Dr. Samir Hasan, an orthopedic surgeon in Aleppo, Syria, already walks the ragged edge of political danger: He has family members who oppose the ruler of the nation, Bashar al-Assad, and in 2012, in the third phase of Syria's civil war, to take care of his relatives is treason. But how can he refuse? Even so, the hours he spends beyond his hospital work, patching up injured protesters, puts his wife and children into a more direct jeopardy, since he's no longer home for enough hours to protect them from the erupting conflict. Warriors for Allah, the soldiers begin to interfere with the doctor's son ... and then, inevitably, his wife.
Crossing paths with this doctor is an American woman, Hannah Johnson, who needs his care for her wounded Swedish lover. Hannah's working with humanitarian relief, ferrying medications and other hospital supplies to the beleaguered occupants of the city. A further accident, at the hospital, places Dr. Hasan—Sami—and the American woman into jeopardy as the son of a secret police official unexpectedly dies in the care of this hard-hit hospital.
Neither can continue as they have been. For Sami, the change is most terrible: To gain protection for his family, he seeks help through his dangerously rebellious sister-in-law:
"Your protester friends—yes, I know you are one of them—some of them have connections to the Free Syrian Army, I assume?"
"I do not need to hear your accusations now, Sami."
"I am not accusing you. I ask because I need your help."
"What help?"
"I need for you to take a message to the Free Syrian Army—to tell them that I am willing to work for them. Heal their wounded and train their medics. But in exchange, Beit Qarah [his home] and my family will be protected."
For Hannah, betrayal reaches her personally: The boyfriend she assisted not only leaves the country without her, but turns out to have a "regular" girlfriend at home, one he's lined up to marry. She feels like a fool. But that doesn't stop her commitment to making the runs with humanitarian aid, even though she keeps fooling herself into thinking she'll stop at some point.
The twists of war reconnect her to Dr. Samir Hasan in new ways, circling more around his children and their need for protection than any other reasoning. But Hannah has crossed the line into a culture far different from what she understands, and her efforts to again try to save individuals may cost her far more than she expects to pay. Because the secret police officer has linked her with the doctor who failed to save his son—who perhaps actually killed his son—and Rahim has never stopped searching:
At times there had been leads. In January she had been seen passing through a checkpoint in Bustan al-Qasr, in May through a checkpoint in Sheik Saeed. But her schedule was seemingly random, and when she had been observed, the people doing the observing had been unable to pursue her without exposing themselves as regime spies.
Until yesterday.
This is an ambitious book spanning the years from 2012 to 2016. It offers readers an entry into both a period of history and a set of intersecting cultures, by playing out the tension within the middle and upper classes in Lebanon, where history's challenges linger, and art and literature are as important as religion, or more so. In this season after an epic explosion in Beirut, in neighboring Lebanon, followed by a change of government there, THE DOCTOR OF ALEPPO offers an intriguing and page-turning route into understanding more of this region's roots in terror, passion, and the value of ordinary human loyalties.
PS: Looking for more mystery reviews, from cozy to very dark? Browse the Kingdom Books mysteries review blog here.
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