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Five great books set in Dubai
30th March 2018
Five great books set in Dubai
Dubai is the next place we visit in our ‘Five great books set in…’ series. Five great books set in Dubai. Dubai, one of the United Arab Emirates, is a city / state that defies belief. Thirty years ago it was a large sandcastle. Now it is a gleaming metropolis of soaring skyscrapers, seven-star hotels, man made waterways, shopping malls and golf courses. A six hour flight from Europe, and guaranteed sun on arrival. Dubai has never had the oil wealth of its neighbours. It is a city of trade, commerce, and finance. It is the home of Emirates, one of the largest airlines in the world – and Dubai Airport is a principal stopover for flights from Europe to Asia and Australasia.
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The books below are some of those most highly rated by members of the TripFiction community.
1. The Place That Didn’t Exist by Mark Watson
Junior creative Tim Callaghan can hardly believe his luck when he’s flown out to Dubai to supervise the filming of an advert for an international charity. He is immediately entranced by the city – a futuristic environment unlike anywhere he’s ever been before, with an almost uncanny level of customer service. Shimmering and seductive, it seems as though nothing bad could ever happen in Dubai. But when a crew member is found dead in in mysterious circumstances, Tim learns that if a place seems too good to be true, it probably is…
2. Desparate in Dubai by Ameera Al Hakawati
Oozing with men, money, and Maseratis, Dubai is the ultimate playground for the woman who knows her Louboutins from her Louis Vuittons.But for some, there’s a lot more at stake than a Hermes Birkin. Leila has been in search of a wealthy husband for over a decade. Nadia moves to Dubai to support her husband’s career, only to have her sacrifices thrown in her face. Sugar escapes the UK in an attempt to escape her past. Lady Luxe, the rebellious Emirati heiress, scoffs at everything her culture holds sacred. Until the day her double life starts unravelling at the seams.
Set against a backdrop of luxury hotels and manmade islands, Desperate in Dubai tells the tale of four desperate women as they struggle to find truth, love, and themselves.
3. Hello Dubai by Joe Bennett
Boom town, modern marvel, commercial hub, where middle-east meets wealthy west, playground for tourists, crawling with ex-pats, built by Indians, owned by Arabs, Dubai has risen from next to nothing to an awful lot in little more than thirty years. How? And can it go on? Has it sold itself to the corporate dollar? Is it anything more than a mall in the desert? Will the sands return? Joe Bennett goes to find out.
4. Burqalicious by Becky Wicks
This is the real Dubai? Delve under the opulent layers of the sparkling city and see what lies beneath. A true story of sun, sand, sex and secrecy. For a sassy young woman used to blagging, blogging and slogging her way through dreary London, the call of a glamorous, tax-free lifestyle in sunny Dubai just couldn’t go unanswered. Over the course of two years, while an entire city rose from the dust Becky Wicks scaled a good few rungs of the hard-to-climb career ladder. She became a celebrity editor in a land where sex definitely does not sell and spent most nights in a five-star blur of champagne luxury.
5. Dubai Wives by Zvezdana Rashkovich
Zvezdana Rashkovich presents an absorbing picture of the secret life of Dubai’s residents, underscoring its intense glamour with emptiness and duplicity. Rashkovich examines the universal questions of identity, religion, race, and social status against the backdrop of Dubai’s cultural dynamism and traditional moral code. With its exotic setting, distinct characters, and captivating plot, Dubai Wives takes readers on a journey of friendship, love, betrayal and murder revealing a city where no one is who they seem to be… and where everything is possible.
And do read the other posts in our ‘Great books set in…’ series:
Ten great books set in New York
Five great books set in Naples
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For more books set in DUBAI search the TripFiction database
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