A love story with a family mystery at its heart, Kartography is a dazzling novel by a young writer of astonishing maturity and exhilarating style
Raheen and her best friend, Karim, share an idyllic childhood in upper-class Karachi. Their parents were even once engaged to one another’s partners, until they rematched in what they call “the fiancée swap.” But as adolescence distances the friends, Karim takes refuge in maps while Raheen searches for the secret behind her parents’ exchange. What she uncovers reveals not just a family’s turbulent history, but also a country’s—and now a grown-up Raheen and Karim are caught between strained friendship and fated love.
Kartography transports readers to a world not often seen in fiction: vibrant, dangerous, sensuous Pakistan.
“[Shamsie] packs her story with the playful evidence of her high-flying intelligence.” —San Francisco Chronicle
“Deftly woven, provocative . . . Shamsie’s blistering humor and ear for dialogue scorches through [a] whirl of whiskey and witticisms.” —The Observer (UK)
“A shimmering, quick-witted lament and love story . . . Rich in emotional coloratura and wordplay.” —Publishers Weekly, starred review
(A special thank you to book club member, Elke Richelsen for the suggestion.)