Ex-best friends, Tiwa and Said, must work together to save their Islamic Center from demolition, in this romantic story of rekindling and rebuilding by award-winning authors Faridah Àbíké-Íyímídé & Adiba Jaigirdar!
Let’s get one thing straight: this is a love story.
These days, Said Hossain spends most of his time away at boarding school. But when his favorite hometown librarian Ms. Barnes dies, he must return home to New Crosshaven for her funeral and for the summer. Too bad being home makes it a lot harder to avoid facing his ex-best friend, Tiwa Olatunji, or facing the daunting task of telling his Bangladeshi parents that he would rather be an artist than a doctor.
Tiwa doesn’t understand what made Said start ignoring her, but it’s probably that fancy boarding school of his. Though he’s unexpectedly staying through the summer, she’s determined to take a page from him and pretend he doesn’t exist. Besides, she has more than enough going on, between grieving her broken family and helping her mother throw the upcoming Eid celebration at the Islamic Center—a place that means so much to Tiwa.
But when the Islamic Center accidentally catches fire, it turns out the mayor plans to demolish the center entirely. Things are still tense between the ex-friends but Tiwa needs Said’s help if there’s any hope of changing the mayor’s mind, and Said needs a project to submit to art school (unbeknownst to anyone). Will all their efforts be enough to save the Islamic Center, save Eid, and maybe save their relationship?
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Dark academia thrillers and young adult mysteries exploring institutional racism, privilege, and hidden corruption have found a prominent contemporary voice in high-concept fiction. British author Faridah Àbíké-Íyímídé gained widespread acclaim with her debut young adult novel Ace of Spades, an instant New York Times bestseller that combines social commentary with psychological tension.
Her expanded body of work includes the boarding school mystery Where Sleeping Girls Lie and the collaborative novel Four Eids and a Funeral, reflecting her versatility across mystery, romance, and speculative storytelling.
Born on October 13, 1999, and raised in Croydon, South London, Àbíké-Íyímídé pursued higher education in Scotland at the University of Aberdeen, studying English, Chinese, and anthropology before receiving her Bachelor of Arts in English Literature. She continued her academic studies by earning a Master of Arts in Shakespeare Studies from King's College London. In addition to writing novels, she has contributed articles and essays to publications including The Bookseller, gal-dem, NME, and Reader's Digest.
Her debut novel, Ace of Spades, published in 2021, received the 2022 NAACP Image Award for Outstanding Literary Work – Youth/Teens and established her presence in young adult literature. Beyond her standalone novels, Àbíké-Íyímídé has contributed stories to major media franchises, including Marvel's Spider-Verse and BBC's Doctor Who. An avid tea drinker and collector of strange mugs who enjoys analyzing Disney Channel original movies, she is represented by literary agent Zoë Plant at The Bent Agency.
Àbíké-Íyímídé specializes in dark academia, mystery, and contemporary young adult fiction that pair fast-paced suspense with sharp social commentary. Her narratives frequently examine systemic inequality, institutional secrecy, and the pressures faced by marginalized students navigating elite academic environments, utilizing dark atmosphere and multi-layered character relationships to drive her plots.
