I’ve read and loved many of Alisha Rai’s novels, so I was thrilled when I saw she wrote a young adult novel. As a high school teacher, I love having new books to recommend, especially books that address many of the issues teenagers face.

What works:
I love the first-person point-of-view. Sonia Patil is an excellent character and her voice echoes that of many young people.
I love that Sonia was not a doormat despite her desire to “hide” from her classmates. She refuses to let herself be bullied and in doing so, escapes the cliched “good girl” persona who is targeted by a mean girl.
Sonia’s mother has been deported and her sister is not a legal citizen. While Kareena is old enough to be her guardian, both sisters strive to fly under the radar and keep any attention off themselves. This is a timely and relevant topic, especially for many young adults.
The similarity to the movie While You Were Sleeping is fantastic. The love triangle wasn’t clear cut and I definitely saw James’ appeal.
The role of social media is teenager’s lives was realistic. In particular, the inability to have any privacy and also stop much of the bullying and voyeurism.
Even the bullies had redeeming qualities, or at least a backstory that defined their characters rather than turned them into caricatures.
Sonia’s friends were multidimensional characters. Hana was probably my favorite and the developing friendship between the girls was hilarious and heartwarming.
Sonia’s strong need for parental figures drove many of her decisions, rather than a superficial interest in boys. However, the romantic relationships were also well-developed. Niam was definitely an excellent character!

What didn’t:
It ended rather quickly. I hope this is a series and we can get Kareena’s, Hana’s, or even Candice’s story next.
I have to wait too long to order this for my classroom!

When I picked this book for review from Netgalley (and thank you Netgalley) it was because of the author, and I did not realize it was YA.I do enjoy a well written YA,, and this is indeed well written. Our protagonist, Sonia is Indian and The cultural markers are wonderful.
First of all, the underlying problem is that Sonia's mother was deported, caught up in a raid at her work place. One of the worst parts of the way our government works is that children are left behind. The mother first came on a medical visa, pregnant with Sonia because the sister , Kareena, had leukemia and came for a medical trial.
The characters in this book are very real and do typical teenage stuff and don't do things that usually make me want to punch someone in the face!
There are many kind people who watch out for Sonia, who is a sewing genius.
I really like that people eventually actually talk things out, so misunderstandings don't fester. There is a hopeful and happy ending.

Excellent story telling by Alisha Rai! All of the plot devices had actual story and care behind them making the book I finally believe able and enjoyable. I can’t say enough good things about the character and story development in this book.

My only critique is that some of the dialog was difficult to follow when they are talking about rumors and gossip with several character some of which you will never meet. But it barely deterred from the story.

ARC generously provided by Net Galley and Quill Tree Books in exchange for fair and honest review.

I was hooked from the beginning of this one. The characters are well developed and I found myself itching to figure out where it was all going and how everyone was connected.
It involves cosplay, romance, family, and friendships. I liked watching Sonia and Niam's relationship develop as she was also getting closer to James. I liked the food and the brother's family and how they really welcomed Sonia in.
This was an interesting and fun read.

Thanks NetGalley for this ARC!

You had me at “While You Were Sleeping”. Having seen the classic Sandra Bullock/Bill Pullman 90s romantic comedy approximately 75 times, I leaped on the chance to read and review this one before it came out. The fact that I was already a huge Alisha Rai fan was just icing on the cake. The only thing that made me slightly hesitant was the fact that this was her first YA novel, but it was totally worth the chance.

I’m always slightly nervous with YA novels as I think many authors fail to do their teenage characters justice. Teenagers are fully fledged humans, even if they are still figuring life and their identities out. Rai’s characters felt relatable and realistic to me and I loved their respective journeys. Hana, in particular, was a GEM, and I wish I had been as cool as she was at her age. Hell, I wish I was as cool as she was NOW.

While I couldn’t culturally relate to some of the things affecting Sonia (the main character), I appreciated the window into lives dissimilar to my own, especially when her emotions and feelings were 100% relatable.

I found myself wanting more interaction between the main character Sonia and James’s family, as this was part of the magic of the original rom-com. For example, there could have been a fun and spunky grandmother providing comic relief! There were also a few moments that bordered on cheesy and convenient, which prevents me from giving this book a perfect five stars, but ultimately I thought it was really great. I will happily check out any books from Rai in the future.

Many thanks to Netgalley and Quill Tree Books for sharing a digital reviewer copy with me in exchange for my honest thoughts.

Where do I even start with this book? I always sit down and make a quick list of the things I loved about a book and the things I struggled with before I write the actual review, and it was incredibly hard to find anything I disliked about this one.

Every character in this book felt real and lovable- with flaws and strengths, but of course I saw this especially in the main character Sonia and her sister Kareena. The dynamic between the two sisters was very genuine and made my heart ache for their circumstances.

I don't know how the author managed to take such heavy topics such as deportation, the near impossible path to citizenship and immigration issues and still keep the heartwarming feel of the book while doing justice to these very important issues. It was a perfect blend and I loved every moment of it.

With this being a young adult book, I was very impressed with the ability to capture the fire and innocence of a first love while also making the characters dynamic with accurate internal dialogue and age-appropriate responses to very adult stressors. This wasn't a typical romance between teenagers, and this wasn't a typical "coming of age" story, but somehow it had both elements woven throughout an amazing plot.

And I LOVED the nods to While You Were Sleeping!! That was one of the first parts of the book that drew me in and it did not disappoint at all!

My only complaint is that this is the author's only YA book at this time. She clearly has a gift for it and I can not wait to read her next one!!

Possible TW/CW: deportation, bullying, racism, abandonment, loss/grief, anxiety, near drowning, poverty

*Thanks to Harper Collins & NetGalley for the ARC to review this incredible book**

This book was everything! While You Were Sleeping is one of my favorite 90's rom-coms and with Alisha Rai being one of my all-time favorite authors, I was ecstatic to hear that her YA debut would be inspired by the film! I loved so many aspects of this novel, the ode to cosplay, the South Asian diaspora feels, the desi family dynamics, the thoughtful anxiety rep, the delicious mentions of South Asian and Liberian food, and of course the romance. I cried several times reading this novel--Sonia's experience as a brown girl living in the U.S. with body image issues and anxiety was so accurate to my own experiences as well, and I loved her growth in this novel!

The romance was also so cute! I'm always here for the falling-for-the-love-interest's-older-brother trope, and both the original film and this novel do it so well! I can always count on Alisha Rai for writing a super sweet POC x POC romance, and the romance between Sonia and Niam was adorable!!

If Alisha has any more YA novels planned, I'm definitely going to be devouring them all. This was so great as a YA debut and I can't wait to read more of her work! 4.5 stars rounded up :)

This is the kind of book that keeps you up way past your bedtime!!!

I picked up this book because the inciting incident with the superhero costume intrigued me and then I couldn't put it down. This is the story of American high school student Sonia, who has a crappy job at the local coffee shop with the added perk of being across the street from the bookstore where her crush James works. On superhero costume day, she saves his life and the video of her (masked) rescue and subsequent flight before the authorities arrive goes viral.

Only problem? She's trying to lay low and not attract attention to save her undocumented older sister from being deported like their mother was only a few months earlier. Hijinx ensue as Sonia explores her crush with James, begins to make new friends, works to repair her relationship with her older sister, suffers from the attention of a bully who's also best friends with *her* former best friend, and struggles to keep her secret - all her secrets! - safe. Superheroes usually win in the end, but Sonia's not a real superhero and she is all too aware that real life is not like the comics...

The description for the book says it’s a fake dating book, but it’s not at all. It also calls it a love triangle (which I can see it as more then the fake dating) I don’t think that perfectly fits it. Other then that I did LOVE THIS book! It’s such a unique concept executed beautifully. I absolutely adored all the characters and their stories were wrapped up well. I wish there was a bit more of the story towards the ending (like maybe another scene between her and hana). I was such a sucker for Niam and how his “favorite color” was any color she was wearing.