Silent Hearts

May 15, 2018
Two women from different cultures collide in American-occupied Afghanistan in 2002.Farida Basra doesn't want to marry Gul, an uneducated Afghan man her father has selected for her. She doesn't want to adapt to his family's traditional way of life, and she especially doesn't want to move from her native Pakistan to Kabul, where Gul and his family see opportunity in the wake of the 9/11 attacks. But soon enough, she finds herself adjusting to her new life and finding not only passion with Gul, but also a shared enemy in the Americans who have invaded their city. One of those Americans is Liv Stoellner, an NGO worker married to a professor who specializes in Afghanistan. Liv's marriage to the chronically unfaithful Martin begins to crumble when they move from their comfortable American college town to Kabul: While Liv throws herself into her work interviewing local women for Face the Future, Martin hides in his office writing reports that yield no results and lusting after Farida, who happens to be acting as Liv's translator at her father-in-law's behest. But Farida--and her family--is planning more than just translation. Florio, a white journalist who has reported in Afghanistan, has previously published a series of autobiographical mystery novels (Under the Shadows, 2018, etc.). This foray into literary fiction is well-meaning but misguided. Despite Florio's evident familiarity with the novel's setting, the Middle Eastern characters remain flimsy archetypes. Farida's initial horror at her arranged marriage vanishes almost immediately, while Gul's initial expressions of misogyny conveniently fade. Gul's family is similarly two-dimensional, and the white American characters hardly fare better: Martin is cartoonishly boorish, and Liv's persistent cluelessness is grating. The plot, meanwhile, is convoluted and frustrating: Face the Future is clearly tied to the U.S. government in some way, for instance, but this connection is never fully explored. The novel purports to explore the ethical quagmire of America's occupation of Afghanistan, but with characters so limited, it can barely scratch the surface.A well-intentioned but ultimately unsuccessful portrait of women in wartime Afghanistan.

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Starred review from June 1, 2018

After the breakdown of Taliban rule in Afghanistan, Liv moves to Kabul to assist her husband with a nonprofit that aims to help women recover and find employment. There she meets Farida, a Pakistani woman married to an Afghan who is also new to the country and working as an interpreter. As Liv and Farida get to know each other, the two develop a strong bond and a love for their new country. Nothing in their lives is easy though. Liv must face marital strife and, as a foreigner, cope with cultural differences, while Farida contends with the dark secrets kept by her husband's family who have ties to the black market. Florio (Montana) delivers an intriguing, well-spun tale that is both a striking portrait of two resilient, appealing women and a fascinating in-depth depiction of the cultural and religious aspects of life in Kabul after the collapse of the Taliban regime. VERDICT Highly recommended, especially for fans of Khaled Hosseini.--Kristen Calvert, Marion Cty. P.L. Syst., Belleview, FL

Copyright 2018 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

June 1, 2018

An award winner for her Lola Wicks detective series, Florio has also reported from conflict zones in countries such as Afghanistan and Iraq, which informs her new work. In 2001, American aid worker Liv Stoellner hopes that a move with her husband to post-Taliban Kabul will save her marriage, even as she befriends Farida Basra, an educated Pakistani woman uncomfortable in her own arranged marriage to the son of an Afghan strongman.

Copyright 2018 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.