Posted by Hani And Ishu’s Guide To Fake Dating by Adiba Jaigirdar is a book I could not put down! First of all, the cover looked super cool, and once I started the first chapter, I was immediately hooked.
This is a story of two Bengali girls who pretend to “fake date” each other to challenge people’s perceptions of them.
After Humaira “Hani” comes out to her best friends, they tell her that she can’t be bisexual because she hasn’t dated a girl. To prove them wrong, she tells them she’s dating Ishita “Ishu” Dey, a studious girl who doesn’t have many friends. Ishu wants to be Head Girl of the school in order to please her parents, but to do this, she must be popular and liked. To achieve this status, she decides to fake date Hani, who is popular. But as the two put on this act, they start to develop real feelings for each other – but fake friends, racism, and Islamophobia get in the way.
I enjoyed seeing Hani and Ishu’s relationship develop! They were so cute together. I liked how the book also tackled real issues surrounding families, friends, and culture. Readers will get more insight into the Bengali culture. The characters were very well developed and felt very real – even the antagonists.
If you like fake dating books like To All The Boys I’ve Loved Before, you should read this. The only thing I didn’t like was how the plot fell flat during the end. It seemed rushed and was confusing. But, besides that, this book was a favorable read.
Three out of four roses!
Elena Reads and Reviews 