now, rep problems aside, i also have qualms and concerns with bhuiyan's writing, which, not only uneven in pacing, seems to fail at fleshing out characters to be truly dimensional and tangible. i admit that i am holding this author's works to a higher standard, because i truly had hope and high expectations for her work, and i always want to see women of colour succeed in an industry that seems to predominantly cast light on white women(sjm, cassie clare, colleen hoover, regarding ya and romance publishing spaces). after reading em's review, which reports this book to be no greater than bhuiyan's previous work, i am disappointed, to say the least. Does Mina like any specific directors? Cinematographers? Composers? Is she excited about any new releases? She apparently likes screenwriting, so who’s her favorite? She doesn’t even step foot in a movie theater until Emmitt **Rents One Out For Her.** Does she care about the politics of the entertainment industry, its history or future accountability? USC's film school serves as this distant green light at the end of the bay, but USC is a 1. primarily for grad students and 2. highly specialized and specific. So what part of the industry is she truly passionate about? i don't personally share the identity myself, and i am not claiming to be someone who can speak for the authenticity of the characters bhuiyan portrays. but when muslim, bangladeshi-muslim american reviewers speak up and share their thoughts about how harmful the rep in 'counting down with you' was, its a warning sign that can't be ignored. All her film club scenes are bland. Like Mina is supposed to be this aspiring screenwriter but there’s zero film terminology used in the story beyond a wayward movie references. I never got the impression that Mina was a die hard film lover like she was made out to be. The conflicts she had with Rose and Anam were also lukewarm with little stakes. Even the eventual college decision and film contest competition was passed off without any satisfying plot conclusion. I had really high hopes for A Show For Two after reading Counting Down With You last year, but overall I feel like Tashie Bhuiyan’s sophomore novel fell short of the bar I had set. While the premise of the novel sounded so interesting and had so much potential, I think it ultimately ended up being CDWY but in a different font. The novel also had so many plot arcs, characters, and themes clashing with one another that it was hard for me to connect to any of the romance.

I don't know what else to say about the main character. I think you get how much I didn't like her. However, the rest of the characters were really good. I love Emmitt, Rosie, Anam, and Grant. I’ve aged out of this genre. I spoke to a friend who is currently reading this (and who also read Bhuiyan’s previous novel) and we’re just baffled by so many elements at work here. I will be going into detail so this is the heads-up for SPOILERS, though it is a standard young adult contemporary novel, so make of that what you need. i'm not even going to comment on the "romance" bc it's truly forgettable. not a single scene between mina and emitt was memorable. i've already forgotten every interaction between them. Emmitt has his own plan - he'll help Mina if she helps him with his photography contest. Mina, desperate to find anything that will help her get closer to USC, agrees to his terms and thus begins this new partnership. When Mina's world starts to slowly fall apart around her, she sees Emmitt as a constant, reliable presence and their bond shifts. But she still needs her out, and nothing will distract her from that. Not even the people who are important to her.bhuiyan's bff irl is chloe gong (i think at least lol) and emmit's mother is called..... claire.gong. i-- and if it's not just them, it's mina with emmitt, whose first meeting is absolutely terrible and riddled with so much antagonism and i couldn't help but wonder " how are they possibly going to soften up to each other? and then i just found myself so caught up in the adventures they take around new york city, capturing so many moments together on film, it was like they were in a motion picture with them as the starring leads. seeing the way they lower each other's defenses and genuinely connect over their shared love of the arts and how it connects to their lives, it was very sweet and so incredibly heartfelt because there's so much surprise they find in how much they come to relate to each other. it's as if they couldn't even fathom the idea of the other being an equal of sorts and yet as soon as that line connects them both, they bond so well it made me shriek with how much my heart bursted at the seams (honestly). Book Genre: Contemporary, Contemporary Romance, Fiction, Health, LGBT, Mental Health, Romance, Young Adult, Young Adult Contemporary, Young Adult Romance

From production to performances and comedy to collaborations: Nahal Ashrafi wants to explore it all and admittedly, while i am no longer quite as susceptible to the ya romance genre as i once was, now prefering more mature, hard-hitting romances that focus on adults dealing with the realities of life and whatnot, i can say that i will still look out for bhuiyan's later releases. i believe there is potential to be found and maybe something will work for me. I wish we had explored the details of Mina's relationship with her parents more. One of the most emotionally resonant things in the novel is that she got her love of the movies from her parents taking her to the theater when she was younger, and despite that relationship souring as she grew up, she still loves cinema. She questions multiple times what it was, when it was, that changed. The most logical thing to do would be a revelation as to why Mina's parents treat her and her younger sister so poorly. It would not need to be forgiveness or absolution, abuse victims don't owe that to anyone. I do however believe that it would be context and emotional nuance that the story sorely needs. I know that life doesn't necessarily provide closure or answers like that, but fictional narratives do, which is why we return to them constantly, again and again. In conversation with Chelsea College of Arts, MA Curating and Collections 2020 graduate and ‘In Transit’ founder Celina Loh

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There was the representation aspect, which, as always, I adore reading about. The struggles of living among people who would maybe not understand the struggles you face, and I felt like that was delved into thoughtfully and quite well.

New from the author of Counting Down with You comes a sparkling YA romance about an aspiring screenwriter who falls for the indie film star who goes undercover at her school. emmit is literally the LI in cdwy (forgot his name)--down to the "bad boy" smirks and the rings and brooding personality that's just a cover for his sad, vulnerable heart. also they both have secret passions their parents would disapprove of so you can empathise with how HARD their poor lives are How shallow the familial relationships were (I believe they were flesh and cardboard, so it’s an improvement! Right?) I think this has been my problem with books from this author and Asian representations, be it South Asian among others. See, I am from the Hispanic community, so I have no hand to judge it, however, BECAUSE I’m part of a minority, I can say that not all parents are like that, and it’s sad that all the Asian representation I see nowadays just touches on that aspect. Yes, it’s incredibly accurate, more so than most, however, I believe that there is some good to be found. Some understanding to comprehend in how the parents act. Don’t get me wrong, trying to dictate your child’s way of living is unforgivable, but I feel like the main character and her sister made them out to be worse than they were.The photography contest was so cuuuuuute!! LIKE YGUIKJHGFGTYUJBVFGYUJ, TYPE OF CUTE. OKAY? WHY AM I SCREAMING? HAVE NO CLUE- She frustrated me sooooo much. I get that she had a lot of family issues with her parents, but that is no excuse to treat everyone like shit? She literally met a stranger on the street and without even knowing him, started insulting him because she has anger issues. Not only that, she also never considered her best friend's feelings or her sister's!! She was mad at the world for a good 90% of the book. The arguments were super ridiculous and most of them could've easily been avoided if she were more empathetic.