Thirty-year-old engineer Amira Khan has set one rule for herself: no dating until her grad-school thesis is done. Nothing can distract her from completing a paper that is so good her boss will give her the promotion she deserves when she returns to work in the city. Amira leaves campus early, planning to work in the quiet basement apartment of her family’s house. But she arrives home to find that her grandmother has rented the basement to . . . a barbershop quartet. Seriously? The living situation is awkward: Amira needs silence; the quartet needs to rehearse for a competition; and Duncan, the small-town baritone with the flannel shirts, is driving her up the wall.
As Amira and Duncan clash, she is surprised to feel a simmering attraction for him. How can she be interested in someone who doesn’t get her, or her family’s culture? This is not a complication she needs when her future is at stake. But when intolerance rears its ugly head and people who are close to Amira get hurt, she learns that there is more to Duncan than meets the eye. Now she must decide what she is willing to fight for. In the end, it may be that this small-town singer is the only person who sees her at all.
Source: purchased copy
Amira decides to return home to finish her graduate thesis from the comfort of her home and finds that there's now a barbershop quartet residing there. Can you even imagine? It sounds so ridiculous but it is the setup for one of the most endearing stories I've read this year. The unexpected renters in her home upend her calm sanctuary and it turns out to be not a bad thing. As much as she's unwilling to admit it, being around these oddballs is shaking things up for her. She's been so consumed with school and getting her paper done that she hasn't exactly allowed herself to take a breath. Being forced to recognize that there's life happening beyond her is an eye-opener which eventually leads to her viewing her future differently.
I enjoyed the heck out of this story and seeing Amira grow from an insulated character to one that sees and feels along with others around her. She transitions from being always on the defensive to some willing to giving the benefit of the doubt. I did take delight in her sparring often with Duncan, the gorgeous ginger of the barbershop quartet. They can't quite figure each other out but still have fun needling the other, nonetheless. I liked that Amira was confused by her feelings for him because it shattered her orderly black and white way of looking at life. And Duncan of all people gives it to her straight even if he doesn't know her as well. Amira also helps Duncan open his eyes to new experiences and certain tough realities about his own family. Sometimes an outsider or someone new to the situation offers a different angle that you haven't considered before. On the home front, Amira reconnecting with her family was very sweet. This is where her own awakening comes in handy as she starts seeing below the surface of things especially with regards to familial and cultural expectations within their tight knit community. Amira does a lot of growing up in the little time she's been home.
I had been looking forward to The Chai Factor for months and it didn't disappoint. Heron tackles current headlines such as bigotry and sexism through Amira's evolution. This is a marvelous debut from Farah Heron and I can't wait to read more from her!
~ Bel
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