Interview with Aamna Qureshi, author of The Lady or the Lion // a fantastic debut and one of my favorite reads of the year!

Hello everyone and hope you’re all doing well and enjoying your summers. I mentioned in a past post that I had a lot of content coming up that I was looking forward to, and today I have a post that I am so, so excited to share: My interview with Aamna Qureshi, the author of the Pakistan-inspired young adult retelling, The Lady or the Lion!

For anyone who hasn’t already heard of this amazing book, here is a brief introduction:

Title: The Lady or the Lion

Author: Aamna Qureshi

Published: July 20th 2021 by CamCat Books

Genre(s): Young Adult, Retelling, Fantasy, Romance.

synopsis:

Once there was a princess forced to choose a fate for her lover – to a future in the arms of a beautiful lady, or to death in the mouth of a lion? But what came first was the fate she would choose for herself.

As crown princess of Marghazar, Durkhanai Miangul will do anything to protect her people and her land. When her grandfather, the Badshah, is blamed for a deadly assault on the summit of neighboring leaders, the tribes call for his head. To assuage cries for war, the Badshah opens Marghazar’s gates to foreigners for the first time in centuries, in a sign of good faith. Enter Ambassador Asfandyar Afridi, a wry foreigner who admits outright that he is a spy. Stubborn, proud, and suspicious of foreigners, Durkhanai does not appreciate that he won’t bow to her every whim and instead talks circles around her.

And yet, she has to make him her ally to expose those truly responsible for the attack as more ambassadors from neighboring tribal districts arrive at court, each one of them with their own agenda and reasons to hide the truth.When a mysterious illness spreads through the village and the imperialists push hard on her borders, Durkhanai must sort through the ever shifting loyalties at court and her growing feelings for Asfandyar. Will she be able to leave the antics of a spoiled princess behind and become what her people need – a queen?

I absolutely loved this book — you can check out my review for it on Goodreads, and I’ll have a full, in-depth review published once the book releases.

Aamna’s answers are all brilliant, and I loved this insight into the book and her writing process; I hope that you enjoy, and without further ado, here is our interview!

Interview

Hi Aamna and welcome to the blog! To start things off, could you give a quick, one sentence pitch for your novel?

THE LADY OR THE LION is about a desi princess in a Pakistan-inspired world with forbidden love and court intrigues.

Something that really stood out to me when reading this book were the cultural elements, and the way that you integrated Urdu and certain Pakistani-inspired aspects into the story. Was there any research that you had to do beforehand, or was there anything specific that influenced how you approached the story?

I did have to do research in regards to the history and politics, to get a sense of what could be realistic, even if not entirely accurate. The rest of it came from random details that my grandparents told me, or little things I noticed during trips to Pakistan. I also took details from songs, poetry, drama serials, and Bollywood films. Another big source of inspiration was actually Pakistani clothing campaigns; they tell such beautiful stories and are so aesthetically pleasing.

Can you tell us a bit about the inspiration behind this story; what gave you the idea to write it?

The story was inspired by “The Lady or the Tiger?” which is a short story by Frank R. Stockton that I read in my AP Language class in high school. I found the ending of the short story so compelling and wanted to know more, so I decided to expand upon it in my own novel.

Did you have a favorite part of this book to write?

I loved writing Durkhanai as spoiled and petulant because she’s such a typical dramatic desi girl. I feel like a lot of times desi girls are shown as demure and shy, which is just not accurate at all. So many of my desi friends are loud and proud and vivacious and vibrant, and I absolutely adore that, so I infused those qualities into Durkhanai and the other female characters.

Your two main characters and love interests, Durkhanai and Asfandyar, are both such strong and larger-than-life characters. While they are separate and independent, they seem to fit together perfectly, and their chemistry is natural. How did you write this relationship to mend so beautifully while also making sure that they stayed compelling characters on their own?

Good question! I wish I knew!! LOL. But really, it was important for me that they be independent characters and shine on their own, that the relationship was just one aspect of their character, not the entire thing. In every interaction of theirs, I was very conscious of their separateness.

What is something that you’d love for readers to take away after reading this book?

Dare to love. Even, and perhaps especially, when it is most frightening.

I know you have a full Spotify playlist for this novel (check out Aamna’s playlist here!), but is there any song which you feel embodies the romance in this book?

Since the Spotify playlist is all desi songs, I’ll choose an English song for this answer, and it’s “Ivy” by Taylor Swift. I absolutely love the entire Evermore album, and this song fits almost too perfectly.

Thank you so much to Aamna for taking the time to do this interview and answer my questions; The Lady or the Lion release July 20, 2021!!

I have also created a Pinterest board for this novel, feel free to check it out!

The Lady or the Lion releases on July 20, 2021. Be sure to preorder a copy, and submit your preorder receipt for exclusive prints and a signed bookplate!

Barnes & Noble | Book Depository | CamCat Books | Amazon | Submit Preorder Receipt

Also, be sure to add the book to your Goodreads!

Author Bio:

Aamna Qureshi is a Pakistani, Muslim American who adores words. She grew up in a very loud household, surrounded by English (for school), Urdu (for conversation), and Punjabi (for emotion). Through her writing, she wishes to inspire a love for the beautiful country and rich culture that informed much of her identity. When she’s not writing, she loves to travel to new places where she can explore different cultures or to Pakistan where she can revitalize her roots. She also loves baking complicated desserts, drinking fancy teas and coffees, watching sappy rom-coms, and going for walks about the estate (her backyard). She currently lives in New York. Look for her on IG @aamna_qureshi and Twitter @aamnaqureshi_ and at her website aamnaqureshi.com. 

Hope you guys enjoyed today’s interview, and please do check out Aamna’s book! It’s one of my favorite reads of the year, and truly such a beautiful and special story. Thank you so much for taking the time to check out this post, and hope you’re all doing well.

Have you heard of this new release, and does it sound like something you’d be interested in? Let me know and let’s chat in the comments below. Happy Reading!