Jenny Colgan
‘Full of heart and brimming with emotion . . . a delightfully charming story about finding yourself before you can find love. I couldn’t put it down’
Sara Desai
‘If there’s one book you need to read this summer it’s Finding Mr Perfectly Fine’
Yousra Imran
Acknowledgements
As always, a huge thank you to Ammu, Abbu, my family and my friends for their unwavering support; for listening to me talk about characters, plot and dialogue, giving me ideas, showing up at my events, bigging me up to strangers, buying my books, for understanding when I’m too busy to hang out and giving me space when I need it. You know who you are! (Faaria, I know you wanted me to list everyone’s names but sorry, there are just too many and I’m petrified of forgetting someone!)
To my husband and children for continuing to put up with me and my absences as I navigate ‘writer life’ – I wouldn’t be able to do this without your patience and support – thank you.
A special shout-out to my siblings – all six of them – who taught me how to write about sibling relationships. We pretty much have every personality trait possible between us. Thank you for always making sure I keep things real . . . ish.
To my wonderful agent, Abi Fellows from DHH Literary Agency, for listening to my crazy ideas and helping me shape them into stories, always having my back, writing those awkward emails and listening to my rambling voice notes! I’m so blessed to have you!
To the OG editor Sarah Bauer, who heard my thirty-second elevator pitch and loved it enough to give me a two-book deal – thank you for believing in me.
To Salma Begum, without whom the gates would have continued to be locked. I owe you everything.
To the fantastic Melissa Cox and Misha Manani in editorial – for jumping on board midway, taking my book baby under their wings and making sure that it became the absolute best it could be – I’m very grateful!
To Jenny Richards for bringing my vision to reality with this gorgeous cover – I’m in love with it. Thank you!
To Sophie Raoufi, Clare Kelly, Elinor Fewster, Alex May, Eloise Angeline, Kim Evans, Kate Griffiths, Vincent Kelleher and everyone in the Bonnier team who has contributed towards the production, publicity, marketing and sales of this book. So much goes on behind the scenes, and I’m really thankful for your efforts in bringing The Thirty Before Thirty List to life, and to bookshops!
To everyone else who has ever talked shop with me followed or engaged with me online, shared their stories and platforms with me, inspired me, let me sit in their cafes to write, interviewed me for podcasts, TV shows, articles, zines and Insta lives – thank you. This book is a collective effort of that love and support, and I owe you all so much!
And lastly, a massive thank you to everyone who read, bought, supported, reviewed, shared and talked about Finding Mr Perfectly Fine. I don’t think I would have written another book if that one had flopped. Thank you for making me believe in myself, my stories, my experiences, my writing and my truth. Alhamdulillah.
About the Author
Tasneem Abdur-Rashid is a British Bengali writer, born and raised in London. A mother of two, Tasneem has worked across media, public relations and communications for over fifteen years, in the UK and the Middle East. She holds a BA and MA in Creative Writing, and she is the anonymous writer of the bestselling novel, Desperate in Dubai (2011). Finding Mr Perfectly Fine (2022) is her debut romcom, and her latest novel is The Thirty Before Thirty List. Tasneem is also the co-host of the award-winning podcast, Not Another Mum Pod, which empowers women who feel voiceless with a platform to share their stories. She won the coveted SHE Award for Arts and Culture (2023) for her commitment towards bringing under-represented voices to the fore.
You can find Tasneem on Instagram: @tasneemarashid
First published in the UK in 2024 by Zaffre
This ebook edition published in 2024 by
ZAFFRE
An imprint of Zaffre Publishing Group
A Bonnier Books UK Company
4th Floor, Victoria House, Bloomsbury Square, London WC1B 4DA
Owned by Bonnier Books
Sveavägen 56, Stockholm, Sweden
Copyright © Tasneem Abdur-Rashid, 2024
Cover design by The Brewster Project
The moral right of Tasneem Abdur-Rashid to be identified as Author of this work has been asserted in accordance with the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act, 1988.
