S.K. Ali

Love from Mecca to Medina

fc ♡

Sometimes humans needed to set out on a journey to find their way to the point of it all.

 they had to wake up every day and decide to travel to each other again and again, even if their paths were twisty, or slow, or stalled by a huge avalanche, or cracked in two by an earthquake. 

Because their hard travel days also created days when they flew to each other. 

With hardship comes ease. And that truth was the bigger part of the story

No leaf falls without His knowledge, nor is there a single grain in the darkness of the earth, or anything, fresh or withered, that is not written in a clear record. —Surah 6:59

the miracles, the hardships, the pacing, the climbs, the falls, and the soars, and Adam whispered,  Alhamdulillah

“Okay. Am I supposed to be blown away by this poetic observation? Zayneb Malik, you are my bumblebee?”

 “Yours. Because you’re not a beetle. You’re a bee who works hard for all the world, who loves work, who works without expecting reward or extolling, but just because you want to see a beautiful world for everyone, because that’s what bees do.” 

He reached out for my left hand resting on top of the quilt. And played with my fingers. But then, suddenly, looked down. 

“My mom loved bees. And I know she would have absolutely adored you. Because I completely do. I wish she’d met you

“Why wouldn’t I want to come home every day to the best thing that’s ever happened to me?”

I took her finger gently and turned it around to fit it in front of her own mouth. “Wait. Before you speak, listen to me. My turn now. Okay?” 

 “I want to be where you are. Always.”

 I put my own finger on her lips, as her finger had dropped and she was beginning to open her mouth 

I pulled the blanket over our heads and lifted up her chin and kissed her so softly in the dark that she trembled. Then I kissed the sides of each of her eyes. “That’s to take care of the tics. And I’m going to do that every night, insha’Allah. That’s part of my plan 

"did you know that I walked by you several times? First when I boarded, with my head down like the worst spy undercover in existence, with this very obvious hat of Sahaan’s on my head. Second time, when I went to the bathroom near your seat and came back hoping I’d catch your eye then. But you were engrossed in your phone. And so then I just paced a few times by you until you looked up. Pacing actually works.”

I turned quickly so she wouldn’t see the giddiness taking over my face as I thought of finally having Zayneb beside me on a flight.

Just as I lifted my head from tucking my phone into the seat pocket in front of me, I saw him. Adam. Walking toward me on a plane the same way he had that day my life had lifted to soar.

She had just looked up after tucking something into the seat pocket, and her eyes grew large on seeing me. I nodded at her. And said the same first words I’d risked saying to her, a stranger, one day, words that had brought love into my life. “Assalamu alaikum.” 

“Ad—walaikum musalam!” She unbuckled and stood up swiftly, her arms already going around my neck. Well, this part is different from when we first met. I’d wanted to re-enact the whole thing in slow motion, but Zayneb was already snuggling into my chest. 

"only if we don’t stay out too late. Because remember you were going to pick me up for Fajr?”

 I let go of her fingers and put my arm around her shoulders and led her to the others in our little group

"I feel like I took your sense of care and consideration for granted. You probably suffered quietly through a lot of it.” 

 “I’m here for you until you can set out on your own. And I’m grateful I can be here for you.” 

I didn’t need to take things off my plate. I needed to put the right things on it.

As soon as my bare feet hit the cool floor around the Kaaba, I started crying when I spoke the same words I’d said before but without letting their meaning penetrate my heart. 

Labbayka llāhumma labbayk, labbayka lā sharīka laka labbayk, inna l-ḥamda wa n-ni’mata, laka wa l-mulk, lā sharīka lak. 

"neither of us signed up to be in a relationship with perfect people.” “And asking you to please not be a flawed human doesn’t allow me to be one either. And I’m the humanest human I ever did see.” 

Adam, struck quiet by her simple brilliance, couldn’t think of what to add to the truth of her statement. Except: “Will you forgive me for being a flawed human, then?” 

“Yes,” Zayneb whispered, before commanding, “Now forgive me.”

And then she hung up before he could ask her where she was right now, where she was going, where she’d taken his heart to

I picked up the call faster than I’d ever picked up anything in my life

Yes, it was a trail. A litter-free trail to the gate at the back of Sausun’s house. 

Zayneb had been here. She’d most probably sat here next to the water, because she loved water, and then, while walking back to the house, picked up the garbage on her way. 

That was her. Action with impact, without fanfare. But always action

"we’re not tasked with the outcome of anything. A lot of my anxiety in life came from thinking that it was all in my hands.”  “But only the effort is in our hands, Adam. We can’t force or focus on what the end looks like; that’s in Allah’s hands" 

《 Focus on the things you can control. 》

The way Janna put it was more deen centered, though. More spiritual.

 《 You’re not tasked with the outcome. That’s in Allah’s hands. Yours is the effort. 》

"the honest effort—you gotta do that part"

"if you don’t do the effort, and the outcome doesn’t turn out how you like it, you can’t say it wasn’t meant to be.

And it is He who has set up the stars so that you might be guided by them when the land and seas are dark. —Surah 6:97

the most important human to me—the Prophet himself—had said so long ago. He said he would continue to struggle with his mission until a woman could travel on her own from Syria to Mecca without a single fear for her safety

“[Bees] take your habitations in the mountains and in the trees and in what they [humans] erect….” There emerges from their bellies a drink, varying in colors, in which there is healing for people. Indeed in that is a sign for a people who give thought. And it is He who has set up the stars so that you might be guided by them when the land and seas are dark….  

  At the time I needed it, these words were comforting to me. To know that there was something more to it all and I just had to pay attention. Knowing that I could do something to make sense of my world was the deepest relief

I’m the type of girl who gets shoved aside by society. 

But I constantly try to deny this truth. And think if I just hustle harder than everyone around me, I’ll be worthy, finally.

I’d been playing a caricature of a girl on top of the world 

But I was actually a limp puppet lying in a box of discarded toys, spent, suppressing a villainous laugh for trying so damn hard to be lovable

Sajiya Chaudhary

Immediately after finishing the first book in this series, I jumped to this beautiful story. Although it's pretty clear there's a lot of miscommunication between Adam & Zayneb here, it's understandable why that would be. Sometimes anger rises above every other emotion, and it's difficult to think straight - which happened way too many times here. Anger as a result of jealousy, sadness, and frustration. But this story was heartwarming, it takes place in the most beautiful place in the whole world and is worthy of re-reads just to experience the beauty of Mecca, the peace and tranquility of Mecca & Medina. 
I love that every part started with verses from the Quran that were analogical to the scenes, situations, and emotions that our characters were going through at the time. Even though there is less interaction between Adam & Zayneb here, it's refreshing to see them going through rough patches and still being able to solve things and love each other through it all. 
I don't want their story to end with this book 🥺 Please can you write more books with Adam & Zayneb, Sajidah <3
Thank you for bringing Adam & Zayneb to life!!

Disclaimer: I received this e-arc from the publisher. Thanks! All opinions are my own.

Diversity: American Muslim MC (Pakistani/West Indian descent), Canadian Muslim convert MC with Multiple Sclerosis (Chinese/Finish descent), other Muslim and Muslim convert characters, Jewish character

Recommended For...: young adult readers, new adult readers, contemporary, romance, Muslim

Genre: YA Contemporary/NA Contemporary Romance

Age Relevance: 16+ (romance, war, Islamaphobia, homelessness, alcohol consumption, illness, white supremacy, religion, sexual content, vomit gore)

Explanation of Above: There is a lot of romance in this book between our two MCs and some very vague sexual content mentioned. The romance is mostly hand holding, love affirmations, and stolen kisses. There is one fade to black scene and the characters have had their Nikah ceremony. There is some Islamaphobia and white supremacy mentioned and shown in the book. There are scenes and mentions of homelessness. There is alcohol consumption mentioned (not by the main characters). The Muslim religion and a Muslim pilgrimage is mentioned and shown throughout the book. There is also some vomiting shown and mentioned in the book.

Publisher: Salaam Reads/Simon Schuster Books for Young Readers

Synopsis: Adam and Zayneb. Perfectly matched. Painfully apart.

Adam is in Doha, Qatar, making a map of the Hijra, a historic migration from Mecca to Medina, and worried about where his next paycheck will come from. Zayneb is in Chicago, where school and extracurricular stresses are piling on top of a terrible frenemy situation, making her miserable.

Then a marvel occurs: Adam and Zayneb get the chance to spend Thanksgiving week on the Umrah, a pilgrimage to Mecca and Medina, in Saudi Arabia. Adam is thrilled; it’s the reboot he needs and an opportunity to pray for a hijra in real life: to migrate to Zayneb in Chicago. Zayneb balks at the trip at first, having envisioned another kind of vacation, but then decides a spiritual reset is calling her name too. And they can’t wait to see each other—surely, this is just what they both need.

But the trip is nothing like what they expect, from the appearance of Adam’s former love interest in their traveling group to the anxiety gripping Zayneb when she’s supposed to be “spiritual.” As one wedge after another drives them apart while they make their way through rites in the holy city, Adam and Zayneb start to wonder: was their meeting just an oddity after all? Or can their love transcend everything else like the greatest marvels of the world?

Review: I really loved this sequel! I thought it was better than the original and I loved seeing how in love Adam and Zayneb were. I loved seeing what happens after the first book and how Zayneb is navigating law school and homelessness while they both deal with a long distance marriage also while Adam struggles with unemployment. The book focuses on their unexpected decision to do the pilgrimage from Mecca to Medina and how their love ebbs and flows along the way. The book did much better with the character development and the world building remained immaculate. I also thought the pacing was much better written in this one, I thought this read was super informative and I learned so much from it, and overall I loved it so much. I was also very impressed with how the author cut out all of the HP references that were plaguing the other book and I thought the book was better for it.

The only complaint I have with the book is that I did think that the ending was a bit too scrunched up, like it didn’t have time to fully work out naturally.

Paige Green

Disclaimer: I received this e-arc from the publisher. Thanks! All opinions are my own.

 

Book: Love From Mecca to Medina

 

Author: S.K. Ali

 

Book Series: Love From A to Z Book 2

 

Rating: 5/5

 

Diversity: American Muslim MC (Pakistani/West Indian descent), Canadian Muslim convert MC with Multiple Sclerosis (Chinese/Finish descent), other Muslim and Muslim convert characters, Jewish character

 

Recommended For...: young adult readers, new adult readers, contemporary, romance, Muslim

 

Publication Date: October 18, 2022

 

Genre: YA Contemporary/NA Contemporary Romance

 

Age Relevance: 16+ (romance, war, Islamaphobia, homelessness, alcohol consumption, illness, white supremacy, religion, sexual content, vomit gore)

 

Explanation of Above: There is a lot of romance in this book between our two MCs and some very vague sexual content mentioned. The romance is mostly hand holding, love affirmations, and stolen kisses. There is one fade to black scene and the characters have had their Nikah ceremony. There is some Islamaphobia and white supremacy mentioned and shown in the book. There are scenes and mentions of homelessness. There is alcohol consumption mentioned (not by the main characters). The Muslim religion and a Muslim pilgrimage is mentioned and shown throughout the book. There is also some vomiting shown and mentioned in the book.

 

Publisher: Salaam Reads/Simon Schuster Books for Young Readers

 

Pages: 352

 

Synopsis: Adam and Zayneb. Perfectly matched. Painfully apart.

 

Adam is in Doha, Qatar, making a map of the Hijra, a historic migration from Mecca to Medina, and worried about where his next paycheck will come from. Zayneb is in Chicago, where school and extracurricular stresses are piling on top of a terrible frenemy situation, making her miserable.

 

Then a marvel occurs: Adam and Zayneb get the chance to spend Thanksgiving week on the Umrah, a pilgrimage to Mecca and Medina, in Saudi Arabia. Adam is thrilled; it’s the reboot he needs and an opportunity to pray for a hijra in real life: to migrate to Zayneb in Chicago. Zayneb balks at the trip at first, having envisioned another kind of vacation, but then decides a spiritual reset is calling her name too. And they can’t wait to see each other—surely, this is just what they both need.

 

But the trip is nothing like what they expect, from the appearance of Adam’s former love interest in their traveling group to the anxiety gripping Zayneb when she’s supposed to be “spiritual.” As one wedge after another drives them apart while they make their way through rites in the holy city, Adam and Zayneb start to wonder: was their meeting just an oddity after all? Or can their love transcend everything else like the greatest marvels of the world?

 

Review: I really loved this sequel! I thought it was better than the original and I loved seeing how in love Adam and Zayneb were. I loved seeing what happens after the first book and how Zayneb is navigating law school and homelessness while they both deal with a long distance marriage also while Adam struggles with unemployment. The book focuses on their unexpected decision to do the pilgrimage from Mecca to Medina and how their love ebbs and flows along the way. The book did much better with the character development and the world building remained immaculate. I also thought the pacing was much better written in this one, I thought this read was super informative and I learned so much from it, and overall I loved it so much. I was also very impressed with how the author cut out all of the HP references that were plaguing the other book and I thought the book was better for it.

 

The only complaint I have with the book is that I did think that the ending was a bit too scrunched up, like it didn’t have time to fully work out naturally.

 

Verdict: It was great! Highly recommend!

Love from Mecca to Medina

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