First published 2025
Badar arrives at a grand house in Dar es Salaam as a servant, an orphaned boy with no education and nowhere else to go. For the first time in his life, he finds something resembling home and forms a deep friendship with Karim, the family's son. When Fauzia enters their circle, the three young people create a bond that seems unbreakable, even when a false accusation forces Badar from the house. Growing up in 1990s postcolonial East Africa, they face the uncertainties of a young nation while navigating their own paths toward adulthood. Love arrives, along with work and the responsibilities of parenthood. Their friendship weathers early storms, but as they mature, the pressures of their different social positions begin to strain their connection. Karim faces a choice that will test everything they have built together. The decision he makes threatens to destroy not only their friendship but the trust that has sustained them through years of change and growth.
Genres: friendship, historical-fiction, african-literature, contemporary, family-drama
Vibes: emotional, intimate, thought-provoking
Tropes: found-family, social-class-differences
Setting: Dar Es Salaam, East Africa
Period: 1990s, Postcolonial
256 pages · Hardcover · Bloomsbury Publishing PLC