Book description
A timely and honest coming-of-age story that explores the complicated
relationship between identity, culture, family, and love.
Seventeen-year-old Rukhsana Ali tries her hardest to live up to her
conservative Muslim parents' expectations, but lately she's finding
that impossible to do. She rolls her eyes when they blatantly
favour her…
Why read it?
1 author picked The Love and Lies of Rukhsana Ali as one of their favorite books. Why do they recommend it?
I can’t resist a queer femme YA story, and this one hit me so hard that I cried in joy and heartbreak.
Young lovers separated by culture and family made a Shakespearean drama that gripped me to the last word.
The world of arranged marriages, family honor, and homophobia reminded me of personal stories from friends in Vancouver. It echoed the fights that many queer people face coming out to family and being their true selves.
If you love The Love and Lies of Rukhsana Ali...
December on 5C4
Magical realism meets the magic of Christmas in this mix of Jewish, New Testament, and Santa stories–all reenacted in an urban psychiatric hospital!
On locked ward 5C4, Josh, a patient with many similarities to Jesus, is hospitalized concurrently with Nick, a patient with many similarities to Santa. The two argue…
Want books like The Love and Lies of Rukhsana Ali?
Our community of 13,000+ authors has personally recommended 100 books like The Love and Lies of Rukhsana Ali.
Share your top 3 reads of 2026!
And get a beautiful page showing off your 3 favorite reads.
191
readers submitted
so far, will you?
📚 If you like The Love and Lies of Rukhsana Ali, you might also like...
Broken Boots, Redeemed Soul: A Veteran’s War with Sin and Salvation
Broken Boots, Redeemed Soul: A Veteran’s War with Sin and Salvation, is a raw and faith-centered memoir about life after military service—and the internal battles many never see. Brian Lofton shares his journey through addiction, shame, identity loss, and spiritual distance, revealing how the hardest struggles often begin after…
No Color Is My Kind
No Color is My Kind tells the stories of the desegregation of Houston, TX, in 1960, the life of civil rights leader Eldrewey Stearns, and the author's relationship to Stearns.
They met in a psychiatric case conference while Stearns was hospitalized at the University of Texas Medical Branch. After his…
