The Holy Woman

"Gripping, hugely involving, and very satisfying" KATE MOSSE

Set in Pakistan, London and Egypt, this epic drama centres around the life of Zarri, the glamorous daughter of a wealthy landowner.

Zarrie Bano is the charismatic 28-year-old daughter of a wealthy Muslim landowner. She falls in love with Sikander, a business tycoon to whom her father takes an immediate dislike. When Zarri's brother is killed in a freak accident, her father decides to make her his heiress, resurrecting an ancient tradition and forcing her into marriage to the Holy Koran, to become her clan's 'holy woman' - a nun.

A powerful and compelling family drama, The Holy Woman is a romantic story of love and betrayal within a wealthy Muslim community.

“A lean, lyrical meditation on tradition and independence, sensuality and sacrifice , set against the moral background of modern day Pakistan, Shahraz's debut beguiles throughout-- The Times”

A lean, lyrical meditation on tradition and independence, sensuality and sacrifice, set against the moral background of modern day Pakistan, Shahraz's debut beguiles throughout The Times
A stunning debut - an intricate study of love, family, politics and sacrifice Eastern Eye
An international bestseller: an extraordinary story of love and betrayal in rural Pakistan Manchester Evening News
An absorbing adventure, from a vivid imagination She

Qaisra Shahraz FRSA is a prize-winning and critically acclaimed novelist, scriptwriter and peace and gender activist. She is the founder, curator and Executive Director of MACFEST, Muslim Arts and Culture Festival. She is a Fellow of the Royal Society of Arts, a literary judge, a former Director of Gatehouse Books and Asia Pacific Writers & Translators partnership, advisor to International Journal IJRHS. Her novels - The Holy Woman, Typhoon, Revolt - and her collections of short stories - A Pair of Jeans and other stories and The Concubine & The Slave Catcher - stories from around the world - have been translated into several languages.

Set in Pakistan, London and Egypt, this epic drama, centres around the life of Zarri, a glamorous daughter of a wealthy landowner. When Zarri's brother is killed her father decides to make her his heiress, resurrecting an ancient tradition forcing her into marriage to the Holy Koran, to become her clan's 'holy woman' - a nun.

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