She loves me,He loves me not by Zeenat Mahal

There are few stories which are more than about love and romance where you find yourself rooting for both beauty and the beast.  The latest novel by Zeenat is one such story of fate , hopes , persistence and above all the line we sometimes forget when we cross to the darker side.

Zoella has always desired Fardeen from a distance and even when he was engaged to the sophisticated Neha , she kept her dreams alive . This with the dream to make a name for herself and be independent one day. Fardeen , the brother of Zoella's best friend is the one who never got refused for anything , owing to money, looks and charisma equally blessed on him. A cruel twist in Fardeen's life leaves him alone and Zoella gets chosen to fill his life with care and love. The fairy tale that Zoella always wanted is presented to her with all ingredients of turning into a messy affair if she falters just once.

It is amusing to see how relationship dynamics are so weird and yet predictable at some levels.One can beat anyone at his / her own game andit stand true for both love and hate. Love the lovers and hate the haters lot more than they expect ; and you got their attention. But it is extremely hard work and one that needs lot of patience. Do Zoella and Fardeen have the will and patience to keep up the pretenses and let their presumptions make this tale work is what you have to find out.

The story has a realistic lovely setting of a well settled family, loving siblings and some amazing conversations spread all across the book. It is really sweet how Fardeen's family sides with Zoella and treats her with such cares. The book makes you laugh , smile, curse both Zoella and Fardeen and yet feel hopeful for love , for happy ends that they deserve.

Zeenat has turned me into a mush ball with this book and I could not have asked for another feeling this week. I am a fan of Zeenat's brilliant writing and light books.

My rating :4/5

#Cover Reveal : She loves me,He loves me not by Zeenat Mahal

ZeenatMahal is back with another book  , and since we loved her previous books , We are so looking forward to her latest one.

Presenting the latest book "She loves me,He loves me not" :

Book Blurb

Zoella’s been in love with Fardeen, her best friend’s gorgeous older brother, since she was ten, but he’s always seen her as a ‘good girl’—not his type—and he can barely remember her name. Besides, he’s engaged to a gorgeous leggy socialite, someone from the same rarefied social strata as the imposing Malik family.

Zoella has no chance with him.

Until a brutal accident leaves Fardeen scarred and disfigured, that is. Suddenly bereft of a fiancee, Fardeen is bitterly caustic, a shell of the man he used to be, a beast that has broken out of the fairy tale world he once lived in. And a twist of fate lands him his very own princess—Zoella.

The beast, however, is a far cry from the Fardeen of her dreams. Stripped of her illusions, Zoella creates her own twist in the fairy tale, beating him at his own game.

About the Author

Zeenat Mahal (@zeenat4indireads) is an avid reader and has been writing for as long as she can remember. She has an MPhil in English literature from Government College Lahore and holds a MFA in creative writing from Kingston University, London. She won a BBC short story competition in 2001 and has been a regular contributor to newspapers. Zeenat has eclectic tastes and an insatiable desire to learn. Her romances are a heady mix of the traditional and the contemporary, old world values face the challenges of a shrinking globe that impinge upon and help shape South Asian sensibilities.


‘Haveli’ is Zeenat’s first published novella. Currently she is working on a literary novel with elements of magical realism, while continuing to write romances. She can be contacted on her FB page https://www.facebook.com/pages/Zeenat-Mahal

The Contract by Zeenat Mehal

Circumstances have forced the young divorcée, Shahira, to accept Hussain’s unusual proposition. As per their contract, she’ll have his name, will be paid to look after his ailing mother and motherless daughter and will be left well alone by him. Perfect!

Until her new husband decides to stop playing by the rules…

My views :  After a long time , I am getting to read novellas which have a simple plot , a well thought story and such amazing writing. The charaters feel real , the situations are so much beleivable and above all , the end is satisfying not just for the story ended but I actually felt good for the characters. 

Both Shahira and Hussain have their bitter past to move forward from and they both mistrust each other right from the beginning. It is therefore heart warming to see Hussain make the effort to heal himself and Shahira. Add to the mix are two adorable kids and even more adorable MIL character.

This book is sweet , hopeful and a total feel-good thing ! Perfect for a cold day , accompanied by your favorite drink !

Rating : 4/5

PS : I received a review copy of the book from Indireads.com . The views written are my own.

Haveli, by Zeenat Mahal

One thing that always makes me happy after reading an e-book, rare that I do read one though, is that I don’t feel that I’ve read an e-book. That is to say, it has managed to engage me to the extent that I haven’t felt the strain of reading it. I’m not a big fan of Kindle reading personally, but of late, I’ve read a couple of decent novels on my PC, so happy to note that this book is one of them.

Zeenat Mahal’s book Haveli takes us Pakistan in the seventies, a setting that I have not read previously, and the moti of that mahal is a 20 year old girl named Chandini, who oddly enough, hates her name and calls herself C. The story brews around her, her love for an older man Kunwar and her grandmother, who she unceremoniously and unabashedly refers to as The Broad. The love story is thrown helter-skelter by the arrival of Taimur (promptly nicknamed as Alpha Male) and “the Broad”’s decision to get C married to him. The story is a straightforward one, and has no big twists and turns, though a small unexpected twist does come sometime. I won’t go into even the small details, since it is sure to give away the plot.

So, straight to the heart of it. What’s good in the book is that it is pacey. You can finish it in a couple of hours and not feel bored at all. The characters are interesting and keep you engaged in their story. The main character C is portrayed nicely as well. Simple narration, nothing to make you head for a dictionary. All in all, it works well. What I felt odd was to see the nicknames taking over through the novel. Taimur isn’t called by his name, rather the nickname. Though I do agree that in context of C’s character it is warranted, it being spread throughout the story kind of felt strange. Nothing to the extent of making the book terrible, but still something I personally did not like.

One time read, but a worthwhile one-time read. Engaging and very enjoyable. This is Zeenat’s first publication. Congratulations for that to the author!

In A Gist:

Positives: Memorable characters, simple pacey narration

Negatives: Repetition of nicknames feels a little strange

About the author:

Zeenat Mahal is an avid reader and has been writing for as long as she can remember. She has an MPhil in English literature from Government College Lahore and is currently doing an MFA in creative writing from Kingston University, London. "Haveli" is Zeenat’s first published novella. Currently she is working on a literary novel with elements of magical realism, while continuing to write romances.

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Book Details:

Title: Haveli

Series: N/a

Author: Zeenat Mahal

Genre: Fiction

ISBN/ASIN: N/a

Publisher: Indireads Inc.

Price: INR. 150

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Shared with
1) First Reads Challenge at b00k r3vi3ws
2) Indian Quills 2014 at Tales Pensieve.

Reviewed by Leo, for Indireads.
The book can be puchased via the Indireads website at www.indireads.com

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