Release: August 4th 2020
Format: Ebook
Publisher: Little, Brown Books for Young Readers
Source: Netgalley
Find it at: GoodReads , Amazon, Audible, B&N, iBooks, Indigo
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A sweetly funny YA rom-com debut about falling in love, familial expectations, and being a Renaissance Man.
Danyal Jilani doesn’t lack confidence. He may not be the smartest guy in the room, but he’s funny, gorgeous, and going to make a great chef one day. His father doesn’t approve of his career choice, but that hardly matters. What does matter is the opinion of Danyal’s longtime crush, the perfect-in-all-ways Kaval, and her family, who consider him a less than ideal arranged marriage prospect.
When Danyal gets selected for Renaissance Man–a school-wide academic championship–it’s the perfect opportunity to show everyone he’s smarter than they think. He recruits the brilliant, totally-uninterested-in-him Bisma to help with the competition, but the more time Danyal spends with her…the more he learns from her…the more he cooks for her…the more he realizes that happiness may be staring him right in his pretty face.
Author Bio:
I grew up in Karachi, Pakistan, and currently live in Sacramento, California. There have been plenty of stops in between though. I’m a first generation immigrant, twice over. I’ve been a citizen of three different countries and lived in nine cities. I am, as Goethe, said, “nothing but a wanderer […] on this earth.”
Living among different people, in different countries at fascinating times in their histories, has shaped both my view of the world and my writing. Ultimately, human beings are the same everywhere (despite the fact that they tell themselves, everywhere, that they are different from each other), and the theme of this fundamental human unity informs everything I write.
As to my life outside of writing, I went to the William and Mary School of Law, and before that attended the University of Toronto, where I studied English Literature. I am currently practicing as an attorney and must “measure out my life in coffee spoons” on a daily basis.
Some members of my family will tell you that I’m also a poet. This isn’t true. I wrote a few poems in Urdu when I was a teenager, and I’ve never heard the end of it…which I wouldn’t mind, honestly, if they were any good. As it is, I’m very happy living in prose, thank you very much.
Other interests include good food, video games, sitcoms, and books of all kinds. Most of my time that doesn’t go to writing or billable hours is consumed by my two children, four and two years of age.
More than just a pretty face Review:
“More Than Just a Pretty Face” is a charming young adult novel that stands apart in the crowd because of its subject matter, and I loved reading it.
What stood out in the story was the various topics the author discussed as part of the conversations. While the story is a YA contemporary romance, this book offers so much more. From the Muslim traditions to Churchill, the characters contemplate diverse content that blends nicely with the storyline. You rarely see political and religious topics embedded in a young adult novel, and I loved how the author approached them. One of my favorite scenes in the story is when they talk about his grandfather being in the movement and the suffering in India. Yet, not many talks about that in history, which Danyal finds conflicting.
Moreover, the main characters are just the sweetest. I loved Danyal the moment we appeared in the story. He is average at everything yet has aspirations that are frowned upon in his family. You also see the stress he undergoes when he finds out his role as the Renaissance Man. I could easily relate to him and was rooting for him throughout the tale.
Similarly, the way the author progresses the story between him and Bisma was just heartwarming. Bisma is also adorable as the nerdy girl, and the author wrote their chemistry gradually and beautifully. I also adored the relationship between Bisma and Suri. The author portrayed the Indian culture flawlessly in the story.
Overall, “More Than Just a Pretty Face” surprised me and turned out to be better than I expected. I enjoyed reading this book and hope the author continues to write more books in the genre.
