Title:  Counting Down with You
Author:  Tashie Bhuiyan
Genre:  YA
Rating:  4 out of 5

Karina Ahmed has a plan. Keep her head down, get through high school without a fuss, and follow her parents’ rules—even if it means sacrificing her dreams. When her parents go abroad to Bangladesh for four weeks, Karina expects some peace and quiet. Instead, one simple lie unravels everything.

Karina is my girlfriend.

Tutoring the school’s resident bad boy was already crossing a line. Pretending to date him? Out of the question. But Ace Clyde does everything right—he brings her coffee in the mornings, impresses her friends without trying, and even promises to buy her a dozen books (a week) if she goes along with his fake-dating facade. Though Karina agrees, she can’t help but start counting down the days until her parents come back.

T-minus twenty-eight days until everything returns to normal—but what if Karina no longer wants it to?

I enjoyed this read and learning more about Karina’s life and culture. She’s a fascinating character and a lot of fun—especially when she’s with her two best friends. I did not, however, find Ace believable or realistic in the slightest. Sure, he was wonderful and perfect, but…a 16-year-old boy who’s perfect and always does the right thing is the opposite of believable. He’s not a bad boy. He’s super nice and respectful, and he apparently falls for Karina without knowing a thing about her. So, while I enjoyed this read, I never lost sight of the fact that it wasn’t believable.

Tashie Bhuiyan is based in New York City. Counting Down with You is her debut novel.

(Galley courtesy of Inkyard Press in exchange for an honest review.)

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