Farishta

Twenty-one years ago, diplomat Angela Morgan witnessed the death of her husband during the bombing of the U.S. Embassy in Beirut. Devastated by her loss, she fled back to America, where she hid in the backwaters of the State Department and avoided the high-profile postings that would advance her career. Now, with that career about to dead-end and no true connections at home, she must take the one assignment available-at a remote British army outpost in northern Afghanistan. Unwelcome among the soldiers and unaccepted by the local government and warlords, Angela has to fight to earn the respect of her colleagues, especially the enigmatic Mark Davies, a British major who is by turns her staunchest ally and her fiercest critic. Frustrated at her inability to contribute to the nation's reconstruction, Angela slips out of camp disguised in a burka to provide aid to the refugees in the war-torn region. She becomes their farishta, or "angel," in the local Dari language-and discovers a new purpose for her life, a way to finally put her grief behind her.

Drawing on the experiences of the author as a diplomat in Afghanistan, Farishta is a deeply moving and fast-paced story of a woman struggling to move beyond a past trauma, and finding a new community, a new love, and a new sense of self in the process.

Twenty-one years ago, diplomat Angela Morgan’s husband died in the bombing of the U.S. Embassy in Beirut. Shattered by her loss, she retreated to the backwaters of the State Department. Now, with her career about to dead end and no connections at home, she is forced to accept assignment to a remote outpost in northern Afghanistan. Unwelcome by the soldiers and unaccepted by the local government and warlords, Angela fights to earn the respect of her colleagues, especially Mark Davies, a British major who is, at turns, her staunchest ally and fiercest critic. Frustrated at her inability to contribute to the Afghani reconstruction, Angela begins to slip out of camp disguised in a burqa to aid the refugees in this war-torn region. As their farishta—or “angel”—she finds a new purpose, an unexpected new community, and an extraordinary new sense of self.