Rating: 3 out of 5.

This is a touching coming of age story about Sabiha, a 16 year old girl living in Australia with her mom. They moved to Australia from Bosnia and lived a typical life there until her grandfather joined them from Bosnia. After that, Sabiha’s mother decides to become a dutiful Muslim daughter and fit back into the Bosnian community and wants Sabiha to do the same. Sabiha doesn’t want to do that, and can’t understand why things can’t stay the same. At the beginning of the book Sabiha is a typical spoiled, rude, self-absorbed teenager and isn’t very likeable. She is struggling with the changing friendship with the best friend from her former school, fitting into a new school, her first crush, trying to care for her mother, and deal with her interfering family.

This book deals with serious subjects such as religion, culture, mental illness, growing up and finding your place in the world. It is well-written and the story flowed smoothly. I liked learning more about the Bosnian culture and traditions, as well as the Muslim religion. The information was integrated seamlessly into the story without sounding like a lecture or an educational pamphlet. I could relate to Sabiha’s teenage struggles and think this would be a good book for teens and young adults to read. I listened to this book and the narrator did a fantastic job.

I received a complimentary copy of this book from the author and Love Book Tours. All opinions are my own.