The Others by Siba Al-Harez

The Others

Siba Al-Harez

Teenage desires and sexual uncertainty weigh heavily through this novel. Set in Saudi Arabia, it begins after the narrator's first lesbian encounter. Her emotions are raw, scared, ashamed yet passionate. A brave concept and may appeal to those looking for a window on a hidden world, rich in description rather than narrative drive.

Extract
I was perfectly aware that my secret life, my other life, was an extremely dangerous gamble and a harmful one, and that was part of what made it so pleasurable. I was gambling straight out, but I thought I knew what I was doing. I was aware of how long the path of retreat was, how enormous my reversal would be if I were forced into it. A measure of intense adrenalin pushed me onward, and I bore real and true dread of God's wrath and felt the weight of a terrible guilt complex. I sensed the heaviness of hell upon me, and the heaviness of the others.
Parallels
  • Keeping You A Secret by J Peters
  • Stories of Saudi Arabian Women Writers by Abubaker Bagader
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Explicit sexual Content