ARC REVIEW: mad, bad & dangerous to know, by samira ahmed

♡ an ARC of this book was kindly sent to me by the publisher through Netgalley. this does not affect my opinion in any way. ♡

♡ Mad, Bad & Dangerous to Know, by Samira Ahmed

♡ Published by Atom (June 4th, 2020, first published April 7th, 2020)

♡ Genre: YA Contemporary, Mystery

♡ Goodreads ♡ Book Depository ♡

★★★★☆

It is August in Paris and budding art historian Khayyam should be having the time of her life – but even in the City of Lights she can’t stop worrying about the mess she left back home in Chicago. Only when she meets a dashing young Parisian – who happens to be a distant relative of the novelist Alexandre Dumas – do things start to get interesting.

Two hundred years earlier in the Ottoman empire, Leila is the most favoured woman in the Pasha’s harem. Her position is meant to be a gift; but for her it is a curse, as she fights to keep her true love hidden from her jealous captor.

Echoing across centuries, as Khayyam uncovers the scintillating truth of Leila’s long-forgotten life, her own destiny is transformed forever.

Mad, Bad & Dangerous to Know was an adventure, a travel in time and places; reading it gave me a whole new perspective about history, art, and paris.

the story garantees history of arts, a summer of adventures in paris and cute boys. while i found it slightly boring towards the middle, the book was a delightful one. reading it was a blast. i found myself so invested in the lives of khayyam and leila that they felt real to me. i wanted to know what happened next. it’s what kept me reading, especially towards the end.

i found myself relating to the main character, not only in the fact that she’s muslim, but also in her drive to know more about the truth. her development throughout the book was wonderfully executed; she became stronger, wiser, and more mature. however, i wish we got more of all the other characters, especially alexandre, the love interest, because even though he was very present during the book, i felt like he was two-dimensional during half of it. looking back, i get why, but it still felt lacking to me.

i was also astonished to find that the author’s writing improved so much. i have read samira ahmed’s debut, Love, Hate & Other Filters, which is one of my favorite books ever, and even though i read that one over two years ago, i did notice how better the author’s writing style has got.

overall, i really enjoyed this book. it is the perfect summer read for art history lovers, and for anyone who enjoys adventure. i highly recommend you to pick it up as soon as it comes out!

are you excited for this book? have you already read it? what were your thought?

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