Hani and Ishu's Guide to Fake Dating was a lovely wee contemporary romance following two Bengali girls trying to find their place in life while dealing with external issues.

This book presented authentic antagonists ( who frustratingly didn't receive the consequences they deserved), and great sister dynamics. Hani and Ishu had their flaws but I still liked both of their characters. They both had their struggles whether it was meeting parent's expectations or dealing with toxic friendships but they helped each other grow into themselves.Their romance was sweet and tentative and I really enjoyed seeing their feelings develop for each other (although the first kiss wasn't the most consensual).I also really enjoyed immersing myself in aspects of Bengali culture which I love consistently in Jaigirdar's books.

However, I had a difficulty distinguishing the characters at the start, they were different in terms of characterisation yet their internal monologues were written similarly so I had to keep looking back at whose perspective I was reading from. The synopsis also says that Hani is popular but I really wasn't getting much of that from her interactions with other people. This book was definitely more character than action driven as there wasn't much going on, the middle part dragged quite a bit and it wasn't keeping me as engaged as I'd hoped.

Overall, Hani and Ishu's Guide to Fake Dating was a cute contemporary romance dealing with many important themes. It's not necessarily a favourite but I enjoyed it and would definitely recommend it.