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The Bhabhis of Lahore and other forbidden tales of the city
Unknown Binding
Published June 1, 2022
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 62 reviews
July 5, 2022
When I saw that Ayesha Muzaffar's new book is available on pre-order, I didn't even waste a second in placing the order because Ayesha Muzaffar WROTE another book telling us stories about JINNS?? WITH A CATCHY TITLE?? AND IN LAHORE?!
GET OUTTA HERE 😩
I LOVED THIS BOOK!!
RECOMMEND IT TO EVERYONE WHO LOVED JINNISTAN OR ABU'S JINNS!! LIKE WHY ARE YOU EVEN READING THE REVIEWS?!
✨It was marvelous, well written, well crafted, everything was fabulous in it. From the stories to the expression of emotions of characters, I am down on my knees. And don't you get started on how much hooked I was!! As well as the fact that the stories were giving me the spooks in the day and at the night.
I finished this in one sitting and I was so afraid to even leave my bed because I was feeling things and being hyper aware. (Internal screaming intensifies)
These stories are written and told in such a devastatingly real way that just makes me wanna praise the author!! The environment, the representation of culture, some lines that tugged at your heart strings, the realistic characters and THE HUMOUR (OML) cherry on the top.
✨After reading Jinnistan, I was thinking nothing would top it, because it is a separate book, it has its own essence, but after reading The bhabhis of Lahore and other forbidden tales of the city, I conclude that it is the writing, it is the author that is laudable for giving us a book that is full of such terrifying and chilling stories, like she just outdid what she wrote before.
GET OUTTA HERE 😩
I LOVED THIS BOOK!!
RECOMMEND IT TO EVERYONE WHO LOVED JINNISTAN OR ABU'S JINNS!! LIKE WHY ARE YOU EVEN READING THE REVIEWS?!
✨It was marvelous, well written, well crafted, everything was fabulous in it. From the stories to the expression of emotions of characters, I am down on my knees. And don't you get started on how much hooked I was!! As well as the fact that the stories were giving me the spooks in the day and at the night.
I finished this in one sitting and I was so afraid to even leave my bed because I was feeling things and being hyper aware. (Internal screaming intensifies)
These stories are written and told in such a devastatingly real way that just makes me wanna praise the author!! The environment, the representation of culture, some lines that tugged at your heart strings, the realistic characters and THE HUMOUR (OML) cherry on the top.
✨After reading Jinnistan, I was thinking nothing would top it, because it is a separate book, it has its own essence, but after reading The bhabhis of Lahore and other forbidden tales of the city, I conclude that it is the writing, it is the author that is laudable for giving us a book that is full of such terrifying and chilling stories, like she just outdid what she wrote before.
July 27, 2022
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐/5
Completely different from the usual genre I read. 👀
When I finished the book, I didn't really know what to say about it but as I gave it a thought, words found their way.
It was really really good that's for sure. It was somewhat like where horror meets reality. Its about the twisted lives of people in Pakistan and their encounter with jins (ghosts).
Many of us believe jinns dont exist but actually they do. When some people do came across them, reading about it really gave me chills. It was hard to believe that these events actually happen, and similar events have been told to us by our elders.
Apart from that, some of the tales are just so heart-breaking. None of the them are complete and they have an ending like a ball that just keeps rolling. Each tale will leave you on a cliff-hanger and you just have to accept it. 🥲
Got it from: A Gift From a Friend 🤍
Shop: Available at @libertybooks (high quality)
NOTE: Non-Urdu speakers will have a little difficulty to read it as it has some roman urdu sentences and words that you may not understand. Apart from that if you just want to know the story I think you can understand the story and ignore those sentences/words.
More books reviews on Instagram @biablogft.life
Completely different from the usual genre I read. 👀
When I finished the book, I didn't really know what to say about it but as I gave it a thought, words found their way.
It was really really good that's for sure. It was somewhat like where horror meets reality. Its about the twisted lives of people in Pakistan and their encounter with jins (ghosts).
Many of us believe jinns dont exist but actually they do. When some people do came across them, reading about it really gave me chills. It was hard to believe that these events actually happen, and similar events have been told to us by our elders.
Apart from that, some of the tales are just so heart-breaking. None of the them are complete and they have an ending like a ball that just keeps rolling. Each tale will leave you on a cliff-hanger and you just have to accept it. 🥲
Got it from: A Gift From a Friend 🤍
Shop: Available at @libertybooks (high quality)
NOTE: Non-Urdu speakers will have a little difficulty to read it as it has some roman urdu sentences and words that you may not understand. Apart from that if you just want to know the story I think you can understand the story and ignore those sentences/words.
More books reviews on Instagram @biablogft.life
February 8, 2024
Imagine maghrib time, sitting with your cousins, exchanging ghost stories, getting goosebumps, running to your grandmother for consolation, 'jinn shinn kuch nahi kehte beta', calling your cousin's dirty liars yet repeating the same stories to your friends, laughter, cold tea and spookiness. Imagine being nine again. That is what reading this book was like.
November 18, 2025
I finished this book in two sittings and ONLY because I work deadlines. Otherwise I am sure I would have devoured it sooner because it was so good! Ayesha has the most chilling stories to share. "Bhabis of Lahore" is a collection of Horror stories that will not only keep you awake at night but make you question your surroundings. Are you being watched? Was that really just a shadow? Should I stop hugging trees? Why doesn't my husband loves ve Biryani? Ashiq Jinn? Oops, I don't want to say too much.
This time, however, I also felt that the flow of writing, the depth of plots and the mystery building has improved and intensified since her previous book Jinnistan (review on my feed). My concept of jinns have matured to much more than what pieces I have been gathering since childhood.
The most important aspect of this book is how readers of Pakistan will connect with the situations and even characters due to the desi essence, relatability and familiarity.
My favourite quote in this book is not about jinns but biryani which I agree with as well: "If he can't appreciate a bowl of spicy Chawal, he certainly can't appreciate you!"
This time, however, I also felt that the flow of writing, the depth of plots and the mystery building has improved and intensified since her previous book Jinnistan (review on my feed). My concept of jinns have matured to much more than what pieces I have been gathering since childhood.
The most important aspect of this book is how readers of Pakistan will connect with the situations and even characters due to the desi essence, relatability and familiarity.
My favourite quote in this book is not about jinns but biryani which I agree with as well: "If he can't appreciate a bowl of spicy Chawal, he certainly can't appreciate you!"
July 24, 2022
Another masterpiece by a talented author. I really loved the way she portrayed her story. Transparent and full of emotions. Kudos!!
July 1, 2023
Few stories were interesting others were just meh
December 27, 2023
There are very few authors like her who give an insight into the dark side of our world. We all want a story with a happy ending but we forget that we are surrounded with things that we don't usually talk about, them being black magic and jinns. The stories were dark , bone chilling but at the same time beautiful and page turners.
August 9, 2022
If horror stories were written for 'Shua' and 'Khawateen' digests, this is what they would have looked like. And that's not to say that this was a bad book. In fact, if anything, it was perhaps one of the rare horror content that I enjoyed consuming.
August 5, 2022
Thoroughly enjoyed this book. 5/5. What a masterpiece of a writing!
June 17, 2022
The book has not released in Pakistan yet. Lucky for me I was in the UK and Amazon shipped it within a day! I absolutely adored all the stories in it and completed it within a day. Truly remarkable! Hats off to the author. Now I will be purchasing Jinnistan.
May 7, 2023
A very thrilling novel filled with amazing spine chilling stories with a cup of coffee. Gorgeous work on the details so 10000 percent recommended. ♥️
December 30, 2022
OH MY GOD. This book was so intense!!! I read it in one sitting
July 26, 2022
There is something very familiar and comforting about Ms. Muzaffar's stories. I have not been a fan of her slipping in Urdu words (which I understand perfectly fine but the code mixing of languages irks me). This book has much less of that, thank God! I also like that she has considerably lengthened her short story style of writing. I would like to read her novel next!
August 11, 2022
I picked this book up after reading Jinnistan in one night. This is similar but better on so many levels (and I did not think it was possible). Overall, a remarkable read full of delightful desi references. Definitely recommended. ✅
June 17, 2022
Good book but I initially thought it was Pakistani erotica, not horror. Guess I should have focused more on the cover when purchasing.
June 27, 2023
I'm out of words. This is the first time I read spooky tales and it was worth it. The stories are engrossing and present the picture of a normal life in Lahore but with a spooky touch.
October 4, 2025
I loved Ayesha’s Jinnistan, it was my comeback to horror genre. When I read Jinnistan, I discovered my exact taste in horror stories and that was why I decided to read The Bhabhis of Lahore & other Forbidden Tales of the City as my spooky season read. Unfortunately, I was left disappointment.
The stories were not as good as the ones in Jinnistan (maybe I did have very high expectations); The Bhabhis of Lahore was a good start but then all the stories fell short. I couldn’t understand the horror element in Mera Mehtab; it was just a sad story with loopholes. I didn’t like The Never Happening Shaadi of Shaazia Farooq. The friends break up in The Jinn in Majhbeen’s Phupho made no sense but it was a decent story. The Unwillingly Long Honeymoon of Arooj and Kamil was weird. Shaadi Ever After was decent and I think Deemak is somewhat similar to it.
Overall, I wasn’t a fan of this book but it’s not a bad book.
The stories were not as good as the ones in Jinnistan (maybe I did have very high expectations); The Bhabhis of Lahore was a good start but then all the stories fell short. I couldn’t understand the horror element in Mera Mehtab; it was just a sad story with loopholes. I didn’t like The Never Happening Shaadi of Shaazia Farooq. The friends break up in The Jinn in Majhbeen’s Phupho made no sense but it was a decent story. The Unwillingly Long Honeymoon of Arooj and Kamil was weird. Shaadi Ever After was decent and I think Deemak is somewhat similar to it.
Overall, I wasn’t a fan of this book but it’s not a bad book.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
June 30, 2023
I expected this to be very similar to Jinnistan but this was different and in a better way. The prose is better and with the stories being more detailed, you can do more with this book than just read it aloud with your friends while sipping chai. You will still finish it within a day, so it makes for a somewhat suspenseful read. Although I do think this did not make me shiver as much as Jinnistan did. 3 stars because there's nothing remarkable about it. It's pretty average and that sometimes is a good thing.
September 12, 2025
I have realised I need to read more books connected to my culture... because every time I read one I always think, 'This is unlike any book I have ever read before!' and I always become fond of the book very fast 🌷
October 13, 2022
I did not intend for this review to turn out as long as it did, but once I started typing, I couldn't get my thoughts to stop flowing out :)
This book is very different from the ones I usually pick up, but I was recommended it by a friend and since it's spooky season, decided to give it a try. Despite my low rating, I don't consider this a bad book. My reading experience was decent and I think it had a lot of potential but it didn't quite meet my expectations.
To start with the positives: it was a short book and could very well be completed in one sitting. The writing style was quite simple and easy to follow, and it was chock full of desi cultural references which were pretty amusing to read. If you're not used to reading/watching horror, this book could deliver on the spooky vibes - especially if you read it in the dark.
But there's also a lot of things that I think the book could've improved upon. For one, the language. It was simple and easy to follow, yes but also way below the level you would normally expect from a published novel. It reminded me of fan fiction or the short stories you can find on creepypasta and other such sites. In a way, that was rather nostalgic as it reminded me of the scary stories my friends and I would share on the bus ride while we were on a school picnic trip, stories that were often made up on the spot just as quick entertainment. That's perfectly fine for short stories made up by school kids, but when you have a fully published book for an adult audience, you're usually looking for something a bit more sophisticated. Also, at times, the word choice felt awkward and ill-fitting, like the author was trying to be poetic and use metaphors or make her writing more purple but it just wasn't working. There were also a handful of typos in the book which could have been avoided with another quick run-through by the editor.
Another thing that I wish had been done better was the character and plot development. It's not easy to write realistic characters with depth when it comes to short stories, and I suppose when it comes to horror novels, sometimes you don't really care about the character development anyway. But I felt like almost all the short stories in this book followed the same premise - a (usually unhappy/involuntarily) married couple having domestic troubles exacerbated by jinns. The wife in almost all the stories was one who did not do well in school and settled for being a housewife, the husband was always either distant or abusive. There was just no variety, which was a little disappointing.
And lastly, the book did not deliver on the horror I was looking for. It had some creepy vibes yes, but if you're familiar with the genre, there's nothing too shocking in this book. In fact, I felt like there were scenes which could have potentially turned out very creepy or disturbing but the author did not spend enough time building up the tension for it to have the same effect. If this were a TV show, it would've had a quick jump scare and that would have worked wonderfully, but when it comes to books, you really need to work your way up to that moment.
Like I said, I did not dislike the book, but I'm sure this isn't the best the author has to offer and I look forward to her future works and all the progress she's made in her writing by then.
This book is very different from the ones I usually pick up, but I was recommended it by a friend and since it's spooky season, decided to give it a try. Despite my low rating, I don't consider this a bad book. My reading experience was decent and I think it had a lot of potential but it didn't quite meet my expectations.
To start with the positives: it was a short book and could very well be completed in one sitting. The writing style was quite simple and easy to follow, and it was chock full of desi cultural references which were pretty amusing to read. If you're not used to reading/watching horror, this book could deliver on the spooky vibes - especially if you read it in the dark.
But there's also a lot of things that I think the book could've improved upon. For one, the language. It was simple and easy to follow, yes but also way below the level you would normally expect from a published novel. It reminded me of fan fiction or the short stories you can find on creepypasta and other such sites. In a way, that was rather nostalgic as it reminded me of the scary stories my friends and I would share on the bus ride while we were on a school picnic trip, stories that were often made up on the spot just as quick entertainment. That's perfectly fine for short stories made up by school kids, but when you have a fully published book for an adult audience, you're usually looking for something a bit more sophisticated. Also, at times, the word choice felt awkward and ill-fitting, like the author was trying to be poetic and use metaphors or make her writing more purple but it just wasn't working. There were also a handful of typos in the book which could have been avoided with another quick run-through by the editor.
Another thing that I wish had been done better was the character and plot development. It's not easy to write realistic characters with depth when it comes to short stories, and I suppose when it comes to horror novels, sometimes you don't really care about the character development anyway. But I felt like almost all the short stories in this book followed the same premise - a (usually unhappy/involuntarily) married couple having domestic troubles exacerbated by jinns. The wife in almost all the stories was one who did not do well in school and settled for being a housewife, the husband was always either distant or abusive. There was just no variety, which was a little disappointing.
And lastly, the book did not deliver on the horror I was looking for. It had some creepy vibes yes, but if you're familiar with the genre, there's nothing too shocking in this book. In fact, I felt like there were scenes which could have potentially turned out very creepy or disturbing but the author did not spend enough time building up the tension for it to have the same effect. If this were a TV show, it would've had a quick jump scare and that would have worked wonderfully, but when it comes to books, you really need to work your way up to that moment.
Like I said, I did not dislike the book, but I'm sure this isn't the best the author has to offer and I look forward to her future works and all the progress she's made in her writing by then.
February 5, 2025
“It is never good to keep something that you do not know the history of. Things have souls too.”
“But, you see, life doesn’t knit sweaters that fit.”
I did not like how the author wrote. Let me clarify, the stories were good, with open endings forcing us to think the most possible or horrible outcomes.
BUT☝️🙂↕️🫸 the thing I didn’t like about this book is how author tries to force her own beliefs into the stories. Mind I say it was borderline hidden misogyny. While the female characters were educated, the focus wasn’t on how much of a personality she has, rather the focus was on how good of a wife she can be and how soon she can get married. And every female lead’s focus was only on becoming someone’s wife throughout the whole book. Author wrote that the female is at the perfect age to marry and is like a ‘ripe fruit’ RI- EXCUSE ME!? RIPE FRUIT!? 😦
Then there’s also other things like describing emotions or face expressions by the most atrocious examples, A fml felt a spark between her and her groom to be and the feeling is described as “the feeling of undigested samosas in my lower stomach” Uhmm what are we doing here!? Also saying that children bring parents together is such a desi typical thing to say which is not true.
“Hira did understand Farhan’s sarcasm but she always pretended not to, because she felt it made her appear adorable in front of him. And she very much enjoyed being told off – well, because it was Farhan after all.”
Being stupid, acting stupid and childlike who cannot understand sarcasm made her appealing to a man is not a cute gesture, rather a very serious one. Male gaze is predatory and behaving stupid and childlike to look appealing is feeding into it 🤮 on the other hand ‘enjoyed being told off’ uh excuse me what the actual freak is going on!?
“But, you see, life doesn’t knit sweaters that fit.”
I did not like how the author wrote. Let me clarify, the stories were good, with open endings forcing us to think the most possible or horrible outcomes.
BUT☝️🙂↕️🫸 the thing I didn’t like about this book is how author tries to force her own beliefs into the stories. Mind I say it was borderline hidden misogyny. While the female characters were educated, the focus wasn’t on how much of a personality she has, rather the focus was on how good of a wife she can be and how soon she can get married. And every female lead’s focus was only on becoming someone’s wife throughout the whole book. Author wrote that the female is at the perfect age to marry and is like a ‘ripe fruit’ RI- EXCUSE ME!? RIPE FRUIT!? 😦
Then there’s also other things like describing emotions or face expressions by the most atrocious examples, A fml felt a spark between her and her groom to be and the feeling is described as “the feeling of undigested samosas in my lower stomach” Uhmm what are we doing here!? Also saying that children bring parents together is such a desi typical thing to say which is not true.
“Hira did understand Farhan’s sarcasm but she always pretended not to, because she felt it made her appear adorable in front of him. And she very much enjoyed being told off – well, because it was Farhan after all.”
Being stupid, acting stupid and childlike who cannot understand sarcasm made her appealing to a man is not a cute gesture, rather a very serious one. Male gaze is predatory and behaving stupid and childlike to look appealing is feeding into it 🤮 on the other hand ‘enjoyed being told off’ uh excuse me what the actual freak is going on!?
December 7, 2022
The Bhabi’s of Lahore & other forbidden tales of the city is a book by Ayesha Muzaffar. It’s based on supernatural entities or djinns as we call them. She has inculcated the myths and beliefs surrounding the djinns prevalent our culture.
This book consists of six different stories with varying themes like, marriages, myths, supernatural events.
All the stories have the same theme of spookiness and mystery with a desi touch. We can relate with the stories because growing up, we have heard all of those stories in a way or another.
This book consists of six different stories with varying themes like, marriages, myths, supernatural events.
All the stories have the same theme of spookiness and mystery with a desi touch. We can relate with the stories because growing up, we have heard all of those stories in a way or another.
June 26, 2022
The story “Mera mehtab” was left incomplete on Instagram and completed here. It broke my heart into a million pieces. Phenomenal writer.
April 11, 2023
DNF. Weak storytelling and prose (really tried to like it but it was so boring and so badly written)
October 8, 2023
I was underestimating the book I thought it’s less scary than jinnistan but I was wrong it’s scary as it gets create a mahool indulge yourself🎃
October 17, 2025
oh god i was so scared j now, reading the last story😭😭😭 LOVE THIS
July 3, 2022
Loved the narrations. Jo bhi ho, aisay gripping writers bohut kam hain Pakistan main!
July 19, 2024
Listen, this one may not be a review rather than a rant, but I'll try. I may not have anything against Mrs. Ayesha as a person, but oh boy does this book infuriate me.
Firstly, the stories need a MAJOR revamp. No kidding. I know she used to post these on Insta and hence collected the stories for the book, but lady, that should not mean your work is over. When reading a story in one go, which is different from waiting for updates on IG, you can tell how the cliffhangers make literally no sense. And I guess that's the point, but when they're forgotten in the next chapter, it comes off as very frustrating. We are told something happens, but then forced to live with it without the writer explaining further. It felt like one of those scary stories I used to write on Facebook when I was thirteen (I do not ever want to read that again), something like Wattpad kids would write.
Speaking of explaining, the way the writer describes stuff sometimes makes me gag. At first, I liked her metaphors interlaced with cultural tones, but sheesh. The writer seems to think that metaphors are all what we care about, while she could've expanded on the characterization and making the cast feel more human, instead the characters rave on about half empty lays packets and-can't forget the most hilarious part;
Sometimes, the things have ZERO relation to whatever is being said. For example:
As a fellow Pakistani, yes, I understand what she's trying to say. But in the midst of a suspenseful encounter, Sajeer reminiscing about Milo and exams threw me out of the loop. If I keep talking about it, I fear this review may exceed the word limit.
There's the weird formatting (come to think of it, did no one attempt to edit or proofread the work at all??) I'm surprised the writer, too, didn't think of re-reading the work. It feels as if she just copied-pasted the entire thing and just went with it. The italicization also irks me. The way some sentences dissolve into utter nonsense, losing their weight, when each and every urdu lafz is italicized. Heck, because of this, I even had trouble recognizing why one sole, english word had been italicized, it wasn't as if it was supposed to have any emphasize. No. What made me lose it was the fact it had been italicized in the SAME fashion as the urdu words; as if it was a foreign word we were being introduced to.
One hilarious example is Momina's face lighting up with THREE different metaphors:
(im mentally crying- the image of her lighting up multiple times like a broken record sends me-)
Then there's the whole pretentious vibe the ENTIRE thing gives off. Her opinions are presented as facts we are supposed to accept. Like one reviewer said, the "friendship for girls is only time-pass" made me mad. I guess this must be a personal preference, because NOT one time I felt obliged to hear her talk. Yes. It felt like she was talking. Call it delusion, if you must, but I almost felt driven to tears with the way her cheeni meeni telling was making me lose the immersion every now and then. I feel the stories were better suited for actually telling them around a campfire, not for reading.
I still don't understand. We occasionally have writers who revel in their skills and have this habit of promoting their subjective opinions as universally-established facts. And we usually go on with our days, knowing full well that we have the freedom to choose what to believe. YET. For some reason, this book makes me want to bang my head on a wall. Multiple times, I felt as though I was being lectured by one of those desi middle-aged adults who thought they were really something, (spoiler alert: they were NOT.)
I don't care, Ayesha. I don't care how many cool relatable cultural references you can pop in your works because I came here for the STORY. NOT inconsistencies and poorly structured plots. And definitely not adverts for your sister's Sugar Scoop Gelatos (that part made me laugh instead of empathizing with Arooj). Speaking of Arooj, what the heck was that story, Ayesha??? That was a sorry excuse of a horror story. I came here for Jinns and Churails, yet I was thrown in the middle of the marital issues of Arooj and Kamil. I did NOT need to know the details of their intimate lives. What. The. Heck. It felt particularly bad because the writer included mentions of jinns and demons right at the END of the story, just so it can be clarified as a 'horror story'. If 'Astaghfirullah reasons' was used to describe the streets of Thailand at night, then why would you go so far as to portray the intimate details???? Did the writer think it made her work more mature? No. The entire cast comprised cardboard-cutouts of each other. There was no depth to them. You could tell that the writer didn't bother to even correct the plot's loose ends.
...Sigh. I'm so tired. I guess the fault lies with me, since I was too short-sighted and chose this book for my research article.
Ayesha, I'm sorry. You may be a fun person, but God forbid I read one of your works again.
Firstly, the stories need a MAJOR revamp. No kidding. I know she used to post these on Insta and hence collected the stories for the book, but lady, that should not mean your work is over. When reading a story in one go, which is different from waiting for updates on IG, you can tell how the cliffhangers make literally no sense. And I guess that's the point, but when they're forgotten in the next chapter, it comes off as very frustrating. We are told something happens, but then forced to live with it without the writer explaining further. It felt like one of those scary stories I used to write on Facebook when I was thirteen (I do not ever want to read that again), something like Wattpad kids would write.
Speaking of explaining, the way the writer describes stuff sometimes makes me gag. At first, I liked her metaphors interlaced with cultural tones, but sheesh. The writer seems to think that metaphors are all what we care about, while she could've expanded on the characterization and making the cast feel more human, instead the characters rave on about half empty lays packets and-can't forget the most hilarious part;
Sometimes, the things have ZERO relation to whatever is being said. For example:
As a fellow Pakistani, yes, I understand what she's trying to say. But in the midst of a suspenseful encounter, Sajeer reminiscing about Milo and exams threw me out of the loop. If I keep talking about it, I fear this review may exceed the word limit.
There's the weird formatting (come to think of it, did no one attempt to edit or proofread the work at all??) I'm surprised the writer, too, didn't think of re-reading the work. It feels as if she just copied-pasted the entire thing and just went with it. The italicization also irks me. The way some sentences dissolve into utter nonsense, losing their weight, when each and every urdu lafz is italicized. Heck, because of this, I even had trouble recognizing why one sole, english word had been italicized, it wasn't as if it was supposed to have any emphasize. No. What made me lose it was the fact it had been italicized in the SAME fashion as the urdu words; as if it was a foreign word we were being introduced to.
One hilarious example is Momina's face lighting up with THREE different metaphors:
Mehtab looked at Momina and smiled. Her face lit up like a Christmas tree, like the flat in the building of Muslims in Ramadan at 3am – her face lit up like the bulb hanging above them.
(im mentally crying- the image of her lighting up multiple times like a broken record sends me-)
Then there's the whole pretentious vibe the ENTIRE thing gives off. Her opinions are presented as facts we are supposed to accept. Like one reviewer said, the "friendship for girls is only time-pass" made me mad. I guess this must be a personal preference, because NOT one time I felt obliged to hear her talk. Yes. It felt like she was talking. Call it delusion, if you must, but I almost felt driven to tears with the way her cheeni meeni telling was making me lose the immersion every now and then. I feel the stories were better suited for actually telling them around a campfire, not for reading.
I still don't understand. We occasionally have writers who revel in their skills and have this habit of promoting their subjective opinions as universally-established facts. And we usually go on with our days, knowing full well that we have the freedom to choose what to believe. YET. For some reason, this book makes me want to bang my head on a wall. Multiple times, I felt as though I was being lectured by one of those desi middle-aged adults who thought they were really something, (spoiler alert: they were NOT.)
I don't care, Ayesha. I don't care how many cool relatable cultural references you can pop in your works because I came here for the STORY. NOT inconsistencies and poorly structured plots. And definitely not adverts for your sister's Sugar Scoop Gelatos (that part made me laugh instead of empathizing with Arooj). Speaking of Arooj, what the heck was that story, Ayesha??? That was a sorry excuse of a horror story. I came here for Jinns and Churails, yet I was thrown in the middle of the marital issues of Arooj and Kamil. I did NOT need to know the details of their intimate lives. What. The. Heck. It felt particularly bad because the writer included mentions of jinns and demons right at the END of the story, just so it can be clarified as a 'horror story'. If 'Astaghfirullah reasons' was used to describe the streets of Thailand at night, then why would you go so far as to portray the intimate details???? Did the writer think it made her work more mature? No. The entire cast comprised cardboard-cutouts of each other. There was no depth to them. You could tell that the writer didn't bother to even correct the plot's loose ends.
...Sigh. I'm so tired. I guess the fault lies with me, since I was too short-sighted and chose this book for my research article.
Ayesha, I'm sorry. You may be a fun person, but God forbid I read one of your works again.
October 30, 2022
Loved it!
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