02870cam a2200553 i 4500 1846651727 TxAuBib 20211212120000.0 210601s2021||||||||||||||||||||||||eng|u 2021285270 9781496729354 paperback 1496729358 paperback DAD eng DAD rda OCLCO DAD SDG ILC OCLCF OCLCO SINLB JTH CCPLG OCLCO CNWPU YDX BDX OCLCO MTG OCLCO DLC DLC TLC rda TxAuBib rda Wilkinson, Gina, 1970-, author. When the apricots bloom : a novel / Gina Wilkinson. New York, NY : Kensington Publishing Corp, 2021. 312 pages ; 21 cm. txt rdacontent n rdamedia nc rdacarrier Includes discussion questions. At night, in Huda's fragrant garden, a breeze sweeps in from the desert encircling Baghdad, rustling the leaves of her apricot trees and carrying warning of visitors at her gate. Huda, a secretary at the Australian embassy, lives in fear of the mukhabarat--the secret police who watch and listen for any scrap of information that can be used against America and its allies. They have ordered her to befriend Ally Wilson, the deputy ambassador's wife. Huda has no wish to be an informant, but fears for her teenaged son, who may be forced to join a deadly militia. Nor does she know that Ally has dangerous secrets of her own. Huda's former friend, Rania, enjoyed a privileged upbringing as the daughter of a sheikh. Now her family's wealth is gone, and Rania too is battling to keep her child safe and a roof over their heads. As the women's lives intersect, their hidden pasts spill into the present. Facing possible betrayal at every turn, all three must trust in a fragile, newfound loyalty, even as they discover how much they are willing to sacrifice to protect their families.-- Publisher's description. 20211212. Women Iraq Fiction. Women. Female friendship Fiction. Informers Fiction. Informers. Undercover operations Fiction. Families Fiction. Families. Mother and child Fiction. Diplomats Fiction. Diplomatic and consular service Fiction. Embassy buildings Fiction. Secrecy Fiction. Secrecy. Sacrifice Fiction. Betrayal Fiction. Friendship. Baghdad (Iraq) Fiction. Iraq. Iraq. Baghdad. Fiction. Domestic fiction. Novels. Historical fiction. Spy fiction.