Where Romance meets the Spiritual???
I received a copy of this book from the author in exchange for an honest review. I was not sure about this book as I started it. Adam, a millionaire from Toronto is an atheist and has sworn off any kind of relationship. He uses women and thinks that is their only purpose. He stumbles into a place where he watches a woman dance and becomes entranced. He does not know who she is, but continues to think about her months later. The second character is Rania. A muslim living in Toronto working for a friend of her family. She has a devout faith and many secrets. She keeps her true self hidden from everyone except the son of her boss who is in love with her, but his feelings are not reciprocated. Rania is resigned to the fact that she will never get married and have a family. Every other chapter is told by either Adam or Rania.

Once I got into this book I was amazed at how the spiritual and romantic sides of this novel blend together.

Adam runs into Rania months later and realizes she is the woman he has been dreaming about. Rania has no idea who he is or why he is interested in her. Both of these characters are wounded and hurt from things in their past. Can their love for one another heal the hurts and show itself to the other? A great read with an ending that makes you want to read the next book right away to see what happens next.

This is Book one of "The Prayer Series"....waiting for Book 2! ( )

Note : This Review is up @ Readers' Muse

“ Never judge a book its cover” warned my fellow bibliophiles. They conveniently forgot about the summary part. I normally pick a book based on the summary. This book’s summary particularly didn’t stand out. In fact, the whole millionaire and simpleton story line sorted reminded me of the Fifty Shades of Grey series. In fact I was a little apprehensive and considered writing back to writer apologizing for not reading her book. Thankfully I did no such blunder, for I would have missed such a beautiful series.

The book was everything I didn’t expect. Our protagonist Rania has big baggage that prevents her from finding love. Enter Adam Gibson who falls heads over heels in love with her but is unable to spell it out for he is afraid that he’ll lose that one best friend in Raina, a relationship that he has never experienced. She is his light at the end of the tunnel.

The relationship between Raina and Adam develops so beautifully that I truly began to envy Raina. In fact, there were many parts in the book where the line between reality and fantasy blurred for me. Of course, men like Adam are almost extinct! Something tells me the character of Adam is the writer’s fantasy of the perfect man. I would be unfair if I don’t mention about Raina. Raina is the quintessentially perfect woman for me. Soft in the core like a flower but hard like a diamond when needed. The whole process of converting an Atheist to a believer is narrated so beautifully that I am sure any Atheist would seriously consider turning into a believer after reading this book.

Initially when I picked up the book, I found the tense of the narration a bit unsettling. I am not exactly a fan of present continuous tense. Alas! As the story line progressed I could find no flaws with the writing or the story line or the characterisation. The story line totally got me hooked that tenses didn’t matter anymore. This book is the closest to “ THE PERFECT” romance I’ve ever read (I can’t boast to be an avid romance reader). The high point of is the way it ended. It simply left hungry and wanting for more. In fact, I was so desperate I wrote to the writer almost within minutes of finishing this book. I have never been so desperate to read a romance (Only Harry Potter managed to evoke that true sense of despair in me till date).

Overall, this is one beautiful book well written with truly mind-blowing emotions portrayed so realistically. I can finally boast of knowing what it is like to enjoy a true, pure and unadulterated romance.

VERDICT: Please don’t miss it! MUST READ.
RATING: 4.9 on 5

( )

Adam Gibson is the epitome of the young, urban professional. He is a self-made millionaire and used to getting what he wants when he wants it. He isn't wholly selfish in that he also gives backs to the community and feels that if he gives his promise to someone then he must follow through. In Canadian society, Adam is hot and his life is constantly in the spotlight. Rania Ahmed is the exact opposite of Adam. She has a fervent belief in God and that only God has the right to guide her life. She is quiet, circumspect, modest, and an intensely private person. She goes to work, has few friends and hobbies, and shies away from the spotlight. Even though Adam and Rania are polar opposites, there is simply something about Rania that immediately attracts Adam and he isn't willing to take no for an answer.

A Silent Prayer provides a nice spin on the love at first sight story between complete opposites. Adam is willing to make compromises to keep Rania in his life, but is he willing to commit to a belief in God? Rania may be attracted to Adam but she isn't willing to forego her religious principles for the sake of romance or love. Both Adam and Rania have secrets and although Adam shares his secrets with Rania, Rania isn't willing to share with Adam for fear it will mean the immediate demise to their friendship.

I found A Silent Prayer to be a fast-paced and rather enjoyable read. Perhaps it was my inner prude, but I found the profanity (mild profanity but profanity nonetheless) to be rather off-putting and didn't feel as if it added to the story. I rather enjoyed the portrayal of Rania as a modern Muslim in Western society. Although Rania doesn't wear the traditional head-covering, she is quite devout in her beliefs and religious practices. It was rather nice to read about a Muslim that is unapologetic for their belief and completely unwilling to compromise even for love. I had issues with Adam, but then I've never dealt with a millionaire before. Based on the news and stories I've read about professional athletes and other young celebutantes, it is quite possible Adam's character is more realistic than fiction. There were some paranormal aspects to the story that were rather intriguing and I hope will be explained in future stories. Obviously there's quite a bit more to the story, but if I tell you then you won't have to read it. Did I like A Silent Prayer? Yes. Did I have issues with A Silent Prayer? Yes, but that was only related to the profanity. Can I recommend A Silent Prayer? Wholeheartedly! If you've ever wondered about the inner struggle that many young Muslims face in a world not exactly accepting to the religion of Islam, or if you simply enjoy romance, then you'll definitely want to add A Silent Prayer to your reading list. But I must warn you that this story does leave you hanging, so you'll also need to add the next book in this series: A Prayer Heeded (A Prayer Series II) to your list as well. ( )

Rania Ahmed has strong faith and a devote beleif in God. She is sucessful in her career and very beautiful. But she has secrets from her past, they are so strong that they are destroying her from the inside and keeping her from finding true happiness. She meets Adam Gibson a young very powerful and very rich man, he is an Atheist and does not believe in God. They soon become friends and find they are able to help each other. Will he be able to reach her and melt her heart? Will she be able to accept his declaration of new found faith? A very touching heart felt story of two lost souls who find each other. I really liked Rana , and the story line was very easy to follow. ( )

A Silent Prayer by Samreen Ahsan

Rania Ahmedhas strong faith and devote belief in God. She is very beautiful, successful in her career, but had secrets from her past. They are so strong that it is destroying her from the inside keeping her from finding true happiness.

She meets Adam Gibson, a young powerful and very rich man, but he is an Atheist, and has no belief in God. The two soon become friends and they find they are able to help each other. Will he be able to reach out to her and melt her heart? Will she be able to accept his declaration of his new found faith?

A touching story of two lost souls who find each other. Dramatic at times, so engrossing I could no put it down. I really liked Rania, and love the story line. I look forward to reading the second book A Prayer Heeded. ( )