Are you a hopeless romantic when it comes to finding a soulmate, or do you view matchmaking as one of the Dark Arts? Join us for our February discussion, as we celebrate Valentine’s Day with a Love-Done-Right / Love-Gone-Wrong duet of Ayesha at Last by Uzma Jalaluddin and The One by John Marrs.
Ayesha at Last is a witty, contemporary spin on Pride and Prejudice, re-imagined as a love story set in an Indian-Muslim community. Ayesha and Khalid’s romance charmingly navigates "the intersections of identity, religion, culture, tradition, familial expectations, and personal dreams.” (Amazon)
“Ayesha at Last’s fictional universe acts as a microcosm of a diverse and oft-misunderstood community, and Jalaluddin’s compassionate and sensitive writing about it radiates off the page.”—NPR
The One is a psychological thriller that imagines a world where matches are made through DNA — just a quick mouth swab and you’re matched with your perfect partner, the one you’re genetically made for. The novel follows five characters who are scientifically matched to their one true love, only to find that happily-ever-after can be more of a nightmare than a fairy tale.
‘‘A dark thriller for the Valentine’s Day skeptic.’’ —The New York Post
Both books just came in for me at the library! Any recommendations on which I should read first? (It’s nice to have ONE thing in my life that I’m ahead on…)
@stradmom, I think it just depends on the mood you’re in! My plan is to go dark (The One) and then light (Ayesha at Last), so that I end on an uplifting note.
I have Ayesah as an ebook on Kindle via the library. I just went in person to drop off Harry’s Trees and pick up The One. I’m glad it’s hard copy since I’m about to put up the hammock and start reading.
I had to buy both books on e-bay. None of the libraries in our consortium had either one. They weren’t too bad. I should have them before Christmas. Looking forward to reading them, but I am still missing Harry’s Trees.
I read both books in under 48 hours apiece. Both are pretty quick reads but give you things to ponder, if you’re so inclined. They were an interesting pairing and I could see both considered YA fiction.
Has anyone read Lost Children Archive? I’m reading it for a local book club and am wondering why it’s gotten rave reviews. I’m having a hard time slogging through it.
These days I am not up for struggling with “hard to read” books. I’m waiting a bit to continue starting the Obama book I bought myself as a treat. I’m excited to resume it soon, having completed both of our Feb books. I don’t think there’s a better or worse order to read the two books I read “The One” first, but think it would have worked just fine if I read it second.
