Marjan is one of the memorable women in City of Widows, a compelling story of the women of Afghanistan as the U.S. pulled troops out in 2020 and the Taliban gained power.

Carol’s Captivating Characters of July Link-Up

***This post contains Amazon affiliate links.

On the last Friday of the month, I will write a post about my most captivating character of the month and create a Link Party (see link below my review)! In addition to hearing about the memorable characters that have captivated you, I also want this new project to facilitate new bookish friendships, help you find your book twin, and promote blog engagement. This link party will stay active for 30 days. In exchange for linking your post back to this one, I promise to visit every blog post that links up, leave a comment, and share your post once on #bookx and #booksky.

Captivating Character Link Up Details:

1. You can use fictional or real characters/persons.
2. Link up a review that specifically highlights a captivating character or person, or write a post dedicated to your most captivating character or person of the month.
3. Please include a link back to this (monthly) post.
4. Be kind: visit one other post in the link-up and leave a comment.
5. #CaptivatingCharacters26

No blog? No problem! Share your most captivating character of the month in the comments.

Shoutout to Joanne @ Portobello Book Blog, Laura @ Reading Books Again, H.C. @ The Irresponsible Reader, and Joanne @ JHOHADLI for linking up with me in May. Check out their posts!

---

Marjan

Her harrowing escape from Afghanistan…

Name of Captivating Character: Marjan (formerly known as Rahima)
The reason she is captivating: risk-taker, brave, loyal friend, protective mother, reslient
Book and Author: City of Widows by Nadia Hashimi
Genre/Categories/Setting: fiction, solidarity of women, friendship, mother/daughter, survival and escape, women’s voices, Afghanistan (2020)
Mood: suspenseful, tense
Content Considerations: stalking, violence toward women, realities of women’s lives under the Taliban

As the United States withdrew troops from Afghanistan in 2020, women who had been teachers, newscasters, shop owners, doctors, lawyers, and soldiers were in danger. These women were educated professionals, and they had lived their entire lives in peace. As the Taliban seized power, they knew their livelihood and their lives were in danger. This story follows Marjan and Soraya, members of the Afghan military, and Mina, an outspoken journalist, as they support each other and decide whether to flee, hide, or fight.

We are first introduced to Rahima (Marjan) in The Pearl That Broke Its Shell, but it’s not necessary to have read that to appreciate this story.

Marjan changed her name from Rahima when she (and her daughter) fled her warlord husband. She knows he is looking for her. After hiding out with her daughter for a while, she joined the Afghan army, where she met Soraya. Marjan carefully protects her identity and manages to stay one step ahead of her warlord husband.

When U.S. troops pull out of Afghanistan, Marjan, along with many other women, is in danger and frantic in her attempts to leave the country. Women in the military provide support, encouragement, and advice for each other. Marjan’s situation is more complicated because she’s also responsible for her daughter. The situation at the airport (which many of us remember seeing on the news) is especially harrowing for them.

Marjan is a fighter. She has skills and training as a member of the military in addition to her feisty nature and determination to avoid her warlord husband and get her daughter out of the country. Marjan takes calculated risks and leans on her network of friends and colleagues as she plans her escape. The tension builds as we are concerned for her safety and cheer for her escape. She is a memorable and fascinating character.

Overall, City of Widows is a page-turning and compelling story of survival and bravery. Through vivid descriptive details of place, people, and culture, the author transports us to Afghanistan in 2020 and puts us on the dangerous streets with these brave women. Fans of the author and stories out of Afghanistan will not want to miss this new release.

Thanks @NetGalley @WmMorrowBooks for an eARC of #CityOfWidows upon my request. All opinions are my own.

You might also enjoy The Pearl That Broke Its Shell and Sparks Like Stars by the author.

Star Rating: 4 Stars

Meet the Author of City of Widows, Nadia Hashimi

Nadia Hashimi is a pediatrician turned novelist who draws on her Afghan culture to craft internationally bestselling books for adults as well as young readers. Her novels span generations and continents, taking on themes like forced migration, conflict, poverty, misogyny, colonialism, and addiction. She enjoys conversations with readers of all ages in libraries, book festivals, classrooms, and living rooms. With translations in seventeen languages, she’s connected with readers around the world.

Nadia was born and raised in New York and New Jersey. Both her parents were born in Afghanistan and left in the early 1970s, before the Soviet invasion. Her mother, granddaughter of a notable Afghan poet, traveled to Europe to obtain a Master’s degree in civil engineering and her father came to the United States, where he worked hard to fulfill his American dream and build a new, brighter life for his immediate and extended family. Nadia was fortunate to be surrounded by a large family of aunts, uncles and cousins, keeping the Afghan culture an integral part of their daily lives.

Nadia graduated from Brandeis University with degrees in Middle Eastern Studies and Biology. She studied medicine in Brooklyn, New York, and then completed her pediatric residency training at NYU and Bellevue hospitals before moving to Maryland with her husband. On days off from a busy emergency room and after years of avid reading, she began crafting stories that drew on her heritage and the complex experiences of Afghans.

In 2003, she made her first trip to Afghanistan with her parents who had not returned to their homeland since leaving in the 1970s. She continues to serve on boards of organizations committed to educating and nurturing Afghanistan’s most vulnerable children and empowering the female leaders of tomorrow. She is a member of the US-Afghan Women’s Council and an advisor to Kallion, an organization that seeks to elevate leadership through humanities. Locally, she serves as a Montgomery County health care commissioner and organizing committee member of the Gaithersburg Book Festival.

She and her husband are the beaming parents of four curious, rock star children, an African Grey parrot named Nickel who reminds the kids to brush their teeth, and Justice, the hungriest Rhodesian Ridgeback you’ve ever met.

Connect with her on Facebook, Twitter or via her website (www.nadiahashimi.com) to learn more or request a virtual book club visit. She’s quite social.

---

---

I KNOW you’ve encountered some fascinating and interesting characters this month! Share them with us by linking up your review post!

You are invited to the Inlinkz link party!
Click here to enter!

---

---

“Ah, how good it is to be among people who are reading.”
~Rainer Maria Rilke
“I love the world of words where life and literature connect.”
~Denise J Hughes
“Reading good books ruins you for reading bad ones.”
~Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society
“I read because books are a form of transportation, teaching, and connection. Books take us to places we’ve never been, teach us about our world, and help us understand human experience.”
~Madeleine Riley

---

---

Let’s Get Social!

Find me at:
Twitter/X
Blue Sky
Instagram (Threads link in bio)
Goodreads and StoryGraph
Pinterest
SubStack: @carolreadingladies
Reading Ladies Book Club on Facebook

---

---

***Blog posts may contain affiliate links. This means that at no extra cost to you, I can earn a small percentage of your purchase price.

All books I review are purchased or borrowed from the library unless explicitly stated that the book is free (arc).

Amazon or an author’s (or publisher’s) website receives all credit for book covers and author photos.

© ReadingLadies.com

---