My Favorite Things About God Smites and Other Muslim Girl Problems

Title: God Smites and Other Muslim Girl Problems
Author: Ishara Deen
Genres: YA, Mystery, Contemporary
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‘LIKE NANCY DREW, BUT NOT…

Craving a taste of teenage life, Asiya Haque defies her parents to go for a walk (really, it was just a walk!) in the woods with Michael, her kind-of-friend/crush/the guy with the sweetest smile she’s ever seen. Her tiny transgression goes completely off track when they stumble on a dead body. Michael covers for Asiya, then goes missing himself.

Despite what the police say, Asiya is almost sure Michael is innocent. But how will she, the sheltered girl with the strictest parents ever, prove anything? With Michael gone, a rabid police officer in desperate need of some sensitivity training, and the murderer out there, how much will Asiya risk to do what she believes is right?’

The author of God Smites and Other Muslim Girl Problems recently contacted me asking if I wanted to review her book. I said yes, because the synopsis was very intriguing and sounded unlike any book I’ve ever read before. I’m so glad I said yes, because I fell in love with the book, and here are 5 reasons why:

1) The main character, Asiya Haque, is definitely one of my favorite things about this book. She is funny (like, really funny), clever, and very witty. She also cares a lot about the people around her. Reading this book from her point of view was a delight.

2) I always love a good family relationship in a book, and this book definitely has it. Sure, Asiya has a few problems with her parents, but what teenager doesn’t? And even while they do have some fights, you can clearly see that they love each other.
I especially loved Asiya’s relationship with her little brother. He’s adorable, and he reminds me a lot of my own brother.

3) I loved the scenes between Asiya and Michael! Their interactions are adorable (especially in one particular scene, you’ll know what I’m talking about if you’ve read the book), and I really liked seeing how much Michael respects Asiya’s boundaries. However, I’m still not sure about my feelings towards Michael…

4) I loved Ishara Deen’s writing! It pulled me in from the start, and I couldn’t put the book down. Her voice is very different from what I’m used to, but that made me love the book even more.

5) I normally never read mystery books, because I can usually see the ‘twist’ coming a mile away (thanks to the hundreds of episodes of CSI and NCIS I’ve seen, haha) but this book took a turn I didn’t expect, and I loved it. It definitely kept me on the edge of my seat.

So all in all, I really enjoyed reading this book, and I can’t wait to get my hands on the second one.

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