Overview

• Published by Gallimard and selected by Sud Ouest this week, the book probes domestic violence by threading together three linked narratives.
• It connects the 2021 killing of Chahinez Daoud in Mérignac, the 2000 murder of Appanah’s cousin Emma, and the novelist’s own experience under an abusive partner.
• Appanah met Daoud’s family and their lawyer and visited the victim’s home to approach what she calls their truth, while emphasizing the work is not a journalistic inquiry.
• The narrative moves across three time frames and begins with brief portraits of the three men involved, identified only by initials to limit their prominence.
• Appanah also critiques media treatment that dwells on markers like a victim’s veil, religion or supposed language level, arguing such framing creates distance.