As a Pakistani girl who has consumed so much American media I really wanted this to be good. I wanted it to do justice to the representation us desi girls deserve. But it just flopped. Let me explain.
So you know that joke Taylor Tomlinson did about being a 'self-fulfilling prophecy'- I think that describes Maya perfectly. Like this girl keeps self-sabotaging and she has the worst luck in this universe. Anyways, the first few chapters I found her really relatable but once she reaches the airport I was like nope- 

Ok so when it comes to representation, I understand you cannot cover base for every Pakistani/ Muslim girl experience- but there is a certain generalization one can make that would apply to at least 50% of your target audience. And again, when it comes to religion, you have a spectrum of followers. Contrary to popular belief, at least the upper class In Pakistan has evolved to grow accepting of dating and kids choosing their own matches for marriage.

So I'm okay the hand holding and sticking together in Switzerland. I didn't personally agree with the sharing clothes and sharing a bed thing, but again that is a personal preference. But the cheating- Are you kidding me?

Maya is not a good person. I was not rooting for her. I wanted to sympathize with her. Her situation was a reality many women can relate to. Being promised ‘freedom’ at the cost of marriage- which is inherently ironic. But she was also luckier than a lot of women who are in this predicament. She knew the person she was about to marry and while he wasn’t a romance novel hero, he wasn’t too bad either. The engagement was a commitment.

So her kissing someone days before her wedding, not planning on telling her fiancé, and justifying it with ‘oh I’m never going to see you again so it’s okay’. No, it’s not. 

I didn’t care for Sarfraz. Like him being Muslim and half-Pakistani added nothing to his character except that he spoke Urdu. But you can do that even if you’re not Pakistani. Also I found him to be too hot and cold with Maya- arguing one second, helping her the next. His character was confusing to me. 

Back to the representation.

ARY News. Getting robbed in Karachi. Meeting nice hosts. Wedding functions.

Are you kidding me? She was in Switzerland and not one Dilwale Dhulania Lejaye Ge? It felt too surface level to me. And the henna thing. Girl, stop- Ok also I get Pakistan and its products are far from perfect but why was she trashing on everything? Like stop hating on Jinnah Air or whatever the airline was that was so mean :(

and when they kiss at a PUBLIC BUS STAND IN KARACHI. The one time the people of Pakistan would actually be shocked to witness something is glossed over by the book. Nice.

I think one way to approach this book could have been Maya navigating life after an arranged marriage with someone she doesn’t quite know. Again, a reality for a lot of women. I would’ve appreciated the book maybe giving us hope about how that doesn’t always have to end up bad. Like you can learn to grow and understand each other after marriage. You hear so many horror stories in regards arranged marriages in the desi community, a happy escape could be fun. That would also solve the ‘halal romance’ issue many people had with the book. 

Anyway, if you want to read about Pakistani weddings, family drama and an independent fmc, save your time and just read Unmarriageable instead.