Thank you to Simon Teen for the gifted e-arc!

Bibi is a materialistic boy crazy Bangledeshi-American teenage girl who visits Bangladesh with her family for her sister’s wedding to a tea garden heir. There is tension between the two families as the grooms family don’t believe they are good enough for their heir. At this, she and the grooms brother devise a plan to “break up” the engagement, but in the process could there be another love connection brewing?

I really enjoyed this! This is a heartwarming YA title about love, culture, and the merging of two families! I am enjoying reading books about cultures other than my own. I’m learning more about the Asian culture and how marriage is often arranged and about pedigree over love.

I enjoyed getting to learn more about Bangladeshi culture. I’ll never get tired of reading about young love and coming of age! I loved seeing the growing pains and character growth of Bibi.

DNF at 20%. The Clueless comp should have been an indicator this could be very hit-or-miss for me. I don’t mind an unlikable heroine (I love them, even), but the way the book was executing “privileged girl gets a job” felt rather obnoxious. “Farmer chic?,” complete with name-brand everything?

What a fun, refreshing YA romcom!

I loved Taslim's previous novel, so I was very excited to meet Bibi and get wrapped up in her hijinks! I really adored the Bangladeshi culture and everything we learned and saw through Bibi's eyes; all the descriptions of the food and cities really made me want to visit!

I really loved Bibi and Sohel's romance; they were both so snarky with each other, but it soon gave away to some blooming sweetness between them and it had me kicking my feet and blushing once they realized their feelings for each other! I also really loved seeing Halima and Sunny come into their own while dealing with both their families, and finally showing who they truly are to their loved ones, even if it went against everything they wanted for them. I also loved that Bibi stuck by her sister's and family's side throughout it all, and in the end, got to experience her own little romance story!

All in all, another fun read from Taslim - I look forward to more in the future!

really fun and swoony romcom with a nice set of protagonists and a plotline that's remarkably effective. 5 stars. tysm for the arc.

Thank you Simon teen for an arc!!

Absolutely loved this book. It was a heartfelt, emotional story about sisterhood, family and romance. Bibi was hilarious and overly dramatic which I deeply enjoyed as someone who is also a drama queen. :)

Bibi almost get her first kiss but her parents have to ruin it. After she getting caught hanging with boy her parents grounded her by make her work at her family restaurant. Her father one rule is no boys until her older sister gets get married. But things change when her sister Halima coming back home with her mysterious new fiancé. The mysterious fiancé is Sunny is the heir is a princely estate turned tea garden in Bangladesh. The next things she knows, she is on plane to Sylhet for her sister wedding. That’s where she meet Sunny family, the Rahmans who disapprove of this engagement. So Bibi team with up Sunny younger brother Sohol to broke them up. Along the way Bibi start to catch feelings for Sohol. Now would she get her happily ever after she stirs up trouble for her sister engagement?

💭I love Always be my Bibi. This is second book I have read from Priyanka Taslim. Her first book I have read is The love match (I believe it’s my first YA rom-com, which open the door for me to rom-com/romance books) Both time she have make me cry. I really try not to spoilers. I love she wrote the relationship with family, specially the relationship with bibi and her grandma. I favorite chapter is 23. Since I get e-arc and I believe is not the final copy, I kind dislike the great big book of Biodatas parts bc I can’t understand what going on. So hopefully in physical copy i hopefully will understand it.
4.75 ⭐️

Always Be My Bibi not only has a catchy title and beautiful cover, but the story inside is upbeat and fun! The premise could've easily become too heavy, but that author keeps the story moving and entertaining for the reader.

3.25 stars rounded down

I liked the story overall. I enjoyed Bibi and her growth as a character. I LOVED her love interest, Sohel, and his backstory and sweet/sassy personality. I really liked their siblings and the dynamics of their families. The setting was beautiful, and I liked being in Bangladesh for the majority of the story.

So why a middle-of-the-road rating? This book was trying to do too much. There were 3 "major" plots, so none of them were able to breathe and fully given the time they needed in the story. Plot 1) The wedding and "sabotaging" it. I did read an arc copy, so I'm hoping this was better fleshed out in the final version, because I didn't see them do much to sabotage their siblings' wedding. There were a couple of things, but nothing major or unforgivable. Plot 2) Bibi finding a boyfriend by going on dates according to biodata. This was pretty random. Plot 3) Finding Bibi's grandmother's lost love. This was pushed in a couple of times and shoehorned in at the end for Bibi to realize something about her own romance. I liked all of these plots, but they would randomly come in and out because the author was trying to do too much in too little time.

Overall, this was a fun, low-stakes story about first love. I enjoyed myself.

Thank you to the publisher for providing me with an arc copy in exchange for my honest review.

I’m living for all the new South Asian books releasing this year, and this might be one of my favorites.

Always Be My Bibi follows Bibi Hossain, a spoiled Bengali teenage girl living in America. After getting caught breaking her father’s #1 rule- no dating, she’s forced to work at her family’s famous fried chicken chain all summer. When her sister suddenly announces she’s getting married, Bibi finds herself staying at her to-be brother-in-law’s tea estate in Bangladesh. After meeting the horrible family her sister’s marrying into, she is determined to stop the wedding at all costs, even if that means teaming up with the groom’s insufferable younger brother.

This was such a fun summer read. I loved Bibi’s character development, as well as the romance. The history of both the tea estate, as well as the families was explained really well. I also appreciated the classic South Asian family dynamics that were shown in this book. Both relationships, (Bibi and Sohel as well as Halima and Sunny)’s relationships were adorable to read about, and the obstacles both couples had to overcome made this book hard to put down. It had the right balance of being a quick, fun summer read, as well as a book about the importance of a healthy family.

this was such a sweet book!!! I am a sucker for the "rich girl goes to new place and falls in love" so I was eating this up man!! it also made me very hungry cause all the mentions of food sounded so good

Before we talk about the book, I need you to do me one tiny little favor. Look away from here, go listen to the song Fabulous from the High School Musical 2 soundtrack. Why? Because that song and the mc of this book Bibi, have the same vibes. It really sets the ambiance.

Now, back to the book. Always Be My Bibi is the quintessential summer read that has a little bit of everything for everyone. There’s romance, family drama, more romance (because Bibi’s sister is getting married), Bengali culture, finding a long lost love (so more romance), and it’s just overall a really fun time. At first I wasn’t sure if I was going to like Bibi, because she comes across a little spoiled but she grew on me quickly because of her heart of gold. I very quickly found myself rooting for her happiness and loving the relationships she was building with everybody around her.

I have no complaints, seriously one of my favorite books I’ve read lately. Thank you to Simon Teen and the author for the gifted copy.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for granting my request to read this e-ARC and provide my honest opinions.

I absolutely love YA romance, and this one was such a cute, slow-burn story! Bibi may be spoiled, but she’s also confident, outspoken, and unafraid to chase what she wants.

Apart from the romance with Sohel, one of the things that endeared me to the story was the description of Bangladesh; it felt as if I was right there, experiencing all the shenanigans Bibi was up to.

Through the course of her sister’s wedding to the wealthy, traditional Rahman family, we see Bibi grow from a spoiled girl into someone who truly values the little things.

Overall, I adored the slow burn, the character development, and the beautiful cultural backdrop. Thank you again for the e-ARC!

I wanted to like this book i really did. A desi wedding set in bangladesh sounded amazing but unfortunately i was just disappointed. I think the whole story was kind of all over the place and that made it difficult for me to connect with the characters. Still I did really enjoy the setting and there were some cute moments. I really appreciate more Bangladeshi authors writing about Bangladeshi characters and I also did enjoy the author's debut novel but this one just missed the mark for me.

I love cute YA books that are easy to read, have great characters and a great plot. This book follows the fmc as she serves her summer punishment and goes to Bangladesh for her sister wedding. I loved the fmc so much, she is an almost 17 year old thats over the top in the best way, outspoken and sure of herself. I loved all the trouble she got in even when it was an annoying teenager move. I loved all the culture and cultural aspect of the book as they are from Bangladesh. This is a destination book and the descriptions of when they were in Bangladesh transported me there and i want to go. I also loved all the challenges the fmc and her sister faced regarding the wedding and fitting in with the fiancés old money and very cultural family.

The romance was so cute, its a slow burn that was properly earned especially with the first meeting and the dislike to love. I liked the matchmaking aspect and the friendship build and all the shenanigans. Overall this was a great ya romance and i recommend. Thanks to Simon Teen for this arc!

Always Be My Bibi 🕶️🍹💍💒✈️
4⭐️
1 🫑

This was such a fun YA romance! I really loved the premise of Bibi hoping for her first kiss over the summer, only for her dad to ban kissing until her sister’s wedding. It was low-stakes but super fun!

I’ve been a huge YA romance fan since Jenny Han and Stephanie Perkins. This book will definitely appeal to both older fans of these authors, and newer readers to the genre.

This does have a “spoiled kid” energy to it, but to me it feels like a young adult low-stakes White Lotus from HBO in a way? There were a lot of first-world problems and I ate up the drama of it LOL

3⭐️ because I don’t think I was the audience for this book. Overall hard to engage. I didn’t get out of the book the culture experience I was wanting based off the synopsis.

Best wishes & thanks for the egalley!

THANKS TO THE SIMONTEEN AND NETGALLEY FOR THIS EARLY COPY 

Who doesn't like a rom-com with rich culture? I am all about finding POC exploring their culture and finding love. Grand weddings are a bonus. I was so excited to read a book about Bangladesh's culture.

Habiba "Bibi" is a spoil brat. Her father Royal Fried Chicken is a successful food chain in the USA, so they are rich. Halima is her older sister, who is smart, pretty, independent, and all the other qualities a good desi daughter can have. She had her mind set on going to law school where she was accepted. So, it was a surprise when she announced that she wanted to get married to Sunny in Bangladesh and settled there, skipping the law school plan. Sunny's family is riches in Bangladesh and more traditional than Bibi's family. Bibi is dying to date, and this summer in Bangladesh allowed her to date with her parents' permission.

Okay, so the book had so much potential to explore culture beautifully, but it quickly fell as a secondary or tertiary thing. The author tried to tackle many topics, but it quickly turned into a messy, underdeveloped, and shallow narrative. She also kept introducing new half-baked characters like Pokemon and dropping them on the way to never mention them again. Everything was more about words than action. The characters were either annoying or completely selfish, especially the protagonist, Bibi. She didn't come across as sassy and funny but more disrespectful, self-absorbed, and selfish. There was supposed to be a good relationship with her sister, but I never felt that she kept hurting her. Though I agree with her reasoning, the way she tackled things was just naive. Her age and her actions also didn't match, at least make her 18-20, if she is just planning to get married to every other guy. The romance felt forced, with zero chemistry in all of the supposed couples. Haleema's character took a 360 turn and turned into a damsel in distress which doesn't make sense, but guess it was necessary so the story can proceed.

I also don't like this narrative in POC books, where MCs born and raised in the USA go back to their parent's homeland and instead of learning and respecting the traditions, tries to change everything. The author clearly made the other characters unlikeable so that Bibi could come off as some kind of hero with a “savior complex.” I agree, that there are several issues in different cultures but there certainly can be some middle ground or better way to navigate these problems.

I wrote this rant which means this book frustrated me a lot. I was hoping to find a cute rom-com instead I got the book with a desperate and spoiled teenager who thinks everyone is stupid.

4.5 stars!

This was such a fun and breezy read! It seems that no matter the mood I'm in, I'm always down to devour a YA romcom. Expect rich kid shenanigans, designer brand name drops, and mouthwatering descriptions of food. Exactly my cup of tea :)

Bibi is spoiled, yes, but she is so likeable that you can't help but root for her. She's confident, caring, and she loves hard— her familial relationships were one of my favourite parts about this book. The new friendships that Bibi made were also cute! And of course, her blooming romance with Sohel was just romcom perfection. Snarky at first, then sweet (also, obsessed with how the author described them as bratty fashionista x broody farm boy and fried chicken princess meets pretentious tea prince)! I loved the little messages they wrote to each other in Bibi's book of potential matches (The Great Big Book of Biodatas). I felt that both Bibi and Sohel were really well-written characters, as their motivations, dreams, and thoughts were realistic and understandable, so even when I disagreed with some of their actions, I could see where they were coming from.

Priyanka Taslim's writing is so gripping and the imagery in this book so vivid, which allowed me to immerse myself in the gorgeous setting of the tea garden. I also liked the discussion of the history of Bangladesh, especially with its relationship to tea, since that is a topic I know very little about. Again, I really loved the writing style, so I'll definitely check out 'The Love Match' when I can!

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for providing me with an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I cannot read this because it is not compatible with Kindle. But I am sure it's great! I love the cover and the synopsis.