Love From Mecca to Medina

Hey book lovers! I’m here with a book review for Love From Mecca to Medina. I was excited to request an arc after loving the first book of the series, Love From A to Z.

About The Book 📚

Title: Love From Mecca to Medina (Love From A to Z #2)

Author: S.K. Ali

Publication Date: October 18, 2022

Publisher: Salaam Reads/Simon Schuster Books For Young Readers

Number of Pages: 352

Suggested Reader Age: 14+

Genre: Contemporary Romance, Realistic Fiction

About The Author

“S. K. Ali is the NYT bestselling and award-winning author of several books. Her debut novel, Saints and Misfits was the winner of the 2018 APALA Honor award, the 2017 Middle East Book Honor Award, and a 2018 William C. Morris Award finalist. Her widely acclaimed second novel, LOVE FROM A TO Z, a story about finding love in the time of Islamophobia, was an Entertainment Weekly Top Ten Young Adult Book of 2019 and a Goodreads Choice Awards finalist . It was also the first teen novel chosen for NBC Today Show’s Read with Jenna Book Club. The sequel to Saints and Misfits, Misfit in Love, was a People magazine best book of summer 2021. Her newest YA novel, LOVE FROM MECCA TO MEDINA releases Oct. 18, 2022. She also has a picture book co-authored with Team USA Olympic Medalist, Ibtihaj Muhammad, THE PROUDEST BLUE, which debuted on the New York Times bestseller list. Her Middle Grade novels include the critically acclaimed anthology ONCE UPON AN EID co-edited with Aisha Saeed, and the soon-to-be-released GROUNDED (Spring, 2023). She lives in Toronto with her family, which includes a very vocal cat named Yeti and his new pal, Mochi.” Find her on twitter at https://twitter.com/SajidahWrites, on instagram at https://www.instagram.com/skalibooks/ , on TikTok at https://www.tiktok.com/@skalibooks

My Review

› “A manuscript, The Marvels of Creation and the Oddities of Existence, housed in the Museum of Islamic Art in Doha, Qatar, is what drew Adam and Zayneb together in the first place, inspiring them, separately, to journal the marvels and oddities they witnessed in their respective lives, including the marvel of meeting each other.”

› Zayneb is an overachiever with a hard “beetle” shell who believes showing her emotions is a weakness. Her husband, Adam is the opposite. He wears his heart on his sleeve and he feels like he’s not successful enough to be married to Zayneb. He has multiple sclerosis, a disease that took his mother’s life when he was nine.

Zayneb and Adam are in a long-distance relationship. She’s currently living in Chicago, and he’s in Doha, Qatar. They’ve made plans for a getaway to The Hidden Blooms Cottage in Sussex, but their plans are suddenly changed when they are gifted the opportunity to do Umrah, a pilgrimage to Mecca in Saudi Arabia where they will walk around the Kaaba (a black square stone building in the center of the Great Mosque at Mecca, Muslims face this when praying). They will also be travelling to Medina to see the Prophet’s mosque.

“But I wonder if people even know where the word “mecca” actually, originally came from. It came from Mecca with a capital M, the place in the Middle East where people have been gathering for thousands of years to visit the first site of worship in the world still standing (according to Muslim people).”

When they arrive in Saudia Arabia, Zayneb learns Adam’s ex is one of the leaders of the Umrah group. A wedge is driven between them. Is it time to end their relationship and move on?

› Characters: 7
The main characters are well-written, but the side characters aren’t as interesting.

› Atmosphere: 7
I wanted more description. I can almost always picture what I’m reading, but had a hard time picturing most of the settings and scenes. However, this was an emotional roller coaster.

› Writing Style: 8
Great readability. I like Ali’s writing style.

› Plot: 5
The beginning was great, then it kind of went downhill for me. The pacing felt off. It wasn’t a page-turner for me, I had a hard time picking it up. I don’t like when a plot revolves around a female disliking another female or miscommunication, particularly when it drags on for 200 pages.

› Intrigue: 5

› Logic: 7

› Enjoyment: 6

Average 6.4

My Rating ★★★

› Final Thoughts
• A romantic, spiritual story that discusses racism, Islamophobia, grief, and love. My favourite part was learning more about Muslims, Islam, the language, the food, and the customs such as Umrah. I feel like I am walking away with an understanding that Islam is a way of life all about love (I hope I’m getting this right).

Love From A to Z ★★★★★
Love From Mecca to Medina ★★★