To cure her post–senior year slump, made worse by the loss of her aunt Sonia, Noreen is ready to follow her mom on a gap year trip to New Delhi, hoping India can lessen her grief and bring her voice back. In the world’s most polluted city, Noreen soon meets kind, handsome Kabir, who introduces her to the wonders of this magical, complicated place. With Kabir’s help—plus Bollywood celebrities, fourteenth-century ruins, karaoke parties, and Sufi saints—Noreen begins to rediscover her joyful voice. But when a family scandal erupts, Noreen and Kabir must face complicated questions in their own relationship: What does it mean to truly stand by someone—and what are the boundaries of love?
Author
My fourth YA novel, The Marvelous Mirza Girls, is out now! It's a book that's very close to my heart. “Gilmore Girls meets vibrant New Delhi in this thoughtful and hilarious new novel about a teen facing family expectations, relationship complications, and hidden secrets in a new country.” https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/5... My third YA novel, Mariam Sharma Hits the Road, https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/3..., about three best friends on a road trip through the American South, is out June 2018 from Harper Collins. It's the first YA road trip book featuring South Asian Americans! My second young adult novel, That Thing We Call a Heart https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/2..., is out in May 2017 from HarperTeen. It features complex, Muslim-American characters who defy conventional stereotypes and is set against a backdrop of Radiohead’s music and the evocative metaphors of Urdu poetry. My first novel was Skunk Girl. https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/3.... I edited the anthology Alchemy: The Tranquebar Book of Erotic Short Stories 2 (Tranquebar Press, 2012). https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/1.... You can find out more here: www.shebakarim.com.
