WW2 crime mystery set in Canterbury, Kent (and London)
A tale of murders, kidnap, and betrayal set in the USA, AFGHANISTAN, and LAHORE
7th April 2025
The Sufi Storyteller by Faiqa Mansab, a tale of murders, kidnap, and betrayal set in the US, Afghanistan, and Lahore
“Sufi stories are not merely a tale told but a reality lived.”
By way of background… Sufi storytelling is a rich tradition that blends spiritual teachings with narrative art, aiming to convey profound mystical truths through allegory, metaphor, and parable. Rooted in Islamic mysticism, Sufi stories often feature symbolic characters, such as wandering dervishes, wise teachers, or divine lovers, who embark on journeys of self-discovery and union with the Divine. These tales are not merely entertainment but serve as tools for inner transformation, inviting listeners to reflect on deeper meanings beyond the literal text.
At one level The Sufi Storyteller is a thrilling tale of murders, kidnap, and betrayal. Layla Rashid is a woman in her early 30s. She teaches Sufi storytelling at a college in an American university town. The body of a young woman is found, brutally murdered in the college library she uses as an office. The body is laid out in ritualistic manner… And this is not the first time. She was in the process of moving on from her last college posting when a similar situation occurred with a body discovered on campus. She had not thought about it much at the time, but It could not be coincidence, could it?. The hand of the new body is clutching a walnut – and this is Sufi symbolism for a hard to penetrate shell containing a kernel of truth which is worth discovering.
She had changed colleges to be close to an older woman called Mira Heshmat, and to attend her lectures. Mira was a Sufi storyteller, and Layla believed she was her birth mother, who had abandoned her outside an orphanage when she was 7 years old. She was summoning up the courage necessary to speak to her. Mira had helped a detective solve a murder in the past – by exploring Sufi stories and their meaning. The detective then revealed that a note had been found under the cloak of the body. It read ‘Mira Heshmat, find me. The answer is stories’.
Then, a young student of Layla’s was murdered and her body was spread out on the floor of Layla’s apartment. She was more than frightened. Who was doing this, and could she be next? Around which time a now famous artist, Khayyam, re-appeared in the town. Thirteen years previously Layla had visited Lahore looking for her birth mother, and had an intense affair with Khayyam. Could it again be coincidence that she, Mira and Khayyam were all assembled in a small college town. What was happening and what forces were at play?
Mira was roped in by the same detective she had worked with previously to help solve the murders. She acknowledged that Layla was her daughter and that the killings were probably linked to events in their joint past. But she did not know in what way. The book then diverges from the present and heads back to events in the high mountains of Afghanistan many years previously. We hear of kidnapping, rape, forced marriage, and the birth of children. It was a very grim time for Mira. She and her daughter, Scheherazade (soon to be Layla) escaped and fled to the US – but were accused of betrayal by those they left behind. We also hear details of the time Layla had spent with Khayyam in Lahore.
The book moves to a frightening conclusion in modern day America. A trap is laid and the guilty person walks into it.
The Sufi Storyteller is a fascinating book. It combines a modern day murder thriller with the mystiscism and depth of Sufi storytelling. To what extent are the characters in control of their own destiny? To what extent are they following a preset path?
In TripFiction terms, The Sufi Storyteller is strong on location – from the norms of an American college town, to the high mountains of Afghanistan, to the sounds and smells of Lahore.
A book I would urge you to read.
Tony for the TripFiction team
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