Bustle ‘Bout Books: Review- ‘Paper Moon’ By Rehana Munir

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Name: Paper Moon

Author: Rehana Munir

Genre: Romance fiction

My Rating: 3/5 stars

*NOTE: I am extremely grateful to Harper Collins India for sending me this book. However, this does not at all hinder my honest opinions regarding the book. This is a spoiler-free review. All opinions are solely mine.

‘Paper Moon’ by Rehana Munir is a collection of journeys- journey of the protagonist Fiza who makes her way through a plethora of emotional bumps, journey of a bookstore that she sets up, and journeys of all other characters that come to play huge roles in her life.

I love the concept that the book is based on. Grief and growth are themes that remain constant throughout. Although Fiza is the central character in the book, I like to think of it as the story of the bookstore ‘Paper Moon’.

The book is about Fiza whose father left her for unclear reasons. Even though Fiza’s mother Noor has outgrown the pain to a large extent, she does not feel completely comfortable talking about her husband. Fiza soon finds out that her father has passed away and has left her the opportunity to open a bookstore. It’s almost like a puzzle. Why would a father whose part in his daughter’s life is completely blurry, leave her with the wish to open a bookstore? To add to the puzzle, enters a man named Iqbal- a complete mystery in himself who has an unbacked interest in Fiza. Who is he and why is he so secretive about it?

The story moves at a very fast pace in the first 100 or so pages and I remember thinking to myself if any more major plot development was going to happen. There came a point where almost everything in the book became predictable and that point came pretty soon for me. But, I was still glued to it because the story doesn’t promise all sunshine in the end. The end of the book provides a pretty good closure.

What I really appreciate about the book is that none of the characters feel like they are just forced into the plot. Each and every character has an important place and an individual story.

And now comes my favourite part. The cover is absolutely stunning. I love the artwork and I am pretty sure what makes me love it more is that it has a bookstore on the cover. I love the details and the colour palette and it surely is one of my favourite book covers!