Title: প্রেমাতাল [ Lovesick ]
( 2 Stars for the Hills, 0 for the plot )
Rating: ★★☆☆☆
From the name, Prematal (which literally means "lovesick"), you'd expect a fiery, passionate, soul-wrenching love story, right?
Wrong. What you actually get is a travel blog accidentally hijacked by an awkward teenage fantasy and sprinkled with tropes we’ve all outgrown.
This book was so hyped it infected my feed like a virus. People comparing it to classics. Classics, I repeat. Naturally, I had to see what the hell made this book worthy of breathing in the same space as real literature. Spoiler: it’s not.
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The Setup
Our heroine is Titir, a 17-year-old who just graduated college (and no, I don’t know how that timeline works either). She joins a travel group going to the hills, hoping for an adventure.
Enter Mugdho, a guy who’s 8–9 years older than her (already a red flag). He's broody, slightly arrogant, and basically the local "I don’t talk much" type.
They don’t get along at first (because of course they don’t—it’s a cliché love story checklist after all). But suddenly, the group disappears, leaving Titir behind in her hotel. Travel agency? Trash. Management? Nonexistent. Trip? Wasted.
Who else gets left behind? Mugdho.
Because obviously fate is working overtime with zero creativity.
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The Journey
Now Mugdho, being an experienced traveler, tells Titir the next phase is dangerous. He suggests she turn back. Logical, right? But Titir, being the stereotypical I'm-not-like-other-girls heroine, insists on going forward.
So they go.
Just the two of them.
Cue forced proximity trope.
Surprisingly, this part was the book’s only saving grace. The natural descriptions? Stunning. Vivid. Peaceful. The author knows how to write landscapes better than love scenes, honestly. Mugdho talks about the difference between a tourist and a traveler, and for a second, I forgot I was reading a romance.
But of course, the author suddenly decides to go full Deshi Action Drama.
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Cue the Ridiculousness
Enter robbers.
Yes, actual bandits who apparently wait in the jungle just to attack girls. (Because subtle danger and tension would be too boring.)
Do we get an action scene? A thrilling chase? A clever escape?
Nope.
Mugdho just hides with Titir, and somehow this makes him a hero.
She’s impressed.
Why?
Because the bar for men is somewhere near sea level in this book, apparently.
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Romance? What Romance?
There’s zero emotional connection built between them. Just some light sexual tension, awkward moments, and silence. But the moment they return to the city, literally seconds after saying goodbye, Mugdho suddenly has a brain glitch and decides:
"I LOVE HER."
Except, guess what?
No number, no address.
The 2000s called and said “really?”
Both of them start looking for each other like it's some Bangladeshi version of Serendipity.
They find each other.
He confesses.
End of tension.
Beginning of even bigger mess.
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The Plot Twist That Nobody Asked For
Titir introduces Mugdho to her family.
Big mistake.
Because plot armor fails, and her brother recognizes Mugdho as a street thug who once beat the crap out of him. Suddenly Mugdho is branded a criminal.
Zero marriage prospects.
One giant misunderstanding.
And just like that, we're back to square one.
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Let me make it clear:
This wasn’t a love story. This was a car crash of clichés, written on a landscape of beautiful hills and wasted potential. If you stripped this book of its “romance,” it would be a solid 4-star travel memoir. But sadly, the love story exists. And it’s so dumb, so frustrating, so painfully cliché that by the end, I was actively rooting for them to never end up together.
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Where do I start?
So this half of the story is all about Titir and Mugdho’s earth-shattering, spine-twisting struggle to win over her family (because his family is apparently sipping tea and vibing). And listen—I don’t mind slow-burn love stories. I don’t even need plot twists. But if you're going to give me basic, at least don’t make it stupid.
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Reasons why this story deserves a trophy for Worst Decisions in Fiction History:
1. Let’s faint at the most dramatic moment!
While hiding from robbers (you know, actual criminals), Titir doesn’t fight, doesn’t panic—she faints. Because nothing says romance like dropping unconscious on a man in the middle of potential assault. Wow. Disney princess realness.
2. The Tent Scene™️
They’re camping, and there’s one tent. Mugdho, the "gentleman", steps outside to let her change.
Sweet, right?
Wrong.
Because right after, he walks back in and changes in front of her.
Sir, being a gentleman doesn’t mean not looking. It also means not flashing your junk in a shared tent.
Pick a struggle.
3. Iqra, the walking pick-me mess
This girl is Mugdho’s cousin and has a crush. That’s fine. But then she goes full madness: sexts him, shows up naked in his room. Girl, is your personality just skin? Obsession is not love, and nudity isn’t a love language.
4. Mugdho’s past relationships – red flag buffet
Apparently, he’s had tons of exes.
Why did he dump the last one?
Because she wore lipstick, and he didn’t like kissing colored lips.
I’m sorry, WHAT?
How did we go from Tarzan to Lipstick Police?
5. Mugdho’s mom is... wild.
She tells her son to “take” Titir forcefully if she doesn’t agree. Or, better yet, get her pregnant.
You read that right. This is what we're calling "good parenting" now?
And why is Iqra suddenly “sweet and innocent”? She was literally naked two scenes ago.
6. House arrest, but make it romantic?
After the family finds out, Titir is apparently under strict rules: home and university only.
Except somehow she magically attends a three-day trip, goes to his hometown, stays in a hotel, gets drunk on hill alcohol, bakes him a cake, and meets him every other day.
Strictness? WHERE.
7. Titir’s logic? Missing.
She keeps preaching about family blessings and how she won’t marry without it.
Meanwhile, she’s busy ripping clothes, spending nights, getting physical every chance she gets.
What’s the point of waiting for marriage if you’re already doing everything that comes after it?
This isn’t traditional. This is just hypocrisy.
8. The dumbest plot move in the entire book
Titir, in her genius brain, decides:
“Let’s lie about being pregnant. Then they’ll marry me off to Mugdho!”
Excuse me, WHAT?
Girl, pregnancies are not fever. You can’t just pretend and walk away.
Did she think her mom would just clap and say “Aww, how sweet”?
No. In real life, they abort and force you to marry someone else.
And when the lie falls apart, she STILL tells the doctor to tell her family she’s pregnant.
HOW WILL YOU EXPLAIN THE MISSING BABY BUMP, EINSTEIN?
9. The breakup scene? Comedic trash.
They break up because of family.
Cry.
Say they’ll never talk.
Then call each other three hours later like nothing happened.
Where is the block button?
Where is the logic?
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Characters? Oh, you mean the trash pile:
Titir – A walking, talking bad decision. Dumbest FL I’ve read in a long time. No growth, no self-respect, just straight-up disaster.
Mugdho – The king of ewww. Creepy energy. Red flag collector. For someone who travels so much, he really hasn’t learned anything from life.
Tanna – Trash. Sure, the story's garbage, but what he did was still worse.
Iqra – Pick-me behavior in HD. Desperate doesn’t even cover it.
Mugdho’s Mom – Sorry, but telling your son to impregnate someone to win her is not a mom move. It’s a villain origin story.
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Anything good?
Yes. The travel descriptions.
That’s it.
The author clearly loves the mountains and knows what real traveling looks like. You can tell this part was written from the heart. I even thought of my cousin, a traveler who glows when he talks about his adventures. Mugdho (the travel part, not the man) felt real.
If the book stuck to that, this could’ve been 4 stars.
But the “romance” dragged it down like an anchor made of nonsense.
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Final Verdict:
📍Want to read for the travel vibes? Sure.
📍Want a meaningful love story? Run.
📍Want to see the dumbest decision in romantic fiction? Be my guest.
Otherwise, throw both Titir and Mugdho off a metaphorical mountain and save yourself the brain cells.
2 stars. Generosity courtesy of Mother Nature.