Maha Ever After

by Sumayya Lee

The sequel to The Story of Maha : Maha is back older and wiser - but her life is not quite the happily-ever-after she had envisaged.. .

When Maha discovers her husbands infidelity and demands a divorce she risks the stern disapproval of the entire community. Her future as a shameless divorcee appears bleak, but with the help of her older cousin Zeenat and good friends she embarks on the fun but challenging task of taking control of her life.

272 pages, Kindle Edition

First published September 1, 2010

About the author

Sumayya Lee was born in Durban, South Africa during apartheid. At fifteen, under the tutelage of an inspirational English teacher, Lee found her calling, yet had no idea how long it would be before her dream of being a writer would be realised.

Lee married at twenty and studied to be a Montessori Directress during this time. Two children later, she was divorced and seeking new direction. She did a Cambridge Certificate in Teaching English as a Foreign Language and went on to work with adults.

She is now re-married and lives in London with her husband, two children and their cats. She is the author of The Story of Maha and Maha, Ever After and is currently working on her third novel.

Reviews

[Fadwa · Rating 4 out of 5]

Full review originally posted on my blog: Word Wonders

*I received a copy of this book from the author in exchange of an honest review

I LOVED THIS SO MUCH, more than the first and definitely more than I expected, it’s filled with humour, friendship, love and even heartbreak so I got my fair share of feels just from this one book.

I don’t know why, but when I started this one I had a bit more trouble adjusting to the South -african slangs, I got confused and lost more than I did in the first which to be honest wasn’t a problem for me because at the end of the day, that’s how those people talk and it only adds to the authenticity of the story. Aside from that, the writing is pretty easy to follow and the voice witty and funny.

At first, I was really apprehensive when it came to where Maha, Ever After was headed, Maha wasn’t the same as in the first book, the story didn’t grip my attention and I got too frustrated to properly enjoy the story which made me really scared I’d end up hating this book and I didn’t want to. And I WAS WRONG. Once that first “wtf” part was over and I actually understood where Sumayya was taking Maha’s life, I enjoyed the story line IMMENSELY, I just couldn’t put the book down anymore and laughed at my initial thoughts.

In case you missed my spoiler warning in the beginning. SPOILERS AHEAD. NOW.
So, I was so freaking happy at the end of The Story of Maha, thinking that she finally freed herself and found a man who’s open-minded and loving and all the good things but starting page 1 of Maha, Ever After I WANTED TO CHOKE SAID MAN because Sameer was the typical jerk who starts taking his wife for granted once that honeymoon phase is over, he was so neglectful and basically led his life like the bachelor he was before marrying her and I wanted her to get out of there ESPECIALLY when he cheated on her.

But the funny thing is, once they got divorced, I started appreciating him (like is a strong word) because he wasn’t childish about the separation and their interactions remained civil which I didn’t expect from him. His family though is the worst kind of in-laws anyone could land. In their eyes, the only thing she was good for is cooking, they basically relied on her to do everything and I was like, scuse you, what? They were the main reason I simply couldn’t get into the book for the first 50 pages, they are fresh out of my worst nightmare. The second being Maha herself.

Maha wasn’t Maha in those pages, she was dull, lost all her humour, spark and that intense need to be free and independant, she was a puppet to her in-laws and she didn’t really complain about anything which made me doubt myself, I thought “Is this the Maha I loved and rooted for?” but that first part was SO ESSENTIAL to her growth throughout the book because there came a moment when she Maha got a grip of her life, flipping off her in-laws and saying enough is enough. I LIVED for the changes she made/went through to actually get back to a good place. From seeing a therapist to spending time alone with herself or with her friends, making mistakes etc…I just thought that with everything she went through, how slow and gradual that path was was pretty realistic.

Speaking of friends, I loved how she was still in touch with her childhood friends as well as Zeenat who became her bestfriend, even though I know she already was in the first book but I think that in this one the relationship matured and showed that it’s there to stay because they were as tight as ever even while spending considerably less time together.

Last but not least, my book boyfriend (or shall I say husband ?) Shahzad, I think he’s the one I swooned the most over. Ever. Just because he was the most realistic and attainable to me haha considering the similar upbriging and some events that took place I could easily imagine myself in. He’s such a nice, attentionate, caring lad and I was so glad that things got going between him and Maha, which I PREDICTED and I was honestly so proud of that, because it’s not the most obvious thing but I sensed a kind of tension everytime they were together.

Maha, ever after is more mature and grown-up than The Story of Maha, which is normal but it’s also more about Maha finding herself again whereas in the first she knew very well what she wanted and it was only a matter of how. There were some heartbreaking events, some horrifying ones as well as some light hearted ones, but all in all this one has a more serious tone to it, which I really loved.

I. AM. SO. EXCITED. FOR MAHA 3. Like, I never thought I could be this excited about it but I am, I hope everything goes well for Maha, that she gets a nice fullfilling job and a couple of babies because I care very fervently about her happiness, it’s getting ridiculous. I hope her relationship with Shahzad grows and thrives because if this gets messed up too I WILL throw a fit. I just want a happy ending and I don’t think it’s too much to ask.

[Nabeela Yacob · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved every single thing about this book , from the "Gujrati" and "urdu" not to mention the touch of Afrikaans. I read the entire book in one sitting and can read it over and over again. Rather emotional towards the ending but you will definitely laugh yourself silly :)

[Juwi · Rating 4 out of 5]

so funny and a great sequel =)

[Maria · Rating 5 out of 5]

I ended up staying up late(2.00am) to finish this book. I loved it from start to finish! It just flowed from one chapter to the next. I had tears in my eyes, such a great read.