The body of a woman, violently murdered and possibly tortured, washes up on a beach in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia. The local police initially don't want to bother investigating, as the woman was probably just a non-Arab domestic servant killed by her employer. But forensic scientist Katya Hijazi is determined to find the murderer, and draws in Nayir Sharqi, a desert guide who helped her in a previous case. It turns out that the victim was a free-lance photographer, who pushed the boundaries of the conservative Muslim society while pursuing stories on the status of women and a possible alternate version of the Quran. Leila (the victim) was also connected to an American security guard who has mysteriously disappeared, leaving his wife, Miriam, isolated and fearful in a male-dominated world.
Katya and Nayir first appeared in Ms Ferraris book, Finding Nouf. They are constantly at odds--with mutual attraction vying with society's expectations and obligations regarding communication between the sexes and with the proper role for women in an Orthodix Islamic culture. In this second book the author has added another character, Inspector Osama Ibrahim, who also struggles to balance his progressive views on women with traditional expectations for a wife and family.
The mystery is compelling and the descriptions of life in and Islamic society and moving and insightful. I highly recommend both Finding Nouf and City of Veils.
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