3.5 Stars
A big thanks to NetGalley and Algonquin publishing house for the ARC version.
Now for the nitty gritty.
While I hoped that this would be a story of defiance in the name of true love, what I got was a more complacent look at the status of the gay community in Iran. This does not mean that this was a bad story by any means. In fact, I learned about the status of transsexuals in Iran which gave me a serious, "wrinkle in the brain" moment.
Let's get down to plot. Sahar is a lesbian. Living close by, her childhood friend Nasrin has also been her secret girlfriend for years. Nasrin claimed Sahar as "hers" years ago when they were children and this bloomed into a deep love with the manic feelings of teenage lust and passion. Nasrin, however is quick to declare to Sahar that they are not "gay" they are in "love" and while this may be the (pansexual) case for Nasrin, it is not for Sahar. However, gay or not, what Nasrin says is true. The two girls are indeed in love.
There are some issues with their relationship, of course. First, Sahar, while a valued friend of Nasrin's, is from a working class family while Nasrin is upper class. More than that, the two girls live in Tehran, Iran, where a lesbian couple could be potentially killed. Also, Nasrin seems more than a little selfish. She is spoiled and has her whole family in tact, while Sahar has to care for her despondent father who has not been the same since the death of Sahar's mother. While it is well known that Sahar is very smart and will most likely go to medical school, Nasrin is thought to be only good enough to marry rich. And while Sahar dreams of herself being the successful doctor who will marry Nasrin, in reality Nasrin's family has arranged a marriage with a currently practicing (male) MD intern. Blindsided by the engagement, Sahar is equally enraged and depressed.
The story takes a detour when Sahar's gay cousin, Ali introduces her to the gay underground in Tehran in hopes of showing Sahar that there are other eligible young women to fill the void that will be left by Nasrin. What Sahar learns is that in Iran, a transsexual can receive a sex change operation at the partial expense of the government. This is where that "wrinkle in the brain" came in for myself. I looked it up and it is true. "Gender reassignment" is considered a "cure" for a sickness in Iran. If it is deemed that you actually are a man trapped in a woman's body or vice versa, not only is it sanctioned but the government will pay up to half the cost of the operation. Iran is actually one of the countries with the highest number of gender reassignments preformed aside from Thailand. However, as a homosexual, you are condemned.
So, when Sahar meets a lovely woman named Praveen and discovers that she was once a he, love begins to take Sahar's mind to strange places. If she was a man, she could marry Nasrin. At least this is what Sahar believes, not taking into account how Nasrin's ultra showy family would feel about their daughter's childhood friend changing genders and marrying their princess. Praveen agrees to introduce Sahar to a support group of transsexual youth but it becomes clear to everyone that Sahar is a lesbian and not trapped the the wrong body. Sahar looks at the days ticking closer towards Nasrin's wedding and tries to speed up her "operation" in spite of herself. It is a dreadful plan and everyone, including Sahar knows this. However, it is all she has to get her through the day, especially when Nasrin frequently tells her that her heart belongs with Sahar.
So that is the plot and background. Without giving anything away, the story has a very open ending. If you are expecting the girls to run away together or for the families to suddenly agree to call off the wedding and hide Sahar and Nasrin's love from the government, you will be sorely disappointed. Again, this does not mean that this is a bad book. I really feel that this is unfortunately a very real portrayal of how this situation could (safely) play out for these two. Nasrin, we see is very used to creature comforts and would probably never give them up no matter how much she loves Sahar. It also adds dimension to the story that Nasrin's fiance is actually a nice guy. While it would have been easy for the author to create a monster akin to poor Maryam's husband in "A Thousand Splendid Suns", or so many other books that deal with arranged marriage, this author gives us a fine young man who is silly infatuated with Nasrin. He is also eager to gain the approval of her best friend, Sahar. Through no fault of his own, he is doomed to be hated.
Other great angles that adds some depth are the emerging friendship between Sahar and Praveen, Ali's rise and fall as the "go to guy" in the underground community and Sahar's love for her clinically depressed father. Faced with many difficult choices, Sahar has more on her plate than other young lesbians in progressive countries and we want her to make the best ones, but because of her native country there are no easy answers. This may make this read feel unsatisfying for some. Still, that doesn't mean that it is not worth reading.
