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She Loves Me, He Loves Me Not
Zoella didn’t know whether she was devastatingly happy or happily devastated.
Zoella has been in love with Fardeen Malik , her best friend’s gorgeous older brother, since she was ten, but he’s always seen her as a ‘good girl’—not his type—and he can barely remember her name. Besides, he’s engaged to a gorgeous leggy socialite, someone from the same rarefied social strata as the imposing Malik family. In short, Zoella has no chance with him.
Until a brutal accident leaves Fardeen scarred and disfigured, that is. Suddenly bereft of a fiancée, Fardeen is bitterly caustic, a shell of the man he used to be, a beast that has broken out of the fairy tale world he once lived in. And a twist of fate lands him his very own beauty —Zoella.
This man, however, is a far cry from the Fardeen of her dreams. Stripped of her illusions, Zoella creates her own twist in the fairy tale, beating him at his own game.
Order now and read this modern, unusual interpretation of the old-age fairy tale, in which Zeenat explores the themes of love, longing and arranged-marriages.
Zoella has been in love with Fardeen Malik , her best friend’s gorgeous older brother, since she was ten, but he’s always seen her as a ‘good girl’—not his type—and he can barely remember her name. Besides, he’s engaged to a gorgeous leggy socialite, someone from the same rarefied social strata as the imposing Malik family. In short, Zoella has no chance with him.
Until a brutal accident leaves Fardeen scarred and disfigured, that is. Suddenly bereft of a fiancée, Fardeen is bitterly caustic, a shell of the man he used to be, a beast that has broken out of the fairy tale world he once lived in. And a twist of fate lands him his very own beauty —Zoella.
This man, however, is a far cry from the Fardeen of her dreams. Stripped of her illusions, Zoella creates her own twist in the fairy tale, beating him at his own game.
Order now and read this modern, unusual interpretation of the old-age fairy tale, in which Zeenat explores the themes of love, longing and arranged-marriages.
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First published June 12, 2013
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 102 reviews
July 3, 2022
THIS BOOK Made my feelings up and down, up and down. Goshhh I even switched teams back and forth like a swaying fan, I'm shy. Set in Pakistan, learning beautiful culture and Urdu words through this Beauty and the Beast romance🌹😁
FROM "CHILDHOOD CRUSH" TO "FORCED MARRIAGE"
QUICK PLOT INTRO: Miss Little Sunshine, Zoella is secretly in love with her best's friend brother Fardeen since being a little girl. Heartbroken, she's not his type and he engages with his sexy girlfriend.
Faster than Storm, Fardeen faces the car accident!! His life turns upside down!! He becomes ugly and his fiancée dumps him. He emotionally damaged and physically ugly like a monster! Then, this 'marriage of convenience' begins.
-----------------------------------------
Oh WOW ! I'm searching for this type of romance for so long, I'M HAPPY!! Can't believe my heroine is so optimistic and pure goddess. She's always there for him, persuade him to have surgery so he can be handsome again. Despite how he's so rude to her, she's always amazing! TEAM Zoella 😉
THEN My Team Thing Starts to Swing like a Naughty Fan.
Yeah, Human is still Human, my friends.
We have heart and feelings. That dickhead says nasty words, I mean very cruel, nasty bastard! that shatter her loyal heart. Hurtful beyond regain. My Miss Little Sunshine becomes broken and OUT OF CHRACTER! She's not lively anymore, but turn cold stone. 😭😭😭 Ahhh... TEAM um.. NO ONE
Then, after push and push his ass to have surgery *very exhausted damn*. Successful! Fardeen becomes Prince Charming again. Yay! he behaves nicer. His mood is better. He's cute, but Zoella's still cold.😒 TEAM Fardeen bhai !
FROM "FORCED MARRIAGE" TO "LOVE-HATE ROMANCE"
Deeply in her heart. Zoella never forget those cruel words and hold a grudge ! 😲 Not forgive him! She plays "game of love", shows him that he cannot hurt her anymore ! My Zee becomes strong and sassy like Ella from Paper Princess. She teases him and spin his goddamn head ! GOSH I LOVE this new side of her! That's it! TEAM Sassy Zoella
Not too long my friends, the story starts to go down the hill.😒 It's SO Clearly that HE LOVE HER and TRULY SORRY For what he's done. But, no sorry hah.., my Zee becomes annoying. Super annoying! She deny it and NOT ENOUGH! She throws his love back to his face like a trash !!
O.M.G. Girl, I get that he hurts you deeply, but my ideal heroine should understand the hero, right? I mean, that time he's damage and in miserable. He say things that he doesn't actually mean it. Now, he loves you.. CLEARLY LOVE YOU! Just admit it and got HEA. but noooo my heroine is OOC and whiny unreasonable! bored me to tears. 😭😭
A Million Thanks, Our Fardeen bhai has backbone. He lifts up the whole situation, I'M HAPPY!! 👏😁 If she doesn't value your love, who care? My hero's not that type to beg for the heroine. No. NO! 'If you want to play game? I play!' HAHAA He made her feel hurtful jealousy! HAHAHAAA That's my ideal hero! YES! YESSS THAT'S IT! TEAM Superb Fardeen 👍
Sum up my situation the whole book
TEAM Zoella
TEAM No one
TEAM Fardeen
TEAM Zoella
TEAM Fardeen
Enough!
** If you like "Unrequited Love --> Marriage of Convenience --> Love-Hate Relationship" This two will spin your head!!
September 21, 2020
I was super excited to read this book since I loved Zeenat's writing style in Haveli and Contract. Even the blurb sounded great. But the storyline turned out to be terrible.
Zoya comes across as a vivacious ball of sunshine with a perpetual smile on her not-so-pretty face, but in essence, is a doormat to her money-grubbing family and her self-indulgent husband. Given how the female leads were portrayed in that author's other books, I was wondering why this one was such a spineless patsy.
Fardeen is a miserable jerk of the worst kind. Arrogant, selfish, immature, insensitive, extremely good looking and loved by everyone! He treats Zoya like shit when he doesn't love her. And when he does "love" her, treats her way worse than before. Bastard.
He abuses her verbally and emotionally, flaunts his ex-fiance in her face and expects Zoya to give up the idea of divorce and continue to live with him as a dutiful wife. How fucked up is that logic? He invites his ex to family dinners, gifts her expensive rings but throws a hissy fit if zoya so much as smiles at a guy!
But even after everything, Zoya can't seem to stop loving her douchebag husband. And so they live happily ever after. Meh.
If if it wasn't for Zeenat's beautiful writing, I would never have completed this book.
Zoya comes across as a vivacious ball of sunshine with a perpetual smile on her not-so-pretty face, but in essence, is a doormat to her money-grubbing family and her self-indulgent husband. Given how the female leads were portrayed in that author's other books, I was wondering why this one was such a spineless patsy.
Fardeen is a miserable jerk of the worst kind. Arrogant, selfish, immature, insensitive, extremely good looking and loved by everyone! He treats Zoya like shit when he doesn't love her. And when he does "love" her, treats her way worse than before. Bastard.
He abuses her verbally and emotionally, flaunts his ex-fiance in her face and expects Zoya to give up the idea of divorce and continue to live with him as a dutiful wife. How fucked up is that logic? He invites his ex to family dinners, gifts her expensive rings but throws a hissy fit if zoya so much as smiles at a guy!
But even after everything, Zoya can't seem to stop loving her douchebag husband. And so they live happily ever after. Meh.
If if it wasn't for Zeenat's beautiful writing, I would never have completed this book.
Read
September 25, 2018God I enjoyed this. A contemporary Beauty and the Beast romance set in Pakistan, which brings a elements of a highly patriarchal conservative society in to complicate the conflict.
The funny thing is, it's full of things I normally can't stand. The hero is an arrogant jerk, the heroine's superpower is massive extended passive aggressive sulking, there's long term failure to communicate, and a really chronic evil ex, and magic medical treatments. And yet I absolutely loved it, glomming it in a single gleeful sitting, so there you go. I think it's partly because of the cultural context--a lot of Fardeen's jerkishness arises in context of being a handsome successful eldest son and never having had to see himself as other than the centre of the universe and he does, eventually, embark on one of the longest self-remaking grovels I've ever seen. And Zoella's apparent passivity stems from utter helplessness in the face of ongoing emotional abuse and being disregarded by her family, and we see her move from self sacrifice to withdrawal into blazing anger, and then rise like a phoenix. I even bought the lack of communication, given that she withdraws in self defence and his ego is very clearly shown to have been punched full of holes.
It's wildly melodramatic and hugely satisfying, we totally buy the romance and the HEA, and there are some terrifically funny lines. I laughed out loud at several points. Vastly enjoyable. (I still hate the evil ex trope though.)
The funny thing is, it's full of things I normally can't stand. The hero is an arrogant jerk, the heroine's superpower is massive extended passive aggressive sulking, there's long term failure to communicate, and a really chronic evil ex, and magic medical treatments. And yet I absolutely loved it, glomming it in a single gleeful sitting, so there you go. I think it's partly because of the cultural context--a lot of Fardeen's jerkishness arises in context of being a handsome successful eldest son and never having had to see himself as other than the centre of the universe and he does, eventually, embark on one of the longest self-remaking grovels I've ever seen. And Zoella's apparent passivity stems from utter helplessness in the face of ongoing emotional abuse and being disregarded by her family, and we see her move from self sacrifice to withdrawal into blazing anger, and then rise like a phoenix. I even bought the lack of communication, given that she withdraws in self defence and his ego is very clearly shown to have been punched full of holes.
It's wildly melodramatic and hugely satisfying, we totally buy the romance and the HEA, and there are some terrifically funny lines. I laughed out loud at several points. Vastly enjoyable. (I still hate the evil ex trope though.)
February 4, 2015
The book indeed presents the age old Beauty and the Beast story in quite a new and unique way.
She Loves Me, He Loves Me Not' is of course a Romance. It has all the ingredients of a formula romance. It has a damsel in distress, it has a strong and powerful hero with a hidden scar (although, here he has visible scars too) and it has the irresistible attraction between the two which both of them keep on fighting against. But the book is written in a way that all these formula ingredients become unnoticeable and mingle well with the story.
And thankfully, the book has in it much more than this set formula. It has delicious fragrance of Pakistani culture, it has sweetness and love of joint family and it has the psychological insights showing the trauma of someone who goes through a brutal accident and than a more painful betrayal.
The characters are well etched. But as I read the book, I kept on wanting to give a vigorous shake to the hero and heroine and make them see how wrong they were in their prejudice against each other. Thankfully, they managed to see sense by themselves and righted themselves in the end.
I did feel that a few more twists and turns would have made the story more interesting.
The title of the book describes the story aptly. But the title is one thing that I like the least about this book, unfortunately.
On the whole it is a sweet romance with fresh and unique South Asian flavours in it.
She Loves Me, He Loves Me Not' is of course a Romance. It has all the ingredients of a formula romance. It has a damsel in distress, it has a strong and powerful hero with a hidden scar (although, here he has visible scars too) and it has the irresistible attraction between the two which both of them keep on fighting against. But the book is written in a way that all these formula ingredients become unnoticeable and mingle well with the story.
And thankfully, the book has in it much more than this set formula. It has delicious fragrance of Pakistani culture, it has sweetness and love of joint family and it has the psychological insights showing the trauma of someone who goes through a brutal accident and than a more painful betrayal.
The characters are well etched. But as I read the book, I kept on wanting to give a vigorous shake to the hero and heroine and make them see how wrong they were in their prejudice against each other. Thankfully, they managed to see sense by themselves and righted themselves in the end.
I did feel that a few more twists and turns would have made the story more interesting.
The title of the book describes the story aptly. But the title is one thing that I like the least about this book, unfortunately.
On the whole it is a sweet romance with fresh and unique South Asian flavours in it.
February 21, 2015
I really loved ‘Haveli’, which was Zeenat’s earlier novella. When I got the opportunity to beta read the manuscript of She Loves Me, He Loves Me Not, I was thrilled and keen to get my hands on it. And am I glad that I picked it up!
How would it be when you marry the man you have been pining for since you were ten? It would be a dream come true. Right?! But what if the dream is a far cry from the reality?
Zoella, has a crush on her best friend’s brother Fardeen ever since she was ten. While he has never given her more than a cursory glance, destiny binds them together as husband and wife. An accident leaves him scarred both physically and emotionally, making him all bitter and harsh and behaving like a jerk most of the time. Zoella’s Miss Sunshine and Mother Teresa avatar helps her sail through the trying times.
She Loves Me, He Loves Me Not, is a contemporary beauty and the beast story set in Pakistan!
This book has everything a reader could ask for. Witty dialogues, clever humour, a handsome but imperfect hero (my favourite kind), a strong heroine, a little turmoil and a heart-breaking love story, all make for a good recipe. You could not help but love the characters in She Loves Me, He Loves Me Not. I wanted to shake Fardeen at times and hug Zoella and wanted to high five Salaar, Swaba and their parents. The interaction between the characters is engaging and entertaining.
The vulnerabilities of Fardeen and Zoella have been brought out well and that helps the reader to understand their point of views. But their insecurities went on for a bit longer than necessary which kind of makes you feel like pulling your hair out. It takes time for them to overcome their prejudices and realize their true feelings.
And how did it finally end? Aah! I love closing a book with a smile on my face.
She Loves Me, He Loves Me Not is Fardeen and Zoella’s journey toward each other... and love... with some drama along the way. A must read! And did I tell you that I’ll be picking it up for the third time very soon!
http://shilpaagarg.com/2015/02/she-lo...
How would it be when you marry the man you have been pining for since you were ten? It would be a dream come true. Right?! But what if the dream is a far cry from the reality?
Zoella, has a crush on her best friend’s brother Fardeen ever since she was ten. While he has never given her more than a cursory glance, destiny binds them together as husband and wife. An accident leaves him scarred both physically and emotionally, making him all bitter and harsh and behaving like a jerk most of the time. Zoella’s Miss Sunshine and Mother Teresa avatar helps her sail through the trying times.
She Loves Me, He Loves Me Not, is a contemporary beauty and the beast story set in Pakistan!
This book has everything a reader could ask for. Witty dialogues, clever humour, a handsome but imperfect hero (my favourite kind), a strong heroine, a little turmoil and a heart-breaking love story, all make for a good recipe. You could not help but love the characters in She Loves Me, He Loves Me Not. I wanted to shake Fardeen at times and hug Zoella and wanted to high five Salaar, Swaba and their parents. The interaction between the characters is engaging and entertaining.
The vulnerabilities of Fardeen and Zoella have been brought out well and that helps the reader to understand their point of views. But their insecurities went on for a bit longer than necessary which kind of makes you feel like pulling your hair out. It takes time for them to overcome their prejudices and realize their true feelings.
And how did it finally end? Aah! I love closing a book with a smile on my face.
She Loves Me, He Loves Me Not is Fardeen and Zoella’s journey toward each other... and love... with some drama along the way. A must read! And did I tell you that I’ll be picking it up for the third time very soon!
http://shilpaagarg.com/2015/02/she-lo...
February 24, 2015
A novel and realistic take on the tale of Beauty and the Beast; this story far exceeded my expectations. For me, a successful novel is one that makes a reader feel deeply for its characters, fall in love with them. And I fell hard and fast for Zoella. She is a laudable heroine. We get a glimpse of Zoella’s romantic musings right at the beginning and it is very clear from her day dreams that she has found her Prince Charming, Fardeen. The only problem being that the Prince is quite oblivious to Zoella’s presence.
The subtle yet spunky Zoella apparently lacks the ‘oomph’ that Fardeen’s fiancée, Neha, has in buckets. “Zoella knew she did not have oomph. Oomph eluded her. And oomph was important. Especially in Lahore.” Her frustration is apparent when Fardeen not only forgets her name, but also manages to insult her by qualifying her as a ‘nice girl’. Normally being called ‘nice’ is taken as a compliment, but not if the Prince disregards you like that! “She felt insulted. Nice girls were boring. Nice girls were to be avoided like the plague. Nice girls married the first man who asked their parents, bore said man two children, and got fat. Nice girls did not have fun. Nice girls did not have rich, handsome Adonises hankering after them. She was not a nice girl. Nope. Hell, no.” I totally get what you mean, dear girl.
I didn’t really focus on Fardeen until after his accident. I wasn’t sure how the author would manage to write about the after effects of an accident that leaves him scarred both physically and emotionally. Even if we try to believe otherwise, we are in the end superficial enough, so that we might not always look beyond the mask; this is the real issue for the couple. However, Ms. Mahal handled it all wonderfully, with just the right amount of anguish so that the story never became overtly depressed, but you would feel very strongly for the characters nevertheless. It isn’t his physical injuries but his inner scars that turn Fardeen into a beast. And what Zoella gets is not a prince but rather a bitter man who constantly misunderstands and misinterprets her kind gestures, inadvertently hurting her feelings in the process.
Zoella is someone whom you would want to support and protect. But she isn’t weak, it’s the exact opposite of that, she is someone who will have your back and show amazing strength when the situation calls for it. Her friendship with Swaba is beautifully explored through their short but relevant conversations. Level headed, Zoella has an inner strength that lets her bend but not break. Even though her optimistic attitude takes a beating, she never loses hope and she is not at all a pushover.
For me, she turned from a damsel in distress, to a knight in shining armour, to finally a princess with her very own happily ever after.
My thanks to the publisher for providing me with a copy of this story in exchange for an honest review.
The subtle yet spunky Zoella apparently lacks the ‘oomph’ that Fardeen’s fiancée, Neha, has in buckets. “Zoella knew she did not have oomph. Oomph eluded her. And oomph was important. Especially in Lahore.” Her frustration is apparent when Fardeen not only forgets her name, but also manages to insult her by qualifying her as a ‘nice girl’. Normally being called ‘nice’ is taken as a compliment, but not if the Prince disregards you like that! “She felt insulted. Nice girls were boring. Nice girls were to be avoided like the plague. Nice girls married the first man who asked their parents, bore said man two children, and got fat. Nice girls did not have fun. Nice girls did not have rich, handsome Adonises hankering after them. She was not a nice girl. Nope. Hell, no.” I totally get what you mean, dear girl.
I didn’t really focus on Fardeen until after his accident. I wasn’t sure how the author would manage to write about the after effects of an accident that leaves him scarred both physically and emotionally. Even if we try to believe otherwise, we are in the end superficial enough, so that we might not always look beyond the mask; this is the real issue for the couple. However, Ms. Mahal handled it all wonderfully, with just the right amount of anguish so that the story never became overtly depressed, but you would feel very strongly for the characters nevertheless. It isn’t his physical injuries but his inner scars that turn Fardeen into a beast. And what Zoella gets is not a prince but rather a bitter man who constantly misunderstands and misinterprets her kind gestures, inadvertently hurting her feelings in the process.
Zoella is someone whom you would want to support and protect. But she isn’t weak, it’s the exact opposite of that, she is someone who will have your back and show amazing strength when the situation calls for it. Her friendship with Swaba is beautifully explored through their short but relevant conversations. Level headed, Zoella has an inner strength that lets her bend but not break. Even though her optimistic attitude takes a beating, she never loses hope and she is not at all a pushover.
For me, she turned from a damsel in distress, to a knight in shining armour, to finally a princess with her very own happily ever after.
My thanks to the publisher for providing me with a copy of this story in exchange for an honest review.
December 16, 2015
The first Impressions:
Initially at the very start up I got confused that how many characters are there, who's who and how are the connected to each other. I do not blame author for the same, may be it was me who was in a little hurry or too excited for a new read.
The Story:
The story is set in Pakistan. Fardeen is a lead character who is a very handsome boy and Zoella is a friend of Fardeen's sister. Zoella has a big crush over Fardeen since teenage and loved him deeply. Fardeen never took that seriously in spite of subtle hints and eventually got engaged to a beautiful girl Neha.
In an unfortunate accident, Fardeen's face got damaged. He turns into a beast from a handsome boy. Neha left him as she couldn't stand him beside her in such an ugly state. The family conflict arises and suddenly Zoella found herself being nominated as a bride for Fardeen, to which she eventually agreed because her love was far beyond the facial values of Fardeen.
The story turns quite dramatic and page turner then on.
The Characters:
Zoella, the main lead with Fardeen is someone whom I started liking right from the beginning but I started hating her in the due course of events because of her stubbornness and closed mindedness over Fardeen's repetitive efforts to win her heart.
Opposite to Zoella, Fardeen is the character whom I started hating right from the beginning because of his over smartness and behaviour. And in due course of time, he comes out as a very loving husband who has his own ways to treat and win the heart of Zoella.
Final Impressions:
I loved the way Zeenat Mahal writes. Her command over the language is excellent. Book kept me glued till the end and loved way it was crafted. Overall a very enjoyable and gripping read. Highly recommended for every fiction reader.
I thank Indireads for sending me the review copy of this book. This review is my own views about the book and is in no way biased.
Initially at the very start up I got confused that how many characters are there, who's who and how are the connected to each other. I do not blame author for the same, may be it was me who was in a little hurry or too excited for a new read.
The Story:
The story is set in Pakistan. Fardeen is a lead character who is a very handsome boy and Zoella is a friend of Fardeen's sister. Zoella has a big crush over Fardeen since teenage and loved him deeply. Fardeen never took that seriously in spite of subtle hints and eventually got engaged to a beautiful girl Neha.
In an unfortunate accident, Fardeen's face got damaged. He turns into a beast from a handsome boy. Neha left him as she couldn't stand him beside her in such an ugly state. The family conflict arises and suddenly Zoella found herself being nominated as a bride for Fardeen, to which she eventually agreed because her love was far beyond the facial values of Fardeen.
The story turns quite dramatic and page turner then on.
The Characters:
Zoella, the main lead with Fardeen is someone whom I started liking right from the beginning but I started hating her in the due course of events because of her stubbornness and closed mindedness over Fardeen's repetitive efforts to win her heart.
Opposite to Zoella, Fardeen is the character whom I started hating right from the beginning because of his over smartness and behaviour. And in due course of time, he comes out as a very loving husband who has his own ways to treat and win the heart of Zoella.
Final Impressions:
I loved the way Zeenat Mahal writes. Her command over the language is excellent. Book kept me glued till the end and loved way it was crafted. Overall a very enjoyable and gripping read. Highly recommended for every fiction reader.
I thank Indireads for sending me the review copy of this book. This review is my own views about the book and is in no way biased.
February 4, 2015
I like to start my book reviews with disclosures when I have them .
First disclosure, I swapped a free copy of Ghosts of Nagasaki for a copy of this book. I often do this so I can try out other Indy books and get reviews for my own books. Second disclosure, I’m often glad I do. I often find some of my best reads with Indy authors.
The author of this book caught my attention because she is consistently well-reviewed and her novels have interesting “hooks” to them. This one is no different: the protagonist gets a chance at her dream life with her dream man. But there is a catch -- her dream man has suffered physical and emotional scars that have turned him into a monster.
I don’t usually read romance, and as someone who doesn’t read a lot of romance, I had trouble evaluating the book on its own merits. For example, I’m not used to characters “croaking” “trilling” and “crooning” when they speak. Most of the books I read settle for the classic “said” or “asked,” but soon I got over my timidness and learned to love the book’s many conventions.
This is a romantic novel in the full sense of the word. The book has a classical feel to it. I couldn’t help recall my very young years reading the children’s edition of Oliver Twist, my college years of reading Mansfield Park, or even last year when I read A Tale of Two Cities. Sure, the book is melodramatic, but it manages the melodrama at times very masterfully, and I found myself easily turning from one page to another.
Another very strong positive for the book is that I found myself feeling very strong emotions towards each character (love and hate) by the end of the book.
Perhaps the most endearing part of the book is Zoella. She is at the center of the book -- a kind of princess -- but not by any means helpless. There is a literary (technical term) for what Zoella is: “angel of the house.” The modern variant of this is perhaps Marge Simpson. Her optimism and energy kept me in her corner for the entirety of the book.
Fardeen, the prince of the book...well…
Anyway, I’ll let you discover these things about the book for yourself. I hope other readers have as much fun with this book as I did.
First disclosure, I swapped a free copy of Ghosts of Nagasaki for a copy of this book. I often do this so I can try out other Indy books and get reviews for my own books. Second disclosure, I’m often glad I do. I often find some of my best reads with Indy authors.
The author of this book caught my attention because she is consistently well-reviewed and her novels have interesting “hooks” to them. This one is no different: the protagonist gets a chance at her dream life with her dream man. But there is a catch -- her dream man has suffered physical and emotional scars that have turned him into a monster.
I don’t usually read romance, and as someone who doesn’t read a lot of romance, I had trouble evaluating the book on its own merits. For example, I’m not used to characters “croaking” “trilling” and “crooning” when they speak. Most of the books I read settle for the classic “said” or “asked,” but soon I got over my timidness and learned to love the book’s many conventions.
This is a romantic novel in the full sense of the word. The book has a classical feel to it. I couldn’t help recall my very young years reading the children’s edition of Oliver Twist, my college years of reading Mansfield Park, or even last year when I read A Tale of Two Cities. Sure, the book is melodramatic, but it manages the melodrama at times very masterfully, and I found myself easily turning from one page to another.
Another very strong positive for the book is that I found myself feeling very strong emotions towards each character (love and hate) by the end of the book.
Perhaps the most endearing part of the book is Zoella. She is at the center of the book -- a kind of princess -- but not by any means helpless. There is a literary (technical term) for what Zoella is: “angel of the house.” The modern variant of this is perhaps Marge Simpson. Her optimism and energy kept me in her corner for the entirety of the book.
Fardeen, the prince of the book...well…
Anyway, I’ll let you discover these things about the book for yourself. I hope other readers have as much fun with this book as I did.
June 30, 2019
My yearly re-read and just as enjoyable as always ...
H is in love with and engaged to a high class gold-digger .. he has an accident and his face is burned ...
the gold-digger runs away and his parents insist and get him married to h ... who is his sister's bestie and has loved him forever and ever ...
He is indifferent to her ... she is sweet and kind, hardworking and also knows that this marriage is unequal (she is poor and knows that if he was not scarred, she would never have had a chance to marry him) ... she tries to befriend him ... they consummate the marriage but H is a huge jerk the next day ...
Does she make him pay for his horrible behavior? Yes, in spades ...
They go to the US for his face surgery ... a long and painful process ... he starts to recover and come back to himself mentally and emotionally after the surgery only to realise she dislikes him ... she has had enough and only wants to pay off the debts she may owe his family ..
he grovels long and hard and she only reconsiders after family intervention ... by then she has started her career too and so they slowly become friends again ....
OW comes back and is ignored by H ... h thinks he will get back with her so she resists his overtures ....
The only part I hated; H bought a ring h admired but told him not to buy for her ... to make h jealous (she told him OW was welcome to him) he gives it to OW and uses it to makeh h jealous ... it works and they discuss their future ... and move on ... h says its ok if OW has the ring as she has the H ....
Ending is sweet and H loves making h recount the ways she noticed and loved him for so long ..
In a way, if the H really never had his accident he would not have noticed h ... she was really lovely but not his type ...
H is in love with and engaged to a high class gold-digger .. he has an accident and his face is burned ...
the gold-digger runs away and his parents insist and get him married to h ... who is his sister's bestie and has loved him forever and ever ...
He is indifferent to her ... she is sweet and kind, hardworking and also knows that this marriage is unequal (she is poor and knows that if he was not scarred, she would never have had a chance to marry him) ... she tries to befriend him ... they consummate the marriage but H is a huge jerk the next day ...
Does she make him pay for his horrible behavior? Yes, in spades ...
They go to the US for his face surgery ... a long and painful process ... he starts to recover and come back to himself mentally and emotionally after the surgery only to realise she dislikes him ... she has had enough and only wants to pay off the debts she may owe his family ..
he grovels long and hard and she only reconsiders after family intervention ... by then she has started her career too and so they slowly become friends again ....
OW comes back and is ignored by H ... h thinks he will get back with her so she resists his overtures ....
The only part I hated; H bought a ring h admired but told him not to buy for her ... to make h jealous (she told him OW was welcome to him) he gives it to OW and uses it to makeh h jealous ... it works and they discuss their future ... and move on ... h says its ok if OW has the ring as she has the H ....
Ending is sweet and H loves making h recount the ways she noticed and loved him for so long ..
In a way, if the H really never had his accident he would not have noticed h ... she was really lovely but not his type ...
February 27, 2015
A classy, heart-touching, South Asian flavour to the Beauty and the Beast fairy tale.
‘She Loves Me, He Loves Me Not’ by Zeenat Mahal is a heart-breaking romance between two unforgettable, lovable characters, splendid in the backdrop of joint family and its traditional values. The story makes one believe that beauty, really, is skin-deep, and it’s the inner strength and core values, which have the power to win true love.
Zoella has been in love with her best friend’s brother, since childhood. But the handsome, intelligent Fardeen, a lawyer, has eyes only for beautiful Neha, his fiancée. Zoella knows, she figures nowhere as far as Fardeen is concerned and accepts her fate. Fardeen’s world comes crashing down, when he loses his good looks in a terrible accident, his beautiful fiancée dumps him and people recoil as they get a glimpse of his burnt half-face. In a sudden twist of fate, Zoella finds herself married to Fardeen, the beast. Then there is Neha…
Zoella, with her feet firmly planted on the ground, becomes the much-needed anchor for Fardeen during his emotional upheaval. She is Ms Sunshine, the epitome of optimism and courage, bringing humorous angle to otherwise a poignant story. And that seduction scene. :-)
Fardeen, the gorgeous, how I hated-loved-hated him, then finally fell in love, as he tries to win Zoella over. Zeenat has managed to express his insecurities, vulnerability and confusion admirably.
As one gets drawn into the story, one empathizes with both Zoella and Fardeen, at times gets exasperated with Fardeen’s blunders, their quarrels and misinterpretations. In all this passionate mayhem, Zeenat Mahal’s entertaining brand of humor can be seen throughout the book.
The secondary characters both Swaba and Salaar suit the story to the T (did I mention that all the names chosen by Zeenat are lovely). Swaba is a perfect friend and a no-nonsense sister. I loved Salaar and the support he gives to Zoella, bringing some light-hearted moments in the story.
Is Zoella able find the happiness and love, which all girls dream of, with their hero? Or is there a beast in the garb of Prince Charming? How will her love for Fardeen stand the test of time and his scorn? Or is she fighting a losing battle. To find out read Zeenat Mahal’s latest offering ‘She Loves Me, He Loves Me Not’
‘She Loves Me, He Loves Me Not’ by Zeenat Mahal is a heart-breaking romance between two unforgettable, lovable characters, splendid in the backdrop of joint family and its traditional values. The story makes one believe that beauty, really, is skin-deep, and it’s the inner strength and core values, which have the power to win true love.
Zoella has been in love with her best friend’s brother, since childhood. But the handsome, intelligent Fardeen, a lawyer, has eyes only for beautiful Neha, his fiancée. Zoella knows, she figures nowhere as far as Fardeen is concerned and accepts her fate. Fardeen’s world comes crashing down, when he loses his good looks in a terrible accident, his beautiful fiancée dumps him and people recoil as they get a glimpse of his burnt half-face. In a sudden twist of fate, Zoella finds herself married to Fardeen, the beast. Then there is Neha…
Zoella, with her feet firmly planted on the ground, becomes the much-needed anchor for Fardeen during his emotional upheaval. She is Ms Sunshine, the epitome of optimism and courage, bringing humorous angle to otherwise a poignant story. And that seduction scene. :-)
Fardeen, the gorgeous, how I hated-loved-hated him, then finally fell in love, as he tries to win Zoella over. Zeenat has managed to express his insecurities, vulnerability and confusion admirably.
As one gets drawn into the story, one empathizes with both Zoella and Fardeen, at times gets exasperated with Fardeen’s blunders, their quarrels and misinterpretations. In all this passionate mayhem, Zeenat Mahal’s entertaining brand of humor can be seen throughout the book.
The secondary characters both Swaba and Salaar suit the story to the T (did I mention that all the names chosen by Zeenat are lovely). Swaba is a perfect friend and a no-nonsense sister. I loved Salaar and the support he gives to Zoella, bringing some light-hearted moments in the story.
Is Zoella able find the happiness and love, which all girls dream of, with their hero? Or is there a beast in the garb of Prince Charming? How will her love for Fardeen stand the test of time and his scorn? Or is she fighting a losing battle. To find out read Zeenat Mahal’s latest offering ‘She Loves Me, He Loves Me Not’
February 17, 2015
I adore Zeenat Mahal - she has a witty, irreverent style that I find most refreshing. When her publisher, Indireads, asked if I would like to review her latest offering, I jumped at it. This is my unbiased review of SLM,HLMN.
The cover is lovely - evocative of how the story unfolds.
The opening scenes are quintessentially Zeenat - colorful, naughty, vibrant.
The warm relationship between the sweet Zoella and her bubbly best-friend is very well illustrated through their shared confidences and their arguments.
The author deftly contrasts the indifference that Zoella faces at home with the warmth she finds in her married home - except of course, in the case of her husband - the 'Beast' Fardeen - who is at pains to demonstrate how he detests being married to her.
Zoella is strong, though vulnerable, and very easy to identify with. She could be one of us - Zeenat is very good at making you feel you could meet her characters someplace in the real world.
Fardeen is just as strong, but in a dark, brooding way. By the time he realizes what a treasure his wife is, she has become stoically indifferent - the story takes a melancholic turn here - I hurt for Fardeen. I wish they had found their happily ever after much sooner than they eventually did.
I would love to hear some of the other stories from Zeenat - Salaar's and also his sister, Swaba's love story. Maybe even Neha's? After all, even the svelte villainess-of-the-piece deserves a HEA!
The cover is lovely - evocative of how the story unfolds.
The opening scenes are quintessentially Zeenat - colorful, naughty, vibrant.
The warm relationship between the sweet Zoella and her bubbly best-friend is very well illustrated through their shared confidences and their arguments.
The author deftly contrasts the indifference that Zoella faces at home with the warmth she finds in her married home - except of course, in the case of her husband - the 'Beast' Fardeen - who is at pains to demonstrate how he detests being married to her.
Zoella is strong, though vulnerable, and very easy to identify with. She could be one of us - Zeenat is very good at making you feel you could meet her characters someplace in the real world.
Fardeen is just as strong, but in a dark, brooding way. By the time he realizes what a treasure his wife is, she has become stoically indifferent - the story takes a melancholic turn here - I hurt for Fardeen. I wish they had found their happily ever after much sooner than they eventually did.
I would love to hear some of the other stories from Zeenat - Salaar's and also his sister, Swaba's love story. Maybe even Neha's? After all, even the svelte villainess-of-the-piece deserves a HEA!
January 23, 2018
My Rating: 4.5 STARS= Very Good= Enjoyable= I liked it very much...!
Very much enjoyed the writing, the humour and the family dynamics. The teasing repartee between the siblings was especially wonderfully done, which is one of the reasons why the opening scene was among my most favourite parts of the book. Romance was good too, though some more cute scenes and a reduction on the mean interactions might have made it even better in my opinion. Still, some of the fights were pretty amusing! All in all, I found it an entertaining read and the ending left me smiling and refreshed. Looking forward to reading more books by the author.
Very much enjoyed the writing, the humour and the family dynamics. The teasing repartee between the siblings was especially wonderfully done, which is one of the reasons why the opening scene was among my most favourite parts of the book. Romance was good too, though some more cute scenes and a reduction on the mean interactions might have made it even better in my opinion. Still, some of the fights were pretty amusing! All in all, I found it an entertaining read and the ending left me smiling and refreshed. Looking forward to reading more books by the author.
December 23, 2023
H was horrible, h was an idiot but angst was good.
March 23, 2015
Review on A Bookworm’s Musing: http://wp.me/p2J8yh-2Mc
What I liked:
+ Cover design; simplicity with the rose
+ Fun characters; especially liked characters of Swaba and Salaar
+ Story feels realistic, as do the events
A suggestion:
- Perhaps a chapter between Fardeen’s engagement and the next chapter might have been nice
I liked the tale, even though it had no major unexpected twists and turns.
What I liked:
+ Cover design; simplicity with the rose
+ Fun characters; especially liked characters of Swaba and Salaar
+ Story feels realistic, as do the events
A suggestion:
- Perhaps a chapter between Fardeen’s engagement and the next chapter might have been nice
I liked the tale, even though it had no major unexpected twists and turns.
February 15, 2015
After reading this book I am wondering that why is this the first novel that I have read by Zeenat not counting the short story the Accidental fiancée. How did I miss the other books?
She has the pulse of the generation; her writing is so fresh, crisp and youthful. The conversations, the tension, the wit and sarcasm are all tightly packed in this story. She writes the story with such a flow using the conversations and comments of all the protagonists of the story. I was hooked with the first chapter itself!
Zoella and Fardeen are a special couple – why? Because their story can be the story of so many star crossed lovers. Yes, it is a take on the classic beauty & the beast but it goes a step further. By the time you are waiting for the lovers to unite you end up wondering who is being more beastly? Fardeen, the obvious one with his sharp words or Zoella with the snide rejoinders!
This is a tale of love and longing. Beauty and the beast. Forgiving and loving. Learning and growing. This book is straight forward story about good things finding a way to happen. Zoella is love struck and fate with its twists and turns offers her the love of her life, even though he is damaged goods. Fardeen sees pity and duty in Zoella’s every action and sets out to distance him from her. She wants to free him from his self imposed prison and leaves no stone unturned to achieve it.
The sweet simple Zoella with her lovely smile, bubbly nature is a challenge and a perfect match for Fardeen. She matches him word for word and learns from him getting so adept at sarcasm by the end of the book. Yes, Zoella loves him since forever and blushes to the core when she sees him but still stands her own against him.
Handsome, cocky and so sharp Fardeen reminded me of the current heartthrob Fawad Khan! I have only seen him the movie Khoobsurat and I loved what I saw. Fardeen is our hero from the first page and even when tormented by his injuries makes you fall in love with him. He too grows up as the story moves. It was so refreshing to see him wearing his heart on his sleeve and acknowledging his wife’s achievements.
The author has maintained such chemistry and sexual tension with her words that I kept turning pages to read who won whom? Her greatest advantage is her play with words, the sparring, the simple conversations and the energy and passion the characters bring to the story.
I see it as a winner all the way. It also has family playing a major role, guiding them and supporting them, a big happy family that sticks to its own like flies on honey!! Yes, the family is important and they add so much depth to the story, I especially like the younger brother Salar. I want to now read his story – please write one for him Zeenat.
This story is not about the young, mushy, gooey, teenage love; it is a love that is practical and grows and learns. She Loves Me, He Loves Me Not is an affirmation that love can surmount all odds. I was rooting for them to win together, to find that peace and love for each other that both try so hard to hide.
Love truly transformed the ugliness in their lives; much like real life. Yes, it is a very real, grounded and present day love story. A perfect read for my Valentine’s Day!
She has the pulse of the generation; her writing is so fresh, crisp and youthful. The conversations, the tension, the wit and sarcasm are all tightly packed in this story. She writes the story with such a flow using the conversations and comments of all the protagonists of the story. I was hooked with the first chapter itself!
Zoella and Fardeen are a special couple – why? Because their story can be the story of so many star crossed lovers. Yes, it is a take on the classic beauty & the beast but it goes a step further. By the time you are waiting for the lovers to unite you end up wondering who is being more beastly? Fardeen, the obvious one with his sharp words or Zoella with the snide rejoinders!
This is a tale of love and longing. Beauty and the beast. Forgiving and loving. Learning and growing. This book is straight forward story about good things finding a way to happen. Zoella is love struck and fate with its twists and turns offers her the love of her life, even though he is damaged goods. Fardeen sees pity and duty in Zoella’s every action and sets out to distance him from her. She wants to free him from his self imposed prison and leaves no stone unturned to achieve it.
The sweet simple Zoella with her lovely smile, bubbly nature is a challenge and a perfect match for Fardeen. She matches him word for word and learns from him getting so adept at sarcasm by the end of the book. Yes, Zoella loves him since forever and blushes to the core when she sees him but still stands her own against him.
Handsome, cocky and so sharp Fardeen reminded me of the current heartthrob Fawad Khan! I have only seen him the movie Khoobsurat and I loved what I saw. Fardeen is our hero from the first page and even when tormented by his injuries makes you fall in love with him. He too grows up as the story moves. It was so refreshing to see him wearing his heart on his sleeve and acknowledging his wife’s achievements.
The author has maintained such chemistry and sexual tension with her words that I kept turning pages to read who won whom? Her greatest advantage is her play with words, the sparring, the simple conversations and the energy and passion the characters bring to the story.
I see it as a winner all the way. It also has family playing a major role, guiding them and supporting them, a big happy family that sticks to its own like flies on honey!! Yes, the family is important and they add so much depth to the story, I especially like the younger brother Salar. I want to now read his story – please write one for him Zeenat.
This story is not about the young, mushy, gooey, teenage love; it is a love that is practical and grows and learns. She Loves Me, He Loves Me Not is an affirmation that love can surmount all odds. I was rooting for them to win together, to find that peace and love for each other that both try so hard to hide.
Love truly transformed the ugliness in their lives; much like real life. Yes, it is a very real, grounded and present day love story. A perfect read for my Valentine’s Day!
February 4, 2015
Romance comes in a myriad cultural flavours and Zeenat Mahal's novella, She Loves Me, He Loves Me Not is a particularly delicious South Asian offering. For, romance, South Asian style, is not just about the hero and the heroine but the whole family.
Zoella has been crushing on her best friend's brother, Fardeen, for a long time. The handsome hunk who is an ace sportsman, excels at his job as a lawyer and is a dutiful son, has eyes only for his fiancee Neha. And Zoella, whom he considers a 'nice girl' has no hopes of ever getting his attention. Until one day, Fardeen's perfect world comes crashing down. A horrific accident takes away his filmstar good looks and leaves half his face into a mangled mess of bone and tissue. Neha dumps him and the only person, apart from his immediate family, who continues to dote on him is Zoella. A sudden turn of events leads to Zoella tying the knot with Fardeen. She can hardly believe that her dream of marrying her Prince Charming has come true. But as they say, be careful what you wish for. She soon discovers that she is in the wrong fairytale and Fardeen has morphed from Prince Charming into an embittered Beast who revels in tormenting her day and night. Can Zoella's love survive in the face of such scorn? Or will Fardeen's bitterness ruin their chance at finding happiness and eternal love? Read the book to find out.
Zeenat gives a delicious South Asian twist to the Beauty and the Beast romantic trope. She makes you laugh at the manner in which Zoella ties herself up in knots. She makes you weep buckets for both Zoella and Fardeen. And at times, you are exasperated by their constant sniping. The secondary cast of characters is as important as the protagonists and Zeenat has a way of punching up these scenes with good humoured banter. But be warned: if you are looking for steamy scenes, you won't find them here. This is strictly a South Asian-style romance with loads of drama and some light-hearted family moments and oh yeah, the cutest, most memorable seduction scene! Curious? Grab the ebook. I promise, you won't regret it!
Zoella has been crushing on her best friend's brother, Fardeen, for a long time. The handsome hunk who is an ace sportsman, excels at his job as a lawyer and is a dutiful son, has eyes only for his fiancee Neha. And Zoella, whom he considers a 'nice girl' has no hopes of ever getting his attention. Until one day, Fardeen's perfect world comes crashing down. A horrific accident takes away his filmstar good looks and leaves half his face into a mangled mess of bone and tissue. Neha dumps him and the only person, apart from his immediate family, who continues to dote on him is Zoella. A sudden turn of events leads to Zoella tying the knot with Fardeen. She can hardly believe that her dream of marrying her Prince Charming has come true. But as they say, be careful what you wish for. She soon discovers that she is in the wrong fairytale and Fardeen has morphed from Prince Charming into an embittered Beast who revels in tormenting her day and night. Can Zoella's love survive in the face of such scorn? Or will Fardeen's bitterness ruin their chance at finding happiness and eternal love? Read the book to find out.
Zeenat gives a delicious South Asian twist to the Beauty and the Beast romantic trope. She makes you laugh at the manner in which Zoella ties herself up in knots. She makes you weep buckets for both Zoella and Fardeen. And at times, you are exasperated by their constant sniping. The secondary cast of characters is as important as the protagonists and Zeenat has a way of punching up these scenes with good humoured banter. But be warned: if you are looking for steamy scenes, you won't find them here. This is strictly a South Asian-style romance with loads of drama and some light-hearted family moments and oh yeah, the cutest, most memorable seduction scene! Curious? Grab the ebook. I promise, you won't regret it!
February 5, 2015
ARC provided by the publisher for an honest review
Originally published at: Lair Of A Wordsmith
As usual, Zeenat Mahal comes up with a story that leaves you awed.
This is a story of a lawyer and a TV anchor.
Zoella had been crushing on her best friend's brother, Fardeen, for ever since she can remember. Because at her own home she is treated as a second class family member, she spends more and more time with Sawaba, her best friend, at her place. It is more like a real home for her.
Once her sister in law starts accusing her to have had sexual relations with Sawaba's male family members, her brother (Zoella's that is) stats forcing Sawaba's parents to get one of their sons to marry Zoella.
At this point Fardeen is at his lowest. His face is all scarred up from an accident and due to which his fiancée has left him. A woman he had thought who loved him.
Forced into marriage with Zoella, he resents her for this. Never taking into account that Zoella is suffering as well being married to a man who does not love her. Fardeen refuses plastic surgery but is unable to accept his new reality.
Zoella wants him to be the Fardeen he was before the accident. She desires this not because she believes he will love her then but rather so that he makes peace with his demons. She plans of divorcing him once that happens because it kills her inside to know that this man would never respect her and love her. There is also this instant when he remarks in a way that means he calls his wife a whore. Though it was done unthinkingly (is that even a word?) it happened nonetheless.
After all the surgeries are done, it is up to Fardeen to make his wife believe in him and his love which he does while inflicting more pain. He is kind of a moron, really.
As they say, all's well that ends well. But discounting the entire journey is unwise as it is what teaches us and makes who we are.
This one made to my favourites.
Originally published at: Lair Of A Wordsmith
As usual, Zeenat Mahal comes up with a story that leaves you awed.
This is a story of a lawyer and a TV anchor.
Zoella had been crushing on her best friend's brother, Fardeen, for ever since she can remember. Because at her own home she is treated as a second class family member, she spends more and more time with Sawaba, her best friend, at her place. It is more like a real home for her.
Once her sister in law starts accusing her to have had sexual relations with Sawaba's male family members, her brother (Zoella's that is) stats forcing Sawaba's parents to get one of their sons to marry Zoella.
At this point Fardeen is at his lowest. His face is all scarred up from an accident and due to which his fiancée has left him. A woman he had thought who loved him.
Forced into marriage with Zoella, he resents her for this. Never taking into account that Zoella is suffering as well being married to a man who does not love her. Fardeen refuses plastic surgery but is unable to accept his new reality.
Zoella wants him to be the Fardeen he was before the accident. She desires this not because she believes he will love her then but rather so that he makes peace with his demons. She plans of divorcing him once that happens because it kills her inside to know that this man would never respect her and love her. There is also this instant when he remarks in a way that means he calls his wife a whore. Though it was done unthinkingly (is that even a word?) it happened nonetheless.
After all the surgeries are done, it is up to Fardeen to make his wife believe in him and his love which he does while inflicting more pain. He is kind of a moron, really.
As they say, all's well that ends well. But discounting the entire journey is unwise as it is what teaches us and makes who we are.
This one made to my favourites.
February 15, 2015
Zeenat Mahal is one of my favourite authors in Indireads and I really enjoyed both her books - Haveli and Contract. I finished 'She loves me, he loves me not' yesterday and I really couldn't have spent a Valentine's day in a better fashion :)
When you read the blurb you will undoubtedly feel that this is probably a modern take on Beauty and the Beast story. It is yet (and this where the author scores) it is different. Zoella has been in love in Fardeen for a very long time yet she does not cherish a hope of him falling in love with her. Fardeen is an easy-going charming young man who doesn't even remember Zoella's name (though she has been hanging out in their home with his sis for many years).
An accident changes their lives forever. Fardeen's fiancee Neha dumps him because he is disfigured and Zoella's family ditches her and they are forced to get married. Fardeen becomes a beast overnight. He is ugly, angry and being dumped doesn't help his temperament either. He lashes out fiercely at poor Zoella calling her 'saint' and 'sunshine' alternatively. But Zoella truly loves him but there is no way to prove it to him because he is completely warped in his mind and she is shy.
I loved the way Zeenat builds her character word-by-word so much so that you are invested in them within a few pages. They also have great physical chemistry between them but don't go searching for sex scenes in this one. There aren't any! Nonetheless, you will still be turning the pages to see what happens and feel that tingling sensation that lifts your heart whenever we read a great romance. (Ergo you don't really need to know how they made love :))
I loved the chemistry between Fardeen and Zoella. They are so right for each other and yet they turn away from each other caught in their own insecurity and misunderstanding. Fardeen's attempts at being romantic and Zoella's (channelling of cleopatra) seduction attempts had me smiling through the pages.
Verdict: Highly recommended. Read it if you love romance... read it even if you don't like romance :)
When you read the blurb you will undoubtedly feel that this is probably a modern take on Beauty and the Beast story. It is yet (and this where the author scores) it is different. Zoella has been in love in Fardeen for a very long time yet she does not cherish a hope of him falling in love with her. Fardeen is an easy-going charming young man who doesn't even remember Zoella's name (though she has been hanging out in their home with his sis for many years).
An accident changes their lives forever. Fardeen's fiancee Neha dumps him because he is disfigured and Zoella's family ditches her and they are forced to get married. Fardeen becomes a beast overnight. He is ugly, angry and being dumped doesn't help his temperament either. He lashes out fiercely at poor Zoella calling her 'saint' and 'sunshine' alternatively. But Zoella truly loves him but there is no way to prove it to him because he is completely warped in his mind and she is shy.
I loved the way Zeenat builds her character word-by-word so much so that you are invested in them within a few pages. They also have great physical chemistry between them but don't go searching for sex scenes in this one. There aren't any! Nonetheless, you will still be turning the pages to see what happens and feel that tingling sensation that lifts your heart whenever we read a great romance. (Ergo you don't really need to know how they made love :))
I loved the chemistry between Fardeen and Zoella. They are so right for each other and yet they turn away from each other caught in their own insecurity and misunderstanding. Fardeen's attempts at being romantic and Zoella's (channelling of cleopatra) seduction attempts had me smiling through the pages.
Verdict: Highly recommended. Read it if you love romance... read it even if you don't like romance :)
February 18, 2015
Girls can never outgrow fairy tales. Those enchanting lands, where lives a Prince who is yours forever, are a constant source of hope. The only one problem, that creeps during dark hours, is knowing that these lands, and this Prince, are in a world of someone's imagination. In those dark hours, pick up Zeenat Mahal's latest offering, She Loves Me, He Loves Me Not.
Zeenat's novel, an adaptation of the very popular fairy tale The Beauty and the Beast, will make you believe that fairy tales hold true in the real world. It'll make you believe not only in the power of true love, but also assert that in each one of us, lives a fairy tale. That within each one of us, the beauty and the beast dwell together.
In this heart-touching romance, Fardeen (yes, I sighed yet again) and Zoella take turns in being the beast and the beauty, who frees the beast from the curse. They each free the beauty of the other's soul from the beast that is insecurities born out of material quests.
A distraught identity and a damaged marriage to begin with force Fardeen and Zoella to stop believing and hoping in the magic that is love. The story is about how each of them, while battling their own beasts within, rescues the other's beauty.
Zoella and Fardeen's (yes, I cannot still stop sighing over him) story, though inspired by the fairy tale is as real as it can get. All of Zeenat's characters have that quirk that makes you fall in love with them-if not in the beginning, then definitely by when you finish the book. Some of the conversations between the characters, especially those between Zoella and Fardeen, are a treat to read.
In this season of love, don't let your heart be untouched by this beautiful love story.
Zeenat's novel, an adaptation of the very popular fairy tale The Beauty and the Beast, will make you believe that fairy tales hold true in the real world. It'll make you believe not only in the power of true love, but also assert that in each one of us, lives a fairy tale. That within each one of us, the beauty and the beast dwell together.
In this heart-touching romance, Fardeen (yes, I sighed yet again) and Zoella take turns in being the beast and the beauty, who frees the beast from the curse. They each free the beauty of the other's soul from the beast that is insecurities born out of material quests.
A distraught identity and a damaged marriage to begin with force Fardeen and Zoella to stop believing and hoping in the magic that is love. The story is about how each of them, while battling their own beasts within, rescues the other's beauty.
Zoella and Fardeen's (yes, I cannot still stop sighing over him) story, though inspired by the fairy tale is as real as it can get. All of Zeenat's characters have that quirk that makes you fall in love with them-if not in the beginning, then definitely by when you finish the book. Some of the conversations between the characters, especially those between Zoella and Fardeen, are a treat to read.
In this season of love, don't let your heart be untouched by this beautiful love story.
February 18, 2015
She Loves Me, He Loves Me Not is a book that is firmly, irrevocably on top of my list of books to recommend. You want to read a book that is sad, but happy too? Something which will leave you with an air of peace? This is it!
This book had me shedding tears for a whole array of reasons I never knew even existed till I read this book. Heart-touching and engrossing, it took me a minute to realize I wasn't Zoella, the protagonist, and another minute to realize that this book is never leaving my possession. Ever. Zeenat Mahal took me beyond the restraints of paper, into a world she created.
The transformation of Zoella from the young girl crushing on her best friend's brother into a fiery woman who knows her will and wins his heart is enrapturing, and that best friend? I wish I could be a fictional character in this story, if only to meet such a strong and jovial person! And Fardeen, the handsome older brother, proves that the first impression is not the lasting one. This book took me on a roller-coaster of sympathy, worry, angst and left me with the warm tingles of a happy ending.
Hats off to the author. The writing style is simple, yet addictive. This book can keep a reader spellbound, and wanting to read more. A Must Read.
This book had me shedding tears for a whole array of reasons I never knew even existed till I read this book. Heart-touching and engrossing, it took me a minute to realize I wasn't Zoella, the protagonist, and another minute to realize that this book is never leaving my possession. Ever. Zeenat Mahal took me beyond the restraints of paper, into a world she created.
The transformation of Zoella from the young girl crushing on her best friend's brother into a fiery woman who knows her will and wins his heart is enrapturing, and that best friend? I wish I could be a fictional character in this story, if only to meet such a strong and jovial person! And Fardeen, the handsome older brother, proves that the first impression is not the lasting one. This book took me on a roller-coaster of sympathy, worry, angst and left me with the warm tingles of a happy ending.
Hats off to the author. The writing style is simple, yet addictive. This book can keep a reader spellbound, and wanting to read more. A Must Read.
October 14, 2015
Soap opera in Pakistan.
I was contacted by the publisher, to read and review this book.
Although I'm not a great fan of Romance, I was attracted by the fact that the book was based in Pakistan and 'International Reads' are my favoured genre
It started well and I was fascinated by the interaction between the two families and the relative freedom there appeared to be. Then everything changed - two characters marry under duress and the ending suddenly became very predictable.
Since childhood, Zoella has worshiped her best friend's brother from afar. He doesn't even notice her, preparing to marry the awful, spoiled, Neha. Then disaster strikes and he becomes severely disfigured, his marriage plans collapse and Zoella's luck changes.
What really brought the book down, in my opinion, was the constant bickering between the married couple; for pages and pages and pages. I finished the book out of respect for the author, but unfortunately nothing changes until right at the end, when, out of the blue, it's 'happily ever after'.
Zeenat Mahal has written novellas in the past and that is what this should have been. Cut out all the arguing and jump to the resolution, that could have raised my star rating by one, if not two, stars.
I was contacted by the publisher, to read and review this book.
Although I'm not a great fan of Romance, I was attracted by the fact that the book was based in Pakistan and 'International Reads' are my favoured genre
It started well and I was fascinated by the interaction between the two families and the relative freedom there appeared to be. Then everything changed - two characters marry under duress and the ending suddenly became very predictable.
Since childhood, Zoella has worshiped her best friend's brother from afar. He doesn't even notice her, preparing to marry the awful, spoiled, Neha. Then disaster strikes and he becomes severely disfigured, his marriage plans collapse and Zoella's luck changes.
What really brought the book down, in my opinion, was the constant bickering between the married couple; for pages and pages and pages. I finished the book out of respect for the author, but unfortunately nothing changes until right at the end, when, out of the blue, it's 'happily ever after'.
Zeenat Mahal has written novellas in the past and that is what this should have been. Cut out all the arguing and jump to the resolution, that could have raised my star rating by one, if not two, stars.
February 16, 2015
She Loves Me, He Loves Me Not was a beautiful story that evoked a bevy of emotions in me and made me fall in love with Pakistan and its culture all over again. With rich descriptions, I was swept away in this touching story of love against the odds.
Zoella is a sensitive soul, and I was immediately bonding with her. The relationship between her and Fardeen is anything but smooth. It's a rollercoaster of emotions that kept me on the edge of my seat in tears most of the time.
There are so many twists and turns in She Loves Me, He Loves Me Not. Some of them were so unexpected, but added beautifully to the story. Mahal was able to keep my interest easily and turning the pages as quickly as I could to unearth what would happen next.
This book invites the reader into not only the character's lives but Pakistan, as well. It was a wonderful representation of a beautiful country. I hope that romance fans regardless of where they're from will flock to such a sweet and touching story. I cannot wait to read more from this delightful author!
**I received this book for free in exchange for an honest review with no compensation.
Zoella is a sensitive soul, and I was immediately bonding with her. The relationship between her and Fardeen is anything but smooth. It's a rollercoaster of emotions that kept me on the edge of my seat in tears most of the time.
There are so many twists and turns in She Loves Me, He Loves Me Not. Some of them were so unexpected, but added beautifully to the story. Mahal was able to keep my interest easily and turning the pages as quickly as I could to unearth what would happen next.
This book invites the reader into not only the character's lives but Pakistan, as well. It was a wonderful representation of a beautiful country. I hope that romance fans regardless of where they're from will flock to such a sweet and touching story. I cannot wait to read more from this delightful author!
**I received this book for free in exchange for an honest review with no compensation.
February 20, 2015
Originally posted at Smexybooks
Zoella has had a crush on Fardeen Malik for years. Engaged to a gorgeous socialite with the same high ranking social status, Zoelle knows she has no hope of him ever seeing her for more than his little sister’s best friend.
When Fardeen is horribly disfigured in an auto accident, his fiancée leaves him, breaking their engagement and leaves him a bitter shell of the man he used to be. Family and circumstances push Zoella to the forefront and her dreams finally come true-she gets her prince.
Or did she?
Fardeen is not the man Zoella has loved for so long. Her prince has become a beast. Zoella soon learns the hard way that fairy tales are for the innocent and naive, but she’s not willing to give up just yet. Using her innate strength and wit, Zoella fights for her fairy tale and learns something about herself and the world she lives in on her journey to her happily ever after.
She Loves Me, He Loves Me Not is a modern day retelling of Beauty and the Beast with a few twists. Set in Pakistan, Mahal views centuries old Indian culture and societal conventions through modern eyes. Well written with a smooth steady storyline. A formulaic romance in that the heroine is a princess in need of rescuing and the hero is damaged, grumpy, and emotionally closed off prince, however Mahal takes and molds the romance into her own by taking a couple who would have never married if not for a tragic set of circumstances, and attempting to create a bond of love, trust, and magic. Unfortunately, the magic didn’t blossom so well for me because I never grew to like the couple.
Zoella is a people pleaser. She has spent her life doing everything she can to make her family’s lives easier only to be shown time and time again that she doesn’t measure up. A beautiful young woman whose lack of social status and family love makes her feel less than nothing.
Fardeen is the family scion. Gorgeous, talented, and rich, his life has been perfect. He has never known what it’s like to on the other side of the social spectrum where the not so perfect exist. A terrible accident scars him, changing not only his looks but his personality. He honestly feels as if his life is over and he strikes out at anyone who comes near him.
When Zoella’s family accuses her of acting inappropriately with Fardeen and his brother, she is placed in the position where she has to either marry one of the brothers or sacrifice herself for the shame she supposedly brought her family.
Fardeen’s family comes to the rescue, thinking they can save Zoella and help Fardeen at the same time by offering marriage. Zoella agrees to marry Fardeen but the pedestal she placed him on shatters when she realises just how much he has changed.
This was a hard romance. Zoella and Fardeen both go into the marriage with certain prejudices; each feeling like a charity case nobody else wants to deal with. Fardeen doesn’t want to marry Zoella which causes a great deal of conflict and negativity. Mahal does well in giving both points of view, allowing the reader to understand where Zoella and Fardeen get their ideas from and how they each choose to deal with them, though at times I felt both were rather immature and their communication skills were almost non-existent.
I enjoyed watching Zoella morph from a scared unsure woman to a strong woman who knew what she wanted and was willing to fight for it. I only wish she could have sat down and told Fardeen what she was feeling. Made him listen to her. She chooses instead to stop trying and bottles everything up inside.
So this was what it felt like. Heartbreak. This was how it happened. Quick. Sudden. Final. She’d always thought it was something slow and torturous. It was unadulterated vicious pain. Immediate and intense, blocking out everything else, all other emotion, all thought. Like a fool she’d only seen what she’d wanted to see in him. She’d focused on his vulnerability, rather than the complete disdain he always showed for her.
Fardeen was a jerk. A huge wallowing ball of self pity. He acted like a spoiled child with his ugly comments, hurtful sarcasm, and then blames her for acting “unreasonable.” His scars aren’t only on the outside and he throws all his hate, anger, and lack of self-esteem at Zoella. When he finally realizes all the harm he has caused, he attempts to apologise but even that seems to come with conditions. He seems to feel that she should have understood his feelings and accepted everything he has done. When Zoella can’t forgive and forget (and I REALLY don’t blame her) he resorts to even more asinine comments and actions.
He’d wanted to make himself feel better by pulling her down with him. Maybe now he had shown her. He’d succeeded. He’d brought her to the point where she understood that she couldn’t be happy, that he was indeed not her knight.
He’d won.
Why then, did he feel as if he’d lost everything?
Fardeen’s final stunt towards the end in a desperate attempt to get Zoella back was unbelievably cruel and yes, childish. I was shocked by his ignorance and stupidity. He hadn’t learned a single thing.
What made Zoella’s and Fardeen’s relationship conflicts a little more bearable for me to endure was the setting and Fardeen’s family. I loved seeing Pakistan through Mahal’s eyes. She brings the country and customs to life in lush descriptions and scenes. The Malik’s were a treat as this lovely group of exuberant and personable characters who do their best to help this couple through their time of need. I love that they held Zoella in as high of regards as they did Fardeen. They provide plenty of humor and advice; allowing us a reprieve from Fardeen and Zoella.
"Fardeen, words are easy to say. What you did tonight is unacceptable.”
“Ami…”
“Right now, I’m Zoella’s Ami. My daughter-in-law deserves better. How do we know you mean what you say?”
The ending is a forced confrontation that resolves all the external conflicts and makes the couple sit down and finally tell each other what needed to be said for most of the book.
An interesting spin on an old classic that was engaging in some areas but the couple’s childish and vindictive actions wore me down till I just didn’t care anymore.
RATING: D+
Zoella has had a crush on Fardeen Malik for years. Engaged to a gorgeous socialite with the same high ranking social status, Zoelle knows she has no hope of him ever seeing her for more than his little sister’s best friend.
When Fardeen is horribly disfigured in an auto accident, his fiancée leaves him, breaking their engagement and leaves him a bitter shell of the man he used to be. Family and circumstances push Zoella to the forefront and her dreams finally come true-she gets her prince.
Or did she?
Fardeen is not the man Zoella has loved for so long. Her prince has become a beast. Zoella soon learns the hard way that fairy tales are for the innocent and naive, but she’s not willing to give up just yet. Using her innate strength and wit, Zoella fights for her fairy tale and learns something about herself and the world she lives in on her journey to her happily ever after.
She Loves Me, He Loves Me Not is a modern day retelling of Beauty and the Beast with a few twists. Set in Pakistan, Mahal views centuries old Indian culture and societal conventions through modern eyes. Well written with a smooth steady storyline. A formulaic romance in that the heroine is a princess in need of rescuing and the hero is damaged, grumpy, and emotionally closed off prince, however Mahal takes and molds the romance into her own by taking a couple who would have never married if not for a tragic set of circumstances, and attempting to create a bond of love, trust, and magic. Unfortunately, the magic didn’t blossom so well for me because I never grew to like the couple.
Zoella is a people pleaser. She has spent her life doing everything she can to make her family’s lives easier only to be shown time and time again that she doesn’t measure up. A beautiful young woman whose lack of social status and family love makes her feel less than nothing.
Fardeen is the family scion. Gorgeous, talented, and rich, his life has been perfect. He has never known what it’s like to on the other side of the social spectrum where the not so perfect exist. A terrible accident scars him, changing not only his looks but his personality. He honestly feels as if his life is over and he strikes out at anyone who comes near him.
When Zoella’s family accuses her of acting inappropriately with Fardeen and his brother, she is placed in the position where she has to either marry one of the brothers or sacrifice herself for the shame she supposedly brought her family.
Fardeen’s family comes to the rescue, thinking they can save Zoella and help Fardeen at the same time by offering marriage. Zoella agrees to marry Fardeen but the pedestal she placed him on shatters when she realises just how much he has changed.
This was a hard romance. Zoella and Fardeen both go into the marriage with certain prejudices; each feeling like a charity case nobody else wants to deal with. Fardeen doesn’t want to marry Zoella which causes a great deal of conflict and negativity. Mahal does well in giving both points of view, allowing the reader to understand where Zoella and Fardeen get their ideas from and how they each choose to deal with them, though at times I felt both were rather immature and their communication skills were almost non-existent.
I enjoyed watching Zoella morph from a scared unsure woman to a strong woman who knew what she wanted and was willing to fight for it. I only wish she could have sat down and told Fardeen what she was feeling. Made him listen to her. She chooses instead to stop trying and bottles everything up inside.
So this was what it felt like. Heartbreak. This was how it happened. Quick. Sudden. Final. She’d always thought it was something slow and torturous. It was unadulterated vicious pain. Immediate and intense, blocking out everything else, all other emotion, all thought. Like a fool she’d only seen what she’d wanted to see in him. She’d focused on his vulnerability, rather than the complete disdain he always showed for her.
Fardeen was a jerk. A huge wallowing ball of self pity. He acted like a spoiled child with his ugly comments, hurtful sarcasm, and then blames her for acting “unreasonable.” His scars aren’t only on the outside and he throws all his hate, anger, and lack of self-esteem at Zoella. When he finally realizes all the harm he has caused, he attempts to apologise but even that seems to come with conditions. He seems to feel that she should have understood his feelings and accepted everything he has done. When Zoella can’t forgive and forget (and I REALLY don’t blame her) he resorts to even more asinine comments and actions.
He’d wanted to make himself feel better by pulling her down with him. Maybe now he had shown her. He’d succeeded. He’d brought her to the point where she understood that she couldn’t be happy, that he was indeed not her knight.
He’d won.
Why then, did he feel as if he’d lost everything?
Fardeen’s final stunt towards the end in a desperate attempt to get Zoella back was unbelievably cruel and yes, childish. I was shocked by his ignorance and stupidity. He hadn’t learned a single thing.
What made Zoella’s and Fardeen’s relationship conflicts a little more bearable for me to endure was the setting and Fardeen’s family. I loved seeing Pakistan through Mahal’s eyes. She brings the country and customs to life in lush descriptions and scenes. The Malik’s were a treat as this lovely group of exuberant and personable characters who do their best to help this couple through their time of need. I love that they held Zoella in as high of regards as they did Fardeen. They provide plenty of humor and advice; allowing us a reprieve from Fardeen and Zoella.
"Fardeen, words are easy to say. What you did tonight is unacceptable.”
“Ami…”
“Right now, I’m Zoella’s Ami. My daughter-in-law deserves better. How do we know you mean what you say?”
The ending is a forced confrontation that resolves all the external conflicts and makes the couple sit down and finally tell each other what needed to be said for most of the book.
An interesting spin on an old classic that was engaging in some areas but the couple’s childish and vindictive actions wore me down till I just didn’t care anymore.
RATING: D+
July 29, 2015
When I got this book from Indireads, I was pretty excited. I have read Haveli by Zeenat Mahal and really loved her play with characters. She builds her characters up throughout the story. Here too we started with a love stuck girl, Zoella. Then her family problems are introduced along with her talents and by the end of the story not only is she married, she has a glamorous career too. A fairy tale in the true sense.
The story starts with a beautiful scenario of kite flying. The atmosphere has been well created and every time they shouted 'Bo Kata', I too wanted to join in. We do have such scenes in India during the spring festival, Basant, Makar Sankranti and on Indian Independence Day. That feeling of kite flying has to be experienced to even imagine it. Zeenat must have had some such beautiful experiences in life which she has echoed in her writings.
This story is about relationships. Not just between the husband and wife but also the parents. Many of you might feel that the role of the parents are given too much importance in this short love-story. But form the culture we come from, they are. All our love, fights and emotions are co-related and Zeenat has done a fabulous job is taking us through the journey of Zoella's household.
The Story
A young girl gets married under strange circumstances. Though Zoella was in love with Fardeen from the time she had set her eyes on him, he on the other hand hardly knew of her existence. Zeenat brings this out very cutely when he tries to remember her name at the beginning itself. But again as in all love stories, Fate plays her role and the story of the Beauty and the Beast starts.
Fardeen too feels the effects of a forced marriage though he does end up with a better deal at the end of the bargain. But now, his heart too is captured by this Florence Nightingale in his life; and he wanted to have a fresh start with her. But Zoella had been insulted too many times. Now her heart has closed up against his love. Will he be able to revive it?
Check out the reasoning behind 4 stars here
http://www.rubinaramesh.com/2015/02/s...
The story starts with a beautiful scenario of kite flying. The atmosphere has been well created and every time they shouted 'Bo Kata', I too wanted to join in. We do have such scenes in India during the spring festival, Basant, Makar Sankranti and on Indian Independence Day. That feeling of kite flying has to be experienced to even imagine it. Zeenat must have had some such beautiful experiences in life which she has echoed in her writings.
This story is about relationships. Not just between the husband and wife but also the parents. Many of you might feel that the role of the parents are given too much importance in this short love-story. But form the culture we come from, they are. All our love, fights and emotions are co-related and Zeenat has done a fabulous job is taking us through the journey of Zoella's household.
The Story
A young girl gets married under strange circumstances. Though Zoella was in love with Fardeen from the time she had set her eyes on him, he on the other hand hardly knew of her existence. Zeenat brings this out very cutely when he tries to remember her name at the beginning itself. But again as in all love stories, Fate plays her role and the story of the Beauty and the Beast starts.
Fardeen too feels the effects of a forced marriage though he does end up with a better deal at the end of the bargain. But now, his heart too is captured by this Florence Nightingale in his life; and he wanted to have a fresh start with her. But Zoella had been insulted too many times. Now her heart has closed up against his love. Will he be able to revive it?
Check out the reasoning behind 4 stars here
http://www.rubinaramesh.com/2015/02/s...
February 15, 2015
In Lahore, the culturally most colourful city of Pakistan, the most colourful celebration is the Jashnn –e –Basant. The winter is over, and spring is on a rollout, many shades of the colour of the surroundings gets mixed up with the colour of the minds of the people to set up a melodious orchestra, in the land and water and in the sky. Thousands of flying kites lit up the sky of the inner city of Lahore. The land also gets inflamed with thousands of beautiful women playing with the kites, wearing bright yellow dresses. What can be a more colourful ambience for a love story to take place?
Environment sometimes plays a very important role in building up a story-and Zeenat Mahal’s ‘She loves me –he loves me not’ is no exception. The writer has portrayed the mental state of affairs of the protagonist Zoella-amid the backdrop colour and vibrancy of the spring festival and it is clearly a stage winner all the way! She is attracted to Fardeen-the handsome lawyer from her childhood. But sometimes nearest man from the church gets farthest from the God. That happens to Zoella, too-she was never been able to express her feelings to her childhood heartthrob. So, lovely Neha has plundered the mind of Fardeen.
Reading this far if you conclude –oh, so it is a story of eternal love triangle-than I must confess you are partially right. It is a story of love triangle alright and more! it is a story of love, dejection and rejection painted effortlessly by the writer and of course like Zeenat Mahal’s other writings like the contract this one is an absolute fluid read too. The writer is successful in showing the inner conflicts of the characters especially the two-Fardeen and Zoella.
Read more of the review at
https://eokhardahreview.wordpress.com...
Environment sometimes plays a very important role in building up a story-and Zeenat Mahal’s ‘She loves me –he loves me not’ is no exception. The writer has portrayed the mental state of affairs of the protagonist Zoella-amid the backdrop colour and vibrancy of the spring festival and it is clearly a stage winner all the way! She is attracted to Fardeen-the handsome lawyer from her childhood. But sometimes nearest man from the church gets farthest from the God. That happens to Zoella, too-she was never been able to express her feelings to her childhood heartthrob. So, lovely Neha has plundered the mind of Fardeen.
Reading this far if you conclude –oh, so it is a story of eternal love triangle-than I must confess you are partially right. It is a story of love triangle alright and more! it is a story of love, dejection and rejection painted effortlessly by the writer and of course like Zeenat Mahal’s other writings like the contract this one is an absolute fluid read too. The writer is successful in showing the inner conflicts of the characters especially the two-Fardeen and Zoella.
Read more of the review at
https://eokhardahreview.wordpress.com...
February 25, 2015
In my attempt to be an experimental reader I sometimes strike gold sometimes dust! I struck pure gold when I read Zeenat Mahal's earlier book 'Haveli' and since then I eagerly look forward to reading her work.
Two things about her books intrigue me-the name of the book that appropriately justifies the story and secondly the names of the heroines of her books-be it defensive C or confident KK or sensitive Zoella.
'She Loves Me,He Loves Me Not'kept me awake through out the night! Reading this book is like sitting on a wave of emotions which has soaring crests and deep troughs. I would finish a chapter on a happy note thinking that I can sleep now as everything is going fine in Zoella and Fardeen's world. But then I would peek at the next page and fall right into a deep, dark trough of Zoella's emotions. This roller coastering is the strength of this book.
Zoella does not find any fault with her selfish family.She expects their support and is let down every time.She expects love from Fardeen and gets everything else but...
On getting married to Fardeen: "Zoella didn’t know whether she was devastatingly happy or happily devastated."
The flow of the story has been unpredictable. I expected a certain event to follow a previous scene but it would not happen, something so different would follow! It kept me hooked.
I would recommend 'She Loves Me, He Loves Me Not'for the unexpected surprises, flawless segue/ connections from one chapter to the next, crisp editing and layer by layer build up of the story.
It is a fantastic Valentine Day read!
Two things about her books intrigue me-the name of the book that appropriately justifies the story and secondly the names of the heroines of her books-be it defensive C or confident KK or sensitive Zoella.
'She Loves Me,He Loves Me Not'kept me awake through out the night! Reading this book is like sitting on a wave of emotions which has soaring crests and deep troughs. I would finish a chapter on a happy note thinking that I can sleep now as everything is going fine in Zoella and Fardeen's world. But then I would peek at the next page and fall right into a deep, dark trough of Zoella's emotions. This roller coastering is the strength of this book.
Zoella does not find any fault with her selfish family.She expects their support and is let down every time.She expects love from Fardeen and gets everything else but...
On getting married to Fardeen: "Zoella didn’t know whether she was devastatingly happy or happily devastated."
The flow of the story has been unpredictable. I expected a certain event to follow a previous scene but it would not happen, something so different would follow! It kept me hooked.
I would recommend 'She Loves Me, He Loves Me Not'for the unexpected surprises, flawless segue/ connections from one chapter to the next, crisp editing and layer by layer build up of the story.
It is a fantastic Valentine Day read!
Read
February 24, 2015Zeenat Mahal is an upcoming Indi-author who in her book “She loves me, He loves me not” shows a smooth blend between Pakistan’s local culture and literature.
Zoella doesn’t know if she’s devastatingly happy or happily devastating . Set up in Pakistan, this story is about a middle-class woman Zoella and a handsome man Fardeen who , obviously, was from a wealthy background . Fardeen didn’t know about the world on the other side where the non-elite live.
Zoella falls in love with Fardeen, her best friends charming elder brother though he never noticed her. For him she was just a ‘good girl’ and doesn’t even remember her name . Besides he is already engaged to a beautiful lady of his own social strata.
Zoella had no chance with him until a brutal accident disfigured his face and his life. The effect was long lasting. After his fiancée leaves him , he is seen changing into a beast, breaking out of the shell of being Zoella’s perfect prince. He changed so brutally that Zoella was no more sure whether he was the same Fardeen she knew.
This book will keep you glued and make you want to root for Zoella and cursing Fardeen for his nastiness and then later thinking that maybe brought all these things onto herself.
A typical love story with all the ingredients thrown in for a tug of war.
So if romance is your forte then this book will intrigue you. Zoella is the hero.
Zoella doesn’t know if she’s devastatingly happy or happily devastating . Set up in Pakistan, this story is about a middle-class woman Zoella and a handsome man Fardeen who , obviously, was from a wealthy background . Fardeen didn’t know about the world on the other side where the non-elite live.
Zoella falls in love with Fardeen, her best friends charming elder brother though he never noticed her. For him she was just a ‘good girl’ and doesn’t even remember her name . Besides he is already engaged to a beautiful lady of his own social strata.
Zoella had no chance with him until a brutal accident disfigured his face and his life. The effect was long lasting. After his fiancée leaves him , he is seen changing into a beast, breaking out of the shell of being Zoella’s perfect prince. He changed so brutally that Zoella was no more sure whether he was the same Fardeen she knew.
This book will keep you glued and make you want to root for Zoella and cursing Fardeen for his nastiness and then later thinking that maybe brought all these things onto herself.
A typical love story with all the ingredients thrown in for a tug of war.
So if romance is your forte then this book will intrigue you. Zoella is the hero.
February 5, 2015
The first thing that struck me in Zeenat’s books was the flow and the meticulous planning of the story. She builds realistic situations, characters and manages to keep the reader hooked. Her writing style is engaging, simple and brings the story to life in the minds of the readers.
What I like most about Zeenat’s books is that her heroines don’t need the rescuing from the hero. They are strong enough to get what they want and may be that's why I love Zeenat books even more.
Just like her earlier books I have loved this book also, even more than earlier ones. The book is a modern version of Beauty and the Beast and Zeenat has definitely done justice to this fairytale. I loved the story, the characters, and the dialogues. I loved everything about the book.
Zeenat writes so beautifully about Lahore. Though I have never been there but it does bring up my memories of the Nawab City, Lucknow. Her books always bring this nostalgia to me. They seem so real that I could actually feel these characters are part of my life. This book is completely amazing and a must read.
For complete review: http://wp.me/p42KXV-9W
What I like most about Zeenat’s books is that her heroines don’t need the rescuing from the hero. They are strong enough to get what they want and may be that's why I love Zeenat books even more.
Just like her earlier books I have loved this book also, even more than earlier ones. The book is a modern version of Beauty and the Beast and Zeenat has definitely done justice to this fairytale. I loved the story, the characters, and the dialogues. I loved everything about the book.
Zeenat writes so beautifully about Lahore. Though I have never been there but it does bring up my memories of the Nawab City, Lucknow. Her books always bring this nostalgia to me. They seem so real that I could actually feel these characters are part of my life. This book is completely amazing and a must read.
For complete review: http://wp.me/p42KXV-9W
February 18, 2015
After having heard such rave reviews of Zeenat Mahal's writing and story telling, I couldn't resist but go for her latest book She Loves Me, He Loves Me Not. This could very well be the modern fairy tale that can make girls of today go weak in their knees.
The story starts with a kite flying scene and we are introduced to the lovestruck Zoella who can't keep her eyes off her best friend's brother.
The story clearly has strong tones of South Asian living.
As is usual in South Asian culture, the family is given a lot of importance and they are an important part in the lives of Fardeen and Zoella. Though the writer has herself referred to the Beauty and the Beast more than a couple of times, I felt the beast wasn't the right term for Fardeen. Yes, he has been through hell and has scars both physically and mentally, but he doesn't deserve the hate that a beast might deserve.
Zeenat has done a wonderful job and has told the story well. The characters are well formed and evoke strong feelings of love and hate in the reader.
The story starts with a kite flying scene and we are introduced to the lovestruck Zoella who can't keep her eyes off her best friend's brother.
The story clearly has strong tones of South Asian living.
As is usual in South Asian culture, the family is given a lot of importance and they are an important part in the lives of Fardeen and Zoella. Though the writer has herself referred to the Beauty and the Beast more than a couple of times, I felt the beast wasn't the right term for Fardeen. Yes, he has been through hell and has scars both physically and mentally, but he doesn't deserve the hate that a beast might deserve.
Zeenat has done a wonderful job and has told the story well. The characters are well formed and evoke strong feelings of love and hate in the reader.
February 20, 2015
I am sure we all remember the magic and enchantment of fairy tales from our childhood and that feeling of ‘rightness’ when Cinderella or the Sleeping Beauty are finally united with their respective princes. And we might also remember how we would have come down to earth with a bang when our mothers or teachers reminded us that ‘life is not a fairy tale’. That’s when a little bit of the magic goes out of childhood – that realization that even though we may face as many obstacles as the fairy tale princesses did, that the handsome prince may not necessarily be waiting at the end of our particular rainbow! But still, we daydream about it sometimes.
When loyal and kindhearted Zoella finds herself married to the man of her dreams – Fardeen Malik – she could have been forgiven for believing, if just for a moment, that fairytales can sometimes come true. She’d always thought, because of the differences in their backgrounds, not to mention the fact that he had recently become engaged to the glamorous, designer clad Neha, that Fardeen could never be hers. But everything was changed now. Fardeen had been disfigured in a tragic accident and his high-end fiancée had hightailed it out of his life, leaving him alone and feeling like a complete loser. His family, knowing that he would need a loving companion by his side to face the ordeal of plastic surgery ahead, chose Zoella, a childhood friend of Fardeen’s sister, as his bride. If this was a fairytale, it was Beauty and the Beast.
Zoella joyfully goes ahead with the marriage to her flawed prince, little realizing how psychologically damaged he is. When, a year later, Fardeen emerges from his final operation, he is a new man, suave and handsome again. He realizes that Zoella is, in fact, his true love. But as he tries to make her understand his feelings, he is aghast to learn that he has made her life so awful over the previous year, that she’s planning to get out of his and is already defeathering their nest. Meanwhile, his former fiancee waits in the wings hopefully, poised to re-enter his life.
The question this story asks, so beautifully, is how much can you continue to love someone before they push your love too far? In these times, when films and books glorifying physical abuse in relationships seem to be getting everyone’s attention, the raising of the topic of mental abuse is timely. Mental abuse - putting your partner down, shattering their dreams, taking pleasure in seeing them suffer from your unkind words – is something which is extremely dangerous as it leaves no physical scars. But the mental scars are extremely painful.
Will Fardeen be able to convince Zoella that he really has changed? Can he get her love and trust back again? Or has he succeeded in alienating the woman who has loved and stood by him at his lowest moments?
Zeenat Mahal writes emotionally rich, insightful prose which gives the full flavor of subcontinental life. Living, as I do, in the same region of Asia as this story is set, I could feel that familiarity, as well as the fact that the story had a distinctive feel, not exactly Indian, but a feeling of being somewhere other than, but very near India (Pakistan). And it was truly wonderful to get a glimpse of modern life in Lahore. I’m so fascinated by the Kite Festival. Kite flying is popular in India too. Lahore is a city which is remembered with much love and nostalgia by many of our older Indian people, who were compelled to leave their beloved city during the partition of the subcontinent by the departing colonial powers.
As Fardeen and Zoella try to work out their differences, readers will find much to enjoy in this wonderfully simple, yet emotionally deep story. Like the classic fairy tales, this too has a deeper message for anyone who cares to scratch beneath the surface.
I received a special copy of this ebook in exchange for an honest review.
When loyal and kindhearted Zoella finds herself married to the man of her dreams – Fardeen Malik – she could have been forgiven for believing, if just for a moment, that fairytales can sometimes come true. She’d always thought, because of the differences in their backgrounds, not to mention the fact that he had recently become engaged to the glamorous, designer clad Neha, that Fardeen could never be hers. But everything was changed now. Fardeen had been disfigured in a tragic accident and his high-end fiancée had hightailed it out of his life, leaving him alone and feeling like a complete loser. His family, knowing that he would need a loving companion by his side to face the ordeal of plastic surgery ahead, chose Zoella, a childhood friend of Fardeen’s sister, as his bride. If this was a fairytale, it was Beauty and the Beast.
Zoella joyfully goes ahead with the marriage to her flawed prince, little realizing how psychologically damaged he is. When, a year later, Fardeen emerges from his final operation, he is a new man, suave and handsome again. He realizes that Zoella is, in fact, his true love. But as he tries to make her understand his feelings, he is aghast to learn that he has made her life so awful over the previous year, that she’s planning to get out of his and is already defeathering their nest. Meanwhile, his former fiancee waits in the wings hopefully, poised to re-enter his life.
The question this story asks, so beautifully, is how much can you continue to love someone before they push your love too far? In these times, when films and books glorifying physical abuse in relationships seem to be getting everyone’s attention, the raising of the topic of mental abuse is timely. Mental abuse - putting your partner down, shattering their dreams, taking pleasure in seeing them suffer from your unkind words – is something which is extremely dangerous as it leaves no physical scars. But the mental scars are extremely painful.
Will Fardeen be able to convince Zoella that he really has changed? Can he get her love and trust back again? Or has he succeeded in alienating the woman who has loved and stood by him at his lowest moments?
Zeenat Mahal writes emotionally rich, insightful prose which gives the full flavor of subcontinental life. Living, as I do, in the same region of Asia as this story is set, I could feel that familiarity, as well as the fact that the story had a distinctive feel, not exactly Indian, but a feeling of being somewhere other than, but very near India (Pakistan). And it was truly wonderful to get a glimpse of modern life in Lahore. I’m so fascinated by the Kite Festival. Kite flying is popular in India too. Lahore is a city which is remembered with much love and nostalgia by many of our older Indian people, who were compelled to leave their beloved city during the partition of the subcontinent by the departing colonial powers.
As Fardeen and Zoella try to work out their differences, readers will find much to enjoy in this wonderfully simple, yet emotionally deep story. Like the classic fairy tales, this too has a deeper message for anyone who cares to scratch beneath the surface.
I received a special copy of this ebook in exchange for an honest review.
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