On an autumn day in London, the dark secrets and troubled past of Maryam Mazar surface violently with tragic consequences for her pregnant daughter, Sara, and her newly orphaned nephew, Saeed. Racked with guilt, Maryam is compelled to leave the safe comfort of her suburban home and mild English husband to return to Mazareh, the remote village on Iran's north-eastern border where her story began. There she must face her past and the memories of a life she was forced to leave behind.

In her quest to piece the family back together, Sara follows her mother to Iran, to discover the roots of her unhappiness and to try to bring her home. Far from the terraced streets of London, among the snow-capped mountains and windswept plains that have haunted her mother's dreams for half a century, Sara finally learns about the terrible price Maryam once had to pay for her freedom, and about the love of the man who still waits for her.

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About the Author
Yasmin Crowther is the daughter of an Iranian mother and a British father. She was brought up in England and educated at Oxford University, and now works for SustainAbility UK.

Reviews
Yasmin Crowther tells this cross-cultural drama with skill. The writing is restrained but powerful * FINANCIAL TIMES *
This debut novel is a delicate, bittersweet examination of the nature of home and homesickness, and a salient reminder of the way the past can haunt the present with subtle, heart-breaking persistence * MAIL ON SUNDAY *
Accomplished...memorable * SUNDAY TIMES *
Lyrical... As a guide to the subtle complexities of family life The Saffron Kitchen is inspired; as a study of the flipside of the cultural divide it is intelligent and probing, an impressive debut * SCOTSMAN *



Book Information
ISBN 9780349119557
Author Yasmin Crowther
Format Paperback
Page Count 288
Imprint Abacus
Publisher Little, Brown Book Group
Weight(grams) 204g
Dimensions(mm) 196mm * 130mm * 19mm