Ayesha Dean: The Lisbon Lawbreaker

Ayesha is back, with some more traveling fun, fashion, food and another MYSTERY (all the staples of a good Ayesha Dean book!)

Genre: Upper MG

Ages: 12-15

Available: amazon/kindle

Islamic screening: some gender mixing/casual touching, plans of dating, some thoughts of murder/violence (none of these flags are really seriously done- pretty clean)

Islamic inaccuracies: I did notice a page where shukr prayer is mentioned instead of sujood shukr, an alhamdulilah before food instead of bismillah, and a wrongful tayamum both in doing it and the situation.

Australia’s favorite Muslim sleuth is back in her true Nancy Drew style adventure. This time she is in Lisbon, Portugal and is volunteering with an organization. She explores the city, mentioning the rich Islamic history and architecture of Lisbon (something I always appreciate in Ayesha Dean stories). While enjoying yummy pastries and helping kids explore part of the city, Ayesha finds a wallet. But when she tries to return it to the owner, she gets mixed up in a strange situation. Turns out the owner of the wallet is a criminal, and he winds up dead. With his items still on Ayesha, and her partially losing her memory, she ends up in jail. While out on bail, she comes up with a plan to infiltrate the crime organization and expose what happened in order to free herself. I won’t spoil the end…but suffice it to say it is full of adventure, action, and usual awesome Ayesha wit!

I like how Ayesha mentions her religion a lot! She calls on Allah constantly when in trouble, she mentions her pride in her hijab/turban, and is very vocal about being Muslim and how it is a way of life for her! She does prayers, dhikr, duaa and so much more! She doesn’t let any situation stop her from her deen, which is so amazing to see and inspiring for young ones to read.

The story starts with setting the stage and exploring the Islamic historical architecture in Lisbon, and once it gets to the jail part, the story is action packed! I moved page after page to find out what happens!

I do wish Ayesha clarified a little more on the restrictions of dating in Islam in the end, but the story is clean and fun for young Muslims!

Follow @muslimmommyblog on IG/FB for more!