Beta Needed for Modern Day Pride and Prejudice/Emma

[IkhlasHussain]

Hi,

I'm looking for a beta reader for my 113,000 word novel, titled Aisha. Aisha is a modern-day retelling of Pride and Prejudice/Emma, but instead focuses on a 22 year old Muslim girl, growing up in Canada, who works at a Marriage Bureau and works to arrange people's marriages.

Here's a brief synopsis:
Orphaned at a young age, twenty-two year old Aisha Ali lives with her uncle, aunt and their family of four daughters, in the tiny town of Windsor Bay, Alberta, where she works at an Islamic marriage bureau, trying to match families up according to a long list of demands they make.

Aisha doesn't believe in love, only in arranged marriages, and that's what she does all day long: arranging marriages. But her world is shaken up when a Muslim convert, Adam Swift, comes to town, as he challenges everything and shatters all her assumptions about love, marriage, and what it means to be Muslim in Canada, making her question all she has known up to this point.

I'm looking for general feedback about the story and plot structure, as well as general writing tips. I don't need line editing, but more of a wider look at the story and its themes.

Thanks.

[ZoeYork]

Hi! I'm in London, Ontario, and might be interested - I've never been a beta reader before, so I'm not sure what level of detail I'll be able to comment on, but I'm happy to give it a try. I'm familiar with Alberta as well, I have family there.

A bit about me: I'm currently working on my first novel, a contemporary romance. My degree (completed many moons ago) was in literature and women's studies; my current bookshelf is almost completely romances, with the occasional mystery or Canadian literary fiction thrown in for fun.

At some point in the new year I will be looking for people to critique my WIP; trading isn't necessary if you aren't interested in the genre, but something to which I'm certainly open.

[pattycat]

I am not currently available for quick-response beta reading, so perhaps it's not appropriate for me to post here. I just wanted to say how intrigued I was by your synopsis. You've definitely hooked me.

I will be available in a month, so if at that point you are looking for another reader, I would be happy to give a crack at it. I have critiqued before and minored in creative writing, but other than that I have no credentials. My critiques tend to focus on writing style and execution, as well as characterization and pacing. I would warn that I can be boldly honest, so I would not be good for the thin-skinned.

If you aren't in a rush, feel free to send me a copy now. Turn around time would be around 4 weeks. PM me if that's something you are interested in.

[IkhlasHussain]

Thanks to everyone who replied or pm-ed me. I no longer need a beta reader.