I love when a book surprises me like this one did. When I picked this book, I thought that it would center the immigrant experience based on the word "dreaming" in the title. Although the immigrant experience definitely plays a significant part, the narrative unexpectedly ended up being a really cute (and relatively reasonable) retelling of the rom-com "While You Were Sleeping," a family favorite. Within this framework, Rai has room to explore character growth and reactions to things like immigration issues, cyberbullying, body issues, friendship complications and more. I really enjoyed this.

Rai's YA novel is a great window into the life of an American citizen with an undocumented family. Sonia's mother is deported and now she lives with her sister, trying to stay off the radar as much as possible. This becomes harder when Sonia saves the life of her crush and now must work to keep her identity a secret to prevent the spotlight shining on her and her family's secrets. This heavy topic is balanced with a sweet romance and so much descriptions of delicious foods. This was such a good coming of age novel with a lot of great representation.

Best-selling romance author Alisha Rai released her debut YA novel, While You Were Dreaming, and it is so good! Sonia is a teen living with her undocumented sister, Kareena, after her mother is deported. Sonia lives in constant fear of her family's circumstances being discovered, and she tries to make herself as invisible as possible. One day, when her crush, James, accidentally falls and is in danger of drowning, Sonia - in cosplay superhero costume - jumps in to rescue him, becoming a viral sensation. At the same time, Sonia ends up connecting with James's family, who don't realize that she's the person who rescued their son. So is James crush-worthy, or are the sparks flying between Sonia and James's older brother worth exploring? Readers who love Ms. Marvel and Sendhya Menon's rom-coms will devour this delightful read. Sonia is a smart, relatable main character surrounded by an interesting, developed cast. Rai touches on the stresses of living undocumented in America by exploring Sonia and Kareena's sometimes contentious relationship and through Sonia's desire to remain invisible for her sister's sake; the pain of living apart from her mother comes through loud and clear. Hand this one to your rom-com fans for sure; they will thank you for it.

I like Rai's adult novels and looked forward to this YA venturea nd wasn't disappointed. I enjoyed the leads and the friends and family around them. AND Rai was thoughtful sensitive and honest about what it might be for undocumented young people trying to survive and protect each other. highly recommend.

While You Were Dreaming is a captivating YA novel that tackles complex issues of undocumented immigration, online fame, and fake dating, all while exploring the nuances of teenage love and relationships in a really fun and unique way. Its story also explores and examines the impact of social media, online fame, and viral videos, and the impact these things can have on our lives. It's a thought-provoking but highly enjoyable read for teens and adults.

What happens when you save your crush from drowning while in your cosplay, run away from the scene, and then find yourself questioning everything you ever thought you knew?

I must not have read the synopsis correctly during my first glance at it. Because for some reason I wasn't initially motivated to read this book. What a mistake, because I ended up loving this as soon as I started reading. Sonia is crushing on James, but classically doesn't know. After closing at her job she decides to put on her newest cosplay outfit before walking home. When she sees James by the water, falling, she goes full hero and saves him. The problem is, no body can know so she flees the scene. What is Sonia to do know when everyone wants to know, who the mystery person is who saved their friend?

Things I loved about this book.
- Sonia was amazing and relatable. A girl with anxiety, who struggles to speak her mind. But, when she finds the courage she ROARS!
- I loved the relationship between Sonia and her sister Kareena. I loved reading about them repairing a relationship after something so traumatic happened. Also, Kareen stood up for Sonia and said everything I wish someone would have said for me.
- I think I just love Alisha Rai's writing style. This isn't my first book but someone in each book I read from her. The pacing of her books are perfect for me, and she writes relationships that always have my stomach in butterflies.
- I loved her relationship with the MC. <3

This is a great YA, slight romance, with themes that make you really connect with the characters. 4 stars, and 10/10 experience.

✨Book Review✨
While You Were Dreaming by Alisha Rai
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
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This book blew me away. It is Alisha Rai's YA debut, and it was a GREAT one. Before I started it, I was confused at why a YA coming of age type story needed to be almost 500 pages, but as soon as I started, I was hooked. It could have been even longer. In fact, I'm hoping for a sequel!
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This book had wonderful lead characters, who at times could be very frustrating, but always came through in the end. It detailed so many aspects of relationship dynamics, good, bad, and complicated. I also loved how it showed so much about the experience of living undocumented in the United States.
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I would highly recommend this book to anyone who loves YA and wants to read a sweet story about family, love, and romance. This book bumped up Rai onto my list of favorite authors.

I've read a few of Rai's adult romances and was curious what her young adult debut would be like. Just like with adult titles, her prose never really sparks much for me and I don't have much interest in cosplay. However, all the characters are very likeable and I think this will find an audience for sure.

In While You Were Dreaming, we immediately are placed smack dab in the action. And from the beginning, I loved Sonia. The ways she's just trying to balance her midnight rescue with staying under the radar to not draw attention to herself. To not draw attention to her sister whose presence in the US is in peril. I felt Sonia's fear which lives coiled in her stomach. How her and her sister are getting by, but struggling alone and how she doesn't have anyone to turn to.

This story line alone was enough to draw me through While You Were Dreaming. But Rai delivers a main character who is also struggling with her sense of self. She feels disconnected from her heritage because her mom is gone and her cultural touch points make her feel abandonded. That particular element was a big punch to the gut for me.

I got this book solely because it is by an Indian author. I don't really like this cover and the title doesn't make sense to me eve after reading the whole book. I don't think the blurb conveyed much either, but because that didn't affect my reading experience, I'm not going to consider this in my rating.

Sonia is an American teen of Indian origin, with a dull social life, especially after her best friend ditches her. Her life takes a crazy turn the night she jumps to save her drowning crush wearing a comic outfit. She immediately flees from the site and is desperate for absolutely no one to discover her identity as the savior "Shadow". Little does she know that the many loose ends everywhere are very close to being found.

I can't find any fault in this beauty whatsoever. Sonia is a great MC with so much personality and motivations. She feels too real and is currently at the top of my 'Fictional People I Wish were Real' list. I found that even the supporting cast played a big part in building the story. No matter how little showtime each character gets, they leave a lasting impact on Sonia.

The story has a mystery vibe to it, so saying anything at all about it will be a spoiler. The turn of events is quite unexpected with events that make you grimace, tense, and swoon as if you you were in the scene. Alisha Rai gets full credit for being a skilled writer. I can almost guarantee that once you pick this up, you will find it hard to put down.

Irrespective of your age or usual genre preferences, I believe this will suit most readers. A kiss is the most you will find in the book, so it's quite low on spice. I hope I've convinced you to go and order your copy ASAP <3

Thank you to NetGalley for an eARC in exchange for an honest review!

While this book had glimmerings of promise, and the premise was appealing enough for me to request an early copy, it ultimately didn't fully follow through on that.

Sonia's anxiety was the main thread that ran through this entire book. Anxiety about being found out, about her sister being found out, about her crush, about her lost friendship with her ex-best friend. The anxieties kept being piled on poor Sonia and while they seemed to be gone by the end of the book, almost none of them had a satisfactory conclusion. The plot itself was fine, but not sure what to do with itself. The synopsis given by the publisher was a little misleading, as this was less about Sonia's secret than about her day to day life and struggles with the above anxieties.

Sonia was an okay character, if a little thinly drawn. The side characters, however, were solidly one-note and none were developed particularly well.

Overall, it just wasn't very compelling or enjoyable to read. 2.5/5

Cute story with a fun premise, I read it in one night!

Many thanks to the author, publisher, and NetGalley for the advanced copy of the book.

4.5 stars

Sonia has a crush. James is popular, and she is sure he has no idea who she is, apart from the girl who sells him coffee before his shifts at the comic book shop. All that changes when Sonia sees him fall into a canal late one night and dives in to rescue him. In a comic book style costume. News gets out about her heroic action, but no one knows who she is because she ran from the scene of the accident. While she is a full US citizen, her sister Kareena is not. And since their mom got deported six months ago, she has done her best to lie low and not bring attention to herself for fear of her sister being found out, too.

Time passes, James is released from the hospital, and people still don't know who rescued him. Can she keep it a secret? Or will she be responsible for Kareena's deportment and her own probable entry into foster care?

I liked this book a lot. It dealt with some very big, complicated issues, from deportation, to anxiety attacks, to bullying. I cared about Sonia and Kareena, and about what would happen to them. There was lots of representation, Indian culture, and mental health among them. I liked how comics were woven into the fabric of who Sonia is, and how sewing became the thing that soothed her. It is a thoughtful, nuanced coming-of-age story, with a bit of a love triangle, and lots of swoony moments that gave me butterflies. Her relationship with her sister evolves wonderfully, as does her introduction into James' family. It is also a story about finding the courage to let people in, even though they might possibly disappear. Sonia's growth is beautiful to watch.

This is a great YA/new adult story with heart, tension, and personal development of the main character. I would definitely recommend it to anyone who enjoys reading YA.

I was given a digital ARC from NetGalley and I am voluntarily leaving this review.

Thank you NetGalley and publisher for this ARC publication for an honest review.

While You Were Dreaming
by Alisha Rai
Pub Date: 21 Mar 2023

I adored this book! It was unique and had a lot of different angles to the storyline, but I didn't find it distracting. There is the sweet, cuteness of a rom-com but there are some dark issues weaved into the book, too. Deportation of a parent, "illegal sister" and the stress of someone finding out, medical issue, bullying from a "mean girl," betrayal/loss of a best friend,...you can feel the despair and the heartache from those topics, but the light, fun stuff perfectly balances it out! I loved the romance (even though there is a slight love triangle, but you know who "the one" will be), the superhero mystery, the new friendships established, the "While You Were Sleeping" vibe, Niam and James supportive family, food talk...this is a wonderful multi-layered book with strong character development and a lot of emotional depth. Plus, who can forget the sweet swoon-worthy romance!

5 stars

I love While you were sleeping so this was just the perfect book for me, as soon as I saw the title it drew me in and I got excited even more when I read the synopsis. This book was beautiful and so thoughtful Alisha Rai manages to balance the issues of immigration and growing into adulthood so perfectly, I liked the fact it really shines a light on immigration and how it affects real people, not just statistics or an unknown factor, that the people in power’s decisions affect humans ! I loved all the characters and this is a great addition to YA romance and these need to be far more prevalent in schools and libraries

I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.

I've had this in my NetGalley queue for ages, and finally picked it up - and so glad I did! I've read Rai's other rom-coms (aimed at adult audience) & this is her first teen book and it is great -- I really liked the title's little homage to (I am assuming) the movie "While you were sleeping" where Sandra Bullock's character falls for the brother of the guy who's meant to be her love interest -- very cute. (Not sure kids will be attuned to this, and maybe I just fabricated the connection from nothing but hey, to a forty something year old reading this it makes a fun connection...)

There are lots of important issues brought up in this (but not in an ostentatious way - the issues, for the most part, meld seamlessly with the plot) -and you can feel the weight of stress on Sonia -- not only the usual issues of navigating teen social life, social media, the 'mean girls', parties, part time jobs, boyfriends etc -- but also the overlying source of stress in her life due to undocumented family members.

There were a lot of different angles being explored - the cos-play & the former best friend, the older sister & her health issues, the absent mom, the boy Sonia thinks she likes & then the brother who she actually likes (This relationship between Sonia and Niam was one of my favorite parts of the book!!) There was almost TOO much at some points, and some topics and relationships feel a bit rushed, but overall this is a great YA read!

Ms Marvel meets While You Were Sleeping....

Meets YA real world undocumented issues.
Sonia, a junior in high school has a massive crush on fellow junior James Cooper, who she ends up saving in some cosplay.
A fast paced, fresh spin on YA with some real life issues thrown in for good measure.
Recommend.

I absolutely adored this book! It covered some more heavy topics, and really had the reader feeling every emotion that the characters were feeling. I loved the evolution of Sonia's relationship with her sister. They were both going through something difficult and traumatic, but they had each others backs when it mattered the most, and especially at the end. The whole book I hated her old best friend but then you find out why she stopped talking to Sonia and I felt so bad for her too! This was such a fantastic book, with well written characters and a plot that keeps you hooked from the very beginning. I cannot wait to see what Alisha comes out with next!

Do you love the movie While You were Sleeping? How about a YA version with a twist? :
Accidental Superhero - Sonia has to work during her local comic con. But after work, she dresses up in a superhero costume
Affectionate Rescue - then she sees her crush fall into a canal and goes to rescue him.
Anonymous Attention - the problem is, Sonia’s sister is not exactly a citizen, and her mom has been deported. So she can’t have any attention on herself for fear of it disrupting her family
A Brother - however, when the brother of the guy she rescued comes into the picture, Sonia can’t help but admit she might like him more.

I watch While You Were Sleeping every year during the holidays so this book really was one I couldn’t not pick up. I really liked the homages to the movie without it being totally derivative. You can’t help but want to protect Sonia while also wanting her to be happy. The characters in this book are also so fun including her sister Kareena, who takes care of her,and her new friend Hana who is so unique she jumps off the page. This book is a must if you like any YA romance books.

Cute!

This book deals with immigration and the effects it can have on a family. While there is good representation of this in the book it is not a heavy book.

Sonia deals with so much in this book from her family to her friends to following her dreams. I loved this character and her journey.

Thank you NetGalley for the chance to read and review.