Against the background of a 1955 village massacre that haunts & shapes 2 families for decades, through the 1979 Revolution and beyond, Fereshteh, a woman physician, struggles to use her skills to help victims of domestic violence, the regime’s worsening human rights violations, and its merciless subjugation of women. Then in 2009, the discovery of an appalling truth behind both the village massacre and her sister’s arrest converges with the brutal aftermath of the post-presidential election crackdown. Fereshteh’s decisions put her on a collision course with three powerful men, themselves forged in the fire of events beyond their control. This is a novel of “constructive resilience” in the face of adversity, and of hope, faith and the determination to persevere.