Totally Addictive

Adored everything about this book. Following Faiza's attempts to untangle a web of lies only to add more knots was addictive. Inhaled it as fast as I could.

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A modern morality tale

I thought this was a really good modern story, a real insight into modern dilemmas, and the devastation of money worries. A me too story, with a positive ending. A real page turner too, and great characters and plot lines. Bravo.

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Well-paced & expertly plotted.

Faiza's husband Tom has just been made redundant from his high flying banking job in the City, but he's not too worried as they have a £75K emergency fund to live off while he looks for another job. What he doesn't know is that Faiza has frittered away every penny in her quest to keep up and fit in with (as the only woman of colour) the uber-rich yummy mummies of affluent Wimbledon Village.

This well-paced and expertly plotted novel follows Faiza as she tries to get the family finances back on track while also covering up her financial indiscretions from Tom, trapping herself in an ever increasing spiral of lies.

Faiza, who is rich, privileged and entirely the author of her own misfortune, could be a difficult character to like, but Aliya Ali-Afzal does a great job with the characterisation, so that I rooted for her despite her flaws. Tom was also a well-drawn, sympathetic character who I cared about.

A real strength of this novel was the depiction of some serious issues - the microaggressions Faiza has to contend with from some of the white mothers in her social circle, the challenges of an interracial marriage and raising biracial children, sexual harassment, mental health and suicide - which were expertly woven into the broader plot so they never felt preachy or tacked on, but added extra layers of depth to what could have been, in less skilled hands, a shallow story about shallow people.

Excellently narrated by Aysha Kala.

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1 person found this helpful

Weak characterisation and dull plot

I listened to this audible book only because it was being read to me clearly and well, and so I could multi-task. The plot was OK, but the writing dragged in places. I disliked having so many unremitting and intricate details of everyone's clothing. It served to underline the shallowness of the main character whose financial incompetence led to an unlikely web of lies that was completely at odds with her Oxford degree and former professional background. I am sure the book will appeal to readers wanting to sink into an easy-read story during their holiday. Having been recommended the book, I chose it for that reason. However, overall, this novel failed to impress.

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