayesha – much as I liked her – had Elizabeth’s humour or lightness, but perhaps her more sensible questioning of some of Khalid's stance was better fitting to her character’s circumstances than that might be.

An enjoyable read and one I’d recommend to people who enjoy retellings of Pride & Prejudice.

Me and Jane Austen retellings often don’t get along. I think it’s something to do with having too high expectations, because really, nothing can match up perfectly to Austen. But this one? I think this is probably one of my favourites of the Austen retellings I’ve read.

Before I start this review, though, I think I should note that this isn’t a direct retelling of Pride and Prejudice, and to go in expecting that might leave you disappointed. There are scenes that play on or reflect the original, and you can spot the characters from it in this, but the scenes are out of order, sometimes you might see more than one character in someone, so if you’re expecting direct as in scene-by-scene and obvious characters, that’s not it.

But that’s what makes this such a good retelling. It riffs on some of the same themes but puts them into a whole different setting or context, and introduces themes around that new context too. You still see the Elizabeth Bennet character (Ayesha) recognise the prejudices she has, and the Mr Darcy character (Khalid) with his pride (though less prideful in the way Mr Darcy is, I think? I guess I’d say it manifests differently). But you see them differently. And I think that’s what makes a retelling good. You take the basic story and you change the context it’s in completely (and I don’t just mean put it in high school).

To be perfectly honest, the characters in this make the book (which is good because that’s how it is in the original as well). At first, I was struggling a bit with the writing (as a personal stylistic thing), but I loved the characters from the start, and they just continued to grow on me. Some of the side characters were my favourites (like Ayesha’s Nana and Nani, and the imam), but all the characters were great, really. I even found myself feeling a little sorry for the Mr Wickham character (for a moment! I got over that foolishness quickly, don’t worry). Which would be a sign of a good retelling, because you, like Elizabeth/Ayesha, are supposed to sympathise with him. (Even if he was more overtly a slimeball in this.)

So, in the end, I really enjoyed this one. And it’s definitely up there as a favourite Austen retelling.

A modern day Pride and Prejudice retelling, set in Canada and featuring Muslim characters, this was a really enjoyable and incredibly accomplished debut. Ayesha of the title is a newly qualified teacher, working as a substitute in a local school to help her family financially and pay back her Uncle who helped to bring them to Canada and paid for her education. She may dream of being a poet but her practical side is winning out, She is deeply disturbed to find a growing attraction to Khalid, a man her friend works with, who is devout , and seems out of touch with the times in both his manner and appearance. Drawn together through community work at a local Muslim Center they both struggle to come to terms with their feelings, and how they can follow their faith.
There really is a lot going on in this book, Ayesha's family is fun, colorful and full of life, while Khalid's mother is a real force to be reckoned with. Khalid as a character may be a little difficult to warm to, he comes across as both judgmental and something of a Mother's boy, but his character development over the course of the book was one of my favorite things about it. As with Pride and Prejudice, the romance is a slow burn but none the less enjoyable for all that. As a long time fan of Austen's work, I really enjoyed picking out the elements of this book that corresponded to the original, but I was also very happy to find that the story was different enough to keep me interested despite already knowing the broad strokes of what will happen, I also loved the portrayal of family and its importance, Ayesh's grandfather in particular being a highlight with his many words of wisdom. Having both Ayesha and Khalids perspective was another nice touch,
I read and reviewed an ARC courtesy of NetGalley and the publisher,all opinions are my own.

"Ayesha At Last" is a charming and sweet romantic story based on "Pride and Prejudice" with Muslim main characters - hurray to diverse representation! .

Ayesha is a single modern hijabi who has just started her career a teacher, despite dreaming of becoming a poet. She has no time nor the inclination to search for a husband, despite being surrounded by well meaning aunties and a large family, who are all excited by her pretty cousin Hafsa receiving tonnes of marriage proposals. Then Ayesha meets Khalid - a conservative and religious young man, who believes that his mother will find him a suitable bride. They seem like a such an unsuitable couple, so how can Khalid/Darcy and Ayesha/Lizzie find love and happiness?

This is a funny and light romantic comedy which shows that some of Austen's truths are still valid in the modern world There is prejudice, misunderstandings, drama and romance, and yummy food as well. There are no kisses or sex scenes but somehow there is tension and love and some very sweet moments between the main characters. Some of the secondary characters might not be as villainous as I would have liked it, but I enjoyed guessing who was supposed to be whom in the story.

There was also a very current discussion on Islamophobia and discrimination at work in the book, as well as discussion on arranged marriages, which provided an interesting social commentary. Altogether, a lovely story with diverse main characters and a warm fuzzy happy ending.

The ARC of this book was provided by the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

The journey for Ayesha and Khalid to get together was long and along the way, people get hurt, heartbroken and it was all in all messy, nothing short of perfect just like how it is in real life.

It was very interesting to see the customs of Indian Muslims, the process of arranged marriage up until leading up the the wedding itself. It was definitely an eye opener and an experience that I won't be able to look for anywhere else, at least not to go into too much detail as this could.

I really couldn't have asked for more between Khalid and Ayesha. It just shows that you shouldn't lie to someone and let it add up because it just won't end well. The chemistry between them is no joke. They really do compliment each other and suitable to be each other's lifetime partner. I just really ship them together, okay?

I'm upset when Khalid's mother would go to such extent like that and brainwashing Hafsa like that to cause even more trouble. She really is just mean and afraid of change which is bound to happen because she no longer live in a bubble of her own denial and that not everyone may agree with her. But I really am glad that it turns out well at the end. Even though in the synopsis it says that this story is a modern remake of pride and prejudice, but I don't see that. I see a story of its own worth that shouldn't be compared to with another story because its already so good on its own.

The only times when I didn't quite enjoy were moments of Hafsa and how she just wants everything to go her way in her spoiled brat ways. But I'm glad to see some character development regarding her as she open her eyes wide and see the world as a whole and not just in her own perspective.

This book potrays all kinds of muslims and without realising it, it made my reading experience better. It's just like real life and varies with everyone because not everyone is the same. There are even messages that come across to me and has managed to struck me that we shouldn't make an assumption and judge people too hard without knowing their background and intentions. This is what we call husnuzzon; to always think the best and not the worst of others.

This book is really well written and if you're interested to read a diverse story full of eccentricities, traditions and more then I suggest you pick this book up. I really do recommend you to read it.

I challenged myself to read a variety of books and being accepted to receive an arc of this book helped me with that. Ayesha at Last by Uzma Jalaluddin is a modern retelling of Pride & Prejudice which stayed close enough to the real story. I also enjoyed this for being able to learn more about the Muslim faith.. There's so much going on in this book with lots of sub-plots so it can be one of those that you don't want to put down.

Thanks for my copy!

I thought this was one of the better P&P retellings that I have ever read. I loved the use of a culture/religion that most would shy away from learning about. I definitely felt like I learnt a few new things about the muslim religion and still got a lighthearted read.

The story follows the lives of Ayesha and Khalid, a modern retelling of Pride and Prejudice. I couldn't believe this was a debut novel as it's written so well.

You'll finish the book with a warm fuzzy feeling and desperate for more of Jalaluddin's work. Can't wait to see what she writes next!

4.5 stars from me!

3.75/5 stars

When I saw that this book was a Pride and Prejudice retelling featuring two Muslim characters living in Canada I knew I had to read it. I'm always up for a nice retelling with some good representation.
This novel did not feel like a debut at all, the author Uzma Jalaluddin really did a good job, I was quite impressed.
I must say I struggled a bit in the first third of the book. I think it was due to the two main characters not interacting very much with each other and also to some of Khalid's behaviours. To be honest in the beginning I totally agreed with Ayesha, he was too judgemental and I did not like the way he took one look at Ayesha and assumed everything about her life. I'm happy to say he redeemed himself and understood that sometimes it's not really nice to assume and to judge people without knowing the full picture. I liked how Ayesha and Khalid's story was dealt with, they did not fall madly in love straightaway, just like Elizabeth and Darcy. The little moments they shared were really cute and sweet.
The author also included a lot of things that Muslim people have to go through, such as discrimination in the work place. Sheila was the real rotten apple in there and we knew it from day one. I'm just glad Khalid stood up for himself with the help of his friends.
Overall it was a nice book with good representation. The pride and prejudice elements were there, but there was also much more included that you would not expect and that will surprise you in the most wonderful way!

Completely charming, with a cast of sweet and funny characters, and a message about not judging other's actions - I just loved it!

Khalid is adorable, kind and honest and trying his best to make his mother happy even though he starts to have doubts about her approach to life and her restrictive views on how to be a Muslim. Ayehsa is intelligent and caring - her family allow her more freedom but she isn't sure what she wants to do with it.

When Ayesah and Khalid meet at the Bella lounge, Ayesha thinks Khalid is stuffy and Khalid thinks Ayesa is the "wrong" sort of Muslim. But neither of them can deny their attraction to each other.

Add to this a meddling mother, a Shakespeare quoting grandparent, a selfish young cousin, a banished sister and a best friend with her own romantic troubles and the stage is set for a funny and charming tale.

It's based on Pride and Prejudice - I've never read that so I can't say how faithful an adaptation it is but I have read Pride and Prejudice and Zombies (hated it), and there are a few things I can recognise from that story!

There's a very strong message in this story about not judging others or assuming things about them, and about how there is more than one way to be a good person. Ayesha and Khalid spent a good part of the book with the wrong ideas about each other - they have to see past their pride and their prejudice and learn to stop judging so harshly.

It stays light-hearted and fresh though - the characters are charming and well developed and the plot rollicks along at a fast pace that I just couldn't stop reading. I very much enjoyed it and it's hard to believe this is the author's debut novel. I hope she writes a lot more!

A heartwarming read that I couldn't put down, I highly recommend this.

Thanks to Atlantic Books and Netgalley for the Advance Review Copy.

This novel is a retelling of Pride and Prejudice set in a Muslim Community in Toronto. Although Pride and Prejudice is clearly the main influence, I also saw elements of Emma and Sense and Sensibility too which was fun. The story follows Ayesha and Khalid as stand ins for Elizabeth Bennett and Mr Darcy. Both Ayesha and Khalid's viewpoints are followed which made things a bit more interesting than just reading from one character's perspective.

It's a really sweet story and there are enough differences from Pride and Prejudice to keep it feeling fresh. The cultural elements like food, religion and clothing woven into the story really help to help the reader envisage their world. Both the main characters are likeable and the supporting characters are varied and three dimensional and don't fit into the older generation vs younger generation character dynamics that are often a feature of similar stories.

The antagonists are a little over the top and hammy, particularly Khalid's boss. It was a stretch to imagine a supposedly intelligent career woman behaving in this way. It was a bit too pantomime villain for me. The ending was also a tad cheesy but overall a very enjoyable read that met my expectations and achieved what it set out to do.