Silly, fun, goofy read!!!! UNHINGED in the best way💙
This was such an interesting plot and concept! Iman killed it!

Wow, this was such a charming and delightful read! I didn’t know what to expect but the author’s note at the beginning had me feeling like I’d love the story.

Joonie is such a fabulous and inspiring FMC with how hopeful and trusting she is. It was easy to root for her even when some of her decisions felt wild to me (getting in a car with suspicious individuals???).

I loved Nico too and how he wasn’t some perfect, idealized version of a man that we see all too often with MMCs. Joonie saved their lives while he panicked, and it was so great so see.

I was also pleasantly surprised with how much I enjoyed the fantasy story playing out between the actual story. The only thing I didn’t like is how it’s basically ACOTAR, but that’s just because I’m an SJM hater. It felt weird using SJM/ACOTAR as a template in this story where some of Joonie’s struggles are because she’s a WoC. But I imagine it was the best real world novel to mimic with how popular it is.

Female Fantasy is simply unputdownable.

Iman Hariri-Kia delivers a meta romance and critique on how romance as a genre is not taken seriously. This book is truly a love letter to romance readers and anyone who has ever been told they have to lower their standards to be happy. From Hariri-Kia's author's note, readers know they are in the hands of a writer who feels passionately that enjoying and consuming romantic media, specifically romance books, is a radical act against patriarchy and the marginalization of minorities.

Hariri-Kia's writing is witty, bizarre, and joyously magnificent. It was truly bittersweet to finish this book. Joonie is hands down one of my favorite main characters I've read in a long time.

I will admit, the premise of a fandom-entrenched woman, Joonie, hitting the road to hunt down the man who inspired her favorite romantasy character while accompanied by her pessimistic, non-love-believer brother’s best friend sounded a bit kooky to me at the beginning, but it made my experience of sobbing tears of joy for how moving this story was that much better. I have so much happiness and love and joy in my chest right now there is a physical sensation of molten lava swirling around in there that i’m not sure I’ll ever recover from.

Exactly as it says on the tin—this is a heartfelt love letter to romance readers everywhere, especially those of marginalized communities that are hit doubly hard with every criticism thrown the romance genre’s way. Iman Hariri-Kia gracefully walks a line of tongue-in-cheek humor about our favorite genres and the elements of ridiculousness that can come with them, and poignant praise of how romance has impacted the world for the better, in small circles where women use it to come together and learn about themselves, and in bigger circles where the very existence of our favorite books is a fight against the patriarchy.

My favorite thing I take away from this is the excellent examination of what tropes and mainstays of certain genres tend to appeal to us and why. They’re the things everyone yearns for, treated with respect and a sense of neutrality that recognizes that it’s okay to want these things—worthiness of love, your big heroine moment, etc.—and to feel like you still don’t have them, even when others may view you as being surrounded by them. So we turn to books, where the best of them make us feel like we belong, like we are inherently worthy of love, like we are never too much, like we never have to stop believing in happy endings—something this book has accomplished tenfold.

I’ll now go into my books with an even bigger sense of love and joy, knowing Joonie would be proud of me.

Female Fantasy is a sharp, funny, and refreshingly original take on the romance industry in all its chaotic glory. Her voice is instantly recognizable—witty, compelling, and impossible to put down. And Joonie might just be my favorite FMC she’s ever written.

I loved this book so so much! Iman is such a talented writer, the way that she is able to use satire in her storytelling is executed to perfection. I also love the underlying message of the book. I can’t wait for my friends to get their hands on this when it comes out in October!

A brother's best friend? Sign me up! This book was fun and and the premise is great - a silly and light beach read!.

Our protagonist is a jaded woman who is sure the only man who isn't absolute garbage is fictional - I am sure many book girlies can relate. The fantasy world (which mirrors a problematic book series, but I digress) is interesting in how it's placed into the book, like seeing two stories at once. Nico was sweet and a good balance for Joonie. All in all a fun read!