It's difficult to write a review without revealing too much but I loved how the author didn't leave any ends unfinished.

Honestly, if I didn't expect so much from this book I would have liked it a lot better. You see, I am a South Asian Muslim. And I was expecting some sort of connection to the character. At the beginning, things seemed to be going well. Maya dressed like me (no headscarf but still generally modest), did the same things I did, etc.

A lot of people are freaked out over Karim's "I'm drinking wine not eating pork" comment, but it's an ongoing joke (especially in America) that even the most unconventional Muslims refrain from eating pork. (https://twitter.com/bouffpaki/status/998184914720878592 for reference).

She even had crushed on non muslim boys, which is understandable and fine. She ate non halal food, which was questionable but some families have different standards.

Everything went downhill when the whole lake thing with Phil happened. See, I would NEVER wear a bikini out with a boy. I don't know a single Muslim, who identifies as a Muslim, that would do that.

In short, I would have enjoyed the book if it didn't promise representation.

I keep going in between a 1 star and a 2 star. For now its 2 because I have to admit I did finish it in one day. I'm going to skip the little synopsis since the premise is pretty simple. Let's get straight into the review.

I'm not really sure what genre this book was supposed to be. I was expecting a horror/thriller read but it was more of an unrealistic contemporary with a shock value. The whole book could have been half the length. The descriptions of Hanna's abuse towards her mother went on for pages and each one was more outlandish and unrealistic then the next. The first few times, it was interesting. The next 27 times, I just skimmed it. I like scenes that develop plot. Scenes without plot development are boring, no matter how witty or well written they may be.

Hanna is the most unrealistic character I've ever read. Now, I know some books require the suspension of belief but a good part of this novel is dedicated to showing how real and gritty Suzette's life has been so... why not make all the characters realistic? She's seven years old and acts like a teenager at the youngest (maybe a tween and thats stretching it). The author tries to mask it by giving her an overly simplistic narration but unfortunately the vocabulary is way too advanced for the basic grammar structure the character has.

Suzette and her husband would be okay characters if this was a horror type book because you wouldn't need to rely on them for entertainment. BUT YOU DID. They were made to be integral for the story except that they were very 2D. The author tried to introduce depth through an illness but it didn't really relate to the plot and I just ended up skimming most of it.

There were many plot holes in this novel. Why does Hanna hate Suzette? The author provides no explanation. She just *does*. Actually, she wants "Daddy" all to herself. I honestly would've preferred the beaten to death trope of the stepmother over this explanation. And if Hanna is so smart and advanced, wouldn't she have any logical reasoning? Like, "Daddy gives more attention to Mommy when I hurt her so maybe I should stop hurting her"? Nope, its just "I want Daddy" over and over. It's a dumb plot line.

All in all, a good concept but an awful attempt at it.

I honestly didn't think i was going to like this book but i loved it. it didn't seem to suffer from what i call the "no one talks like this" trope and all the characters were so real and fleshed out. I was amazed at the complexity the author managed to put in without making it too confusing. at times i thought the main character was stupid but other wise a great novel.

Laugh out loud funny and gives a lot of insight to the life of someone who achieved over night fame.

I keep going in between 2 and 3 stars. I've decided to go with 2 because although I did enjoy reading the book, it just didn't hold a significance after I was done with it.

I didn't have an emotional attachment to any of the characters. Granted, this is a relatively quick read, but I think for the issue it tackled the characters should've been more fleshed out. It's difficult to judge the dynamic between characters and to truly feel the dilemma they face if you don't care for the characters at all.

Another and more prominent issue is that I couldn't really see this as being realistic. Though I agree some fiction works with the suspension of belief, to actually write a moving novel about rape it has to be realistic. A progressive family would just defend their son? A feminist paper would be read all over the school? Not to mention, the way the characters spoke was just... off. I know this is going to sound trivial but at some point the narrator says Charlie (the best singer in the school), sings like "Adele and Halsey". When complimenting vocal range, Halsey is not necessarily the person I would allude to. It's a small thing that just really put me out of the book.

The novel tries to tackle these issues but they just end up being halfhearted attempts. There's no real resolution and nothing the reader can look forward to. It doesn't fare well compared to other books about rape because it just seems so unrealistic.

I honestly don't know how to talk about this book without giving things away. But I'll attempt.

Actually a 4.5.

The structure of this book is confusing but makes so much more sense towards the ends. Personally, I think it pays off and is worth it.

The plot itself is very intriguing. I couldn't put this book down at all. If I wasn't reading it, I was thinking about it. I knew what had happened to Monday as soon as I read the synopsis but Jackson still kept me on edge.

This book could've been way shorter. There were so many scenes that weren't necessary at all to the novel and I skimmed over them because I didn't care. I think they were attempts to flesh out Claudia but they all felts stilted and strange.

In short, definitely read. It's a very well thought out novel. One of my fav YA reads of 2018.

Although this book was about an important topic, I felt like it jumped around too much. The narration was a little strange and the characters, at times, inconsistent. Although it was fun to read, there wasn't really a message about harassment other then "It happens.". I saw the major twist before it happened, but that wasn't a big deal. It was more the fact that so many horrifying and traumatic experiences were quickly glossed over. They were given the same attention and significance as other menial matters. There was a lot of potential in the book but it remains more of a read-for-fun novel rather than a piece of literature to speak for a movement.

This book is like every other "current issue" novel out there currently. It's well written, and does put up a realistic situation, but it's completely devoid of emotion. This becomes most prominent with Nina. There is absolutely no emotion given from her, she's seen as this ditzy girl who doesn't realize the weight of her actions. The gravity of the situations is completely lost on most characters. The ending feels rushed and lazy. Although this is a engrossing book to read, it has sensitive subject that deserved to be handled better. It is nothing more than traditional women's fiction.

I'm always on the lookout for new South Asian authors/books, being South Asian myself so I was ecstatic when I heard about this series of short stories.

In his debut book, Patel attempts to shatter stereotypes and weave an intricate image of the new generation of Indian-Americans. "Attempts" is the key word here. The stories themselves on their own are fine, but in a book where they are supposed to be read back to back, they become repetitive and boring. Although this is a quick read, I found myself struggling to get through it given the "sameness" of all the narratives. There was no differentiation from one character to the next, neither in tone or in personality. I don't mind overall bleak books but this was just downright repetitive in every sense.

Although this book is advertised as shattering stereotypes, the repetition of the same character with just a different name makes it forgettable. There is no "clashing of cultures" as described in the summary. And having read many books by other South-Asians, the short stories employ the most basic tropes over and over again without the depth that makes them worth reading.

In short, although these stories are well written, they are very similar and reading them back to back creates a very shallow glimpse into the complex lives of Indian-Americans.

(This review originally appeared on my book blog: https://willreadanything.wordpress.com/2019/04/26/review-if-you-see-me-dont-say-hi-by-neel-patel/ )