find out why; an American woman’s husband disappears; and Jeddah itself, the city of veils, is a primary character in this mystery by Zoë Ferraris (Little, Brown and Company, 2010) set in Saudi Arabia.Characters introduced in Finding Nouf return in this second mystery about Saudi Arabia. Forensic scientist Katya Hijazi and her friend, Bedouin guide Nayir Sharqi, join forces with police officer Osama Ibrahim to seek the truth in city streets and the emptiness of the desert beyond. Scorching hot, one of the most repressive places on earth and edged by desert lethal to even those who know it best, the city ofJeddah is a place of secrets and hidden lives.
Three stories intertwine: the mystery of the dead woman on the beach and who killed her; the story of Katya, ambitious female forensic scientist in a place where men refuse to even see her, with Nayir, who struggles with his orthodox Muslim religion and the attraction he feels toward modern Katya; and American Miriam, isolated and fearful in a city where she feels threatened, trying to find her missing husband, Eric.
After reading this engrossing novel, I remember not so much the plot as the culture and characters. Author Zoë Ferraris lived inSaudi Arabiawith her then-husband and his Saudi-Palestinian Bedouin family for almost a year. This gives her the familiarity to write of a place and people I know only on the surface; this aspect intrigued me the most. She provides an intimate look into the lives of women whose faces are covered, voices are silenced, and also into the minds of men raised to fear and control women and deny their own compassion.
ISBN: 0316074276
Amazon Page: http://www.amazon.com/City-Veils-Novel-Zo%C3%AB-Ferraris/dp/0316074276
About the Author
Patricia Wellingham-Jones is a former psychology researcher and writer/editor with an interest in healing writing and the benefits of writing and reading work together. Widely published in poetry and nonfiction, she writes for the review department of Recovering the Self: a journal of hope and healing and has authored ten chapbooks of poetry.