Uzma Jalaluddin’s name is synonymous with Toronto romance novels. With books like Ayesha at Last, Hana Khan Carries On, Three Holidays and a Wedding, and Much Ado About Nada under her belt, she is a powerhouse in the contemporary romance genre. Her depictions of complicated and vibrant Muslim women of Toronto falling in love while navigating careers and bigotry are presented without the burden of Islamophobic and sexist stereotypes.

Jalaluddin made a surprising entry into the mystery genre last year, with Detective Aunty. The novel is centred around a recently widowed Kausar Khan, who returns to Scarborough 20 years after after a family tragedy uprooted her to North Bay. Kausar’s 30-something-year-old daughter, Sana, has come under investigation for murder and calls her mother to come to her aid.

Romance, crime, and mystery novels all fall under the category of genre fiction or commercial fiction. They follow certain formulas and archetypes, and are the moneymakers of the literary world. NielsenIQ BookData and GfK Entertainment’s annual report on international book sales stated in their October 2025 report that crime novels contributed to the revenue growth in fiction sales in 14 out of 19 territories surveyed.

However, in an interview with The Varsity, Jalaluddin said that her entry into the romance world was purely a marketing decision. She explained, saying, “Romance novels sell better. But I love mysteries. I have always wanted to write a mystery novel.”

Jalaluddin is known for writing about the unique lives of South Asian women outside of the expectations that outsiders or even community members might hold for them. Kausar is no different in Detective Aunty. A wealthy, financially-independent widow whose husband trusted her with their collective finances, she goes about her mystery-solving despite being pigeonholed as the harmless mother, grandmother, or caretaker.

“There are so many nuances to these immigrant older women, who came to Canada quite young. Kausar… [and] my mother… came to Canada quite young… and had to learn to build a life for [themselves] in a new culture and country,” Jalaluddin said. Although Kausar is financially independent, Jalaluddin also highlights how for many other older South Asian women, that isn’t the case. The character of Fatima, for instance, had to get a childcare job to support her family after the death of her husband.

The economic patterns of older South Asian immigrant women in Canada is not the only way that Jalaluddin’s mystery stands out. Detective Aunty and its sequel, Moonlight Murder — published last month — are both set in Golden Crescent, a fictional Scarborough neighbourhood. According to the 2021 census, 71 per cent of Scarborough residents are part of visible minority groups. 

In the first novel, a young Jamaican-Canadian girl gets racially profiled by the police, and Kausar’s daughter is framed as a convenient suspect in a murder to allow the police to continue surveilling the racialized neighbourhood. In many ‘cozy mysteries’ like Jalaluddin’s, police violence and the tension between police and racialized neighbourhoods are hardly depicted. But Jalaluddin does not shy away. 

She said, “I wanted to depict police relations accurately in a community like Scarborough… South Asians, but especially Black Canadians face harassment and violence [at the hands of the police]. I also wanted to — with Officer Ilyas [a South Asian Canadian police officer in the book, who is from Golden Crescent] [to] show [the work] that it takes… to [properly] service diverse communities… I thought that was more than fair.”

Jalaluddin was excited to return to MOTIVE again this year. She was featured with Jane Doucet in a talk titled “Everyday Detectives” at Victoria College’s Alumni Hall on Saturday, June 6 at 5:00 pm. She said, “As a U of T alum, I am very excited to return… [to] Victoria College. […] The setting is wonderful, and there are many great events and speakers scheduled this year.”

MOTIVE continues tomorrow, Sunday, June 7 from 11 am to 5:30 pm. Festival passes and the full weekend schedule, including a list of free events, are available on TIFA’s website.