My Life Has Just Begun
Longlist 2025
Dar al-Karma

The events of the novel take place over the course of one day. Before emigrating to America with his wife Rima, successful Syrian lawyer Youssef unexpectedly dies. Was it suicide, murder, or was it simply fate? The police interrogate those close to him: Rima and her mother, as well as his friends Elias and Leen. In a society that hides more than it reveals, the truth is hard-fought to come by. Exploring themes of friendship, betrayal and the illusion of love, the novel depicts a turbulent and oppressive world inhabited by people who have been shaped by war and bear its psychological scars.
About the author
Sumar Shihada is a Syrian novelist and journalist, born in Latakia, Syria in 1989.
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