Hana Khan Carries On

I was a fan of Ayesha at Last so I was excited to read Hana Khan Carries On. Boy was I not disappointed.This book was just so many things that I'm not even sure words can even contain my feelings. As an Indian Muslim woman I related to Hana, her family and her words on such a deep level. Hana as a character is smart, honest, brave and all I hope to be as a person. She recognises when she makes mistakes and tries her best to right them.Her relationship with Aydin was incredibly well-developed and honestly butterfly-inducing (whilst still remaining 'clean'). Aydin himself was just so lovely.I loved all the characters, though Rashid, Hana's younger cousin, was one of my favourites - he made me laugh every time but also managed to grow on me the way he grew on Hana. He felt like a younger sibling. In fact all the characters felt like real people; like they could have been my sisters or brothers, uncles or aunts.Just like with Ayesha at Last, Uzma Jalaluddin hits it out of the park with this one.

Hana has dreams of going into radio and has a current internship at her local station and also runs an anonymous podcast, and helps out her family's halal restaurant. And during this a new halal restaurant opens up down the street threatening Hana's family's restaurant. Hana will do anything to save her family's restaurant even though her passion is her radio podcast. Aydin is the new restaurant owner's son and he develops a friendship with Hana's cousin who took a surprise visit to Canada and tries to befriend Hana as well.This book is enemies to lovers done perfectly well. But I mainly loved the exploration of culture, expectations and familial relationships. I also loved how it was a modern retelling of You've Got Mail but including real life issues today and provided an insightful view on being Muslim in today's society.Also content warning: Islamophobia and hate crime.

Fantastic book - absolute page turner. Really enjoyed getting to know these characters. There was an excellent twist in the story too. One element was perhaps slightly predictable but it didn’t detract from my enjoyment. Would highly recommend

I found the characters likeable and I liked the modern take on you've got mail even though that did mean I pretty much knew the way the book would go but it did not spoil the ending or how it all turned out. A reminder that life can be complicated but you can start find joy , love and hope in relationships with friends, family and oneself

I loved this book! Full of well-rounded characters with a lovely romance that feels earned, it also touches on heavier themes such as xenophobia. It is thoroughly entertaining and thought-provoking and just all around wonderful.

Absolutely loved the book and went through it very quickly. I need a sequel at some point.Highly recommend this book

The reason I read books are to be privy to a diverse range of stories. This book is rich in culture and vibrant with life.

Headlines:Small town feelRacial tensions personalisedStrong female charactersHana Khan Carries On was a grower of a read, you got to know Hana and the characters better and better and for me, that equaled getting sucked in more. This was a story that started off on the surface but delved deep into family issues and racial tensions of the city (read any city here).This book had a very small town feel to it, which is weird to say when it was set in the bustling city of Toronto. Jalaluddin brought that small town feel by inviting you into the Khan family both nuclear and wider. This story centred on restaurant rivalry, podcasts, online friendships and in real life rivalries. There were some predictable moments but there was also one heck of a twist.I really came to like Hana, she was a strong female from a line of strong females. She knew her mind, her plan until the plan went pear-shaped. There were side characters to really get your teeth into, one fav being cousin Rashid and of course, Aydin.There was some compelling plot around islamaphobia, racial tensions and what that meant personally and to a community as a whole. I think this was really good representation but I do encourage you to look for #ownvoices reviewers, but do note the author is own voices from that city.Hana Khan Carries On makes this two for two from Uzma Jalaluddin, so I will be looking out for her third book with anticipation.Thank you to Corvus for the early review copy.