In his short life eleven-year-old Fawad has known more grief than most: his father and brother have been killed, his sister has been abducted, and Fawad and his mother, Mariya, must rely on the charity of family to eke out a hand-to-mouth existence.

A gripping tale of forbidden love between an Englishwoman and a Kabul warlord, as seen through the eyes of a young Afghan boy. In his short life eleven-year-old Fawad has known more grief than most: his father and brother have been killed, his sister has been abducted, and Fawad and his mother, Mariya, must rely charity of family to survive. The next tragedy to blight his young life is so devastating that it threatens to destroy the one thing Fawad thought he could never lose: his love for his country.