Seven

Be prepared for this novel to stay with you for a long time, especially its ending.-- "Globe and Mail"
In her grand tradition, Farzana Doctor once again pushes us forward with nuanced, layered, inter-generational prose, to bring visibility to an important social issue. An urgent and passionate read.-- "Vivek Shraya, author of The Subtweet"
A brave and beautiful book.-- "Judy Rebick, author of Heroes in My Head"
The feminist novel of the year.-- "Now Magazine"
Visceral and emotional... a courageous feat.-- "Quill & Quire"
Seven presents a messy situation and Doctor skillfully curates the disarray into a rewarding and consistently engaging read.-- "Hamilton Review of Books"
Doctor's writing is clean and readable, and by the novel's end, she has layered all the elements together in a meaningful way. Her novel's willingness to engage readers with this challenging, important subject matter is invaluable.-- "Booklist"
Penetrating and subtle, Seven deftly explores loyalty in changing times, what it means and what you give up to be a part of a community, a marriage, and friendships. Sharifa is a sympathetic everywoman; her relationships fully realized and deeply felt in this immersive, absorbing portrait.-- "Eden Robinson, bestselling author of the Trickster trilogy"
Seven is fully feminist and ambitiously bold; this is an important book for our changing times.-- "Karla J. Strand, Ms. Magazine"
Doctor weaves sensitivity and hope into a gripping narrative. [Seven is] a soulfully-written book about a vexed cultural issue.-- "Masooma Ranalvi, founder of WeSpeakOut.org"
Farzana Doctor is a writer of extraordinary wit, generosity, and ethical commitment; and Seven explores with courage and storytelling finesse the harsh truths within the ideals of kinship and community.-- "David Chariandy, award-winning author of Brother"
Doctor is not afraid to address injustice cloaked as religion in a world filled with the roar of #MeToo.-- "Broadview Magazine"
A defiant and engrossing novel.-- "Sarah Schulman, author of Conflict is Not Abuse"
A piece of art... this is an exquisite collector's piece. Add it to your own.-- "NRI Pulse"
In generously inviting prose, Doctor deftly tackles intergenerational trauma through a distinctly feminist lens.-- "This Magazine"
Family secrets, loyalty, and betrayal lie at the heart of Seven. Delving into history can unearth deeper mysteries than one bargained for.-- "Zarqa Nawaz, author of Laughing All The Way to the Mosque"
Seven is an intimate, gutsy feminist novel that exposes the lasting, individual impacts of making women's bodies fodder for displays of religious obeisance.-- "Foreword Reviews"
[An] extraordinary book... packed with discovery and jarring emotional arcs.-- "Toronto Star"
The different threads of this novel are woven powerfully and culminate in a terrifically moving story.-- "Pickle Me This"
This is a remarkable work that will cause you to think and really push yourself to understand and examine.-- "The Nerdy Girl Express"
Doctor creates a vibrant world full of the conundrums of belonging in the community; the insidiousness of belief and its silent power, the meaning of being female, surrounded by centuries of a culture and religion.-- "New York Journal of Books"
Seven feels more like a close friend sharing than an author telling a tale. Many authors aspire for this sort of sublimity, but it is Doctor's effortlessness in creating this intimacy that gives the feeling that she is an author on the verge of transcending the barrier between author and reader.-- "Prism Magazine"
Doctor's writing is skillfully layered, yielding a novel that is complex, gripping, and thought-provoking ... Seven is a singular engrossing, emotional, and empowering story of the strengths of women, family, and truth.-- "India Currents"
Not only is this a story of the demystification of patriarchal taboos and prohibitions, but also a wonderful exploration of women's relationships with other women as mothers, daughters, sisters, and cousins. It is also a persuasive and highly realist spotlight on contemporary India and the women's movements and activism generated there in recent times in response to cataclysmic violence against women.-- "Colorado Review"
Farzana Doctor's Seven widens the scope, addressing the harms of silence, silencing, and compliance as responses to trauma in the political sphere as well as within the personal, familial, and communal. It does so gradually, coming from a place of learning and caution.-- "Event Magazine"
Although its subject matter is serious and heavy, the novel keeps the reader engaged until the very end. Given the book's themes of trauma, trust, resistance, gendered violence, and sexual violence, it is likely of interest to readers and scholars of gender studies, trauma studies, and sexuality studies.-- "AwaaZ Magazine"