Sabiha's Dilemma (Sassy Saints Series Book 1)
by Amra Pajalic
RoyaltyAdded on January 15, 2026
Description
From award-winning young adult author Amra Pajalic comes a #ownvoices coming of age YA novel for fans of Melina Marchetta and John Green.Sabiha and her mother Bahra are more than mother and daughter, they’re best friends. It’s been them against the world, with Sabiha being her mother’s carer and confidante during her periodic bipolar breakdowns.When their extended family comes to Australia, Bahra becomes a Born-Again-Muslim to impress them, and expects Sabiha to step in line as the perfect daughter. Can Sabiha play the part of the good daughter so that her mentally ill mother is accepted back into the Bosnian community?Sabiha’s Dilemma is the first in the Sassy Saints Series for fans of fake friendships, love triangles, loners and outcasts who are searching for belonging, and fierce and funny girls.‘Sabiha's Dilemma is a ‘raw and honest story about duty and the desire to run free. A strong voice in Australian fiction.’ MELINA MARCHETTA‘Rewarding, poignant and occasionally chuckle-out-loud funny,’ Books Buzz.
Reader Reviews
A wonderful novel! I have finished reading this book today and forgot about everything around me when I was reading "The Good Daughter" and was transported from my kitchen straight to St Albans, Melbourne, Australia, to live with Sabiha and her Bosnian Muslim family. Or vice versa. Amra Pajalic writes about things, people and places she knows so well about. The protagonists feel real. Amra's writing is sensitive and funny. She is very talented in writing dialogues. And I am a fan of a good dialo
Mate, Amra Pajalic's Aussie YA novel was such a good read.I am always hesitant to compare novels but in this case I think a comparison is helpful to give you a good feel for the vibe and quality of the novel. When I think about The Good Daughter it is easy to compare it to Melina Marchetta's Looking for Alibrandi and Randa Abdel-Fattah's Ten Things I Hate About Me It's not just because these novels also feature a non-Caucasian protagonist or a lively multi-cultural cast ~ it is the simila
I loved this audiobook, narrated by Nina Nikolic. Nikolic has a wonderful voice, perfectly suited to audiobooks, and particularly this one. I admit to loving the Australian accent anyway, but she is so good with the Bosnian pronunciations, I had to Google her to see if she had lived there.The plot moves along smoothly, it is ideal for a teen or YA audience as Sabiha tries to find her way in Australian society and takes the reader along for the journey. I looked forward to every listen until I fi