When the Apricots Bloom

I don’t read many books that are described as suspenseful, but I was taken by the description of this story. It was indeed full of suspense, but I’m glad I took the chance . During the Sadam Hussein regime in Iraq in the early 2000’s three women cross paths. Ally Wilson, wife of an Australian diplom......more

The title sounds hopeful even beautiful. The reality, however, is disturbing, unnerving. 3 women whose paths intersect in Iran. 2 Iraqi women, Rania & Huda- once best friends but now estranged; and Ally, an Australian diplomat’s wife who brings the 2 together unknowingly. Everyone needs to watch what......more

I won a paperback copy of this book in a Goodreads giveaway, so if you take anything from this review let it be that miracles do happen! When the Apricots Bloom is primarily set just after the turn of the century in Iraq under Saddam Hussein’s rule. It follows three women - two Iraqis and one Austral......more

This is an atmospheric and suspenseful story partially based on the author’s year of living in Baghdad under Saddam Hussein’s rule, as a foreign correspondent. During her time there she lived under tight surveillance and one of her closest Iraqi friends worked as a secret police informant. She tells t......more

Gina Wilkinson based her book, When The Apricots Bloom, on her own experience of living in Iraq under the Saddam Hussein regime. She was previously a journalist but arrived in Iraq as "a dependent spouse". Gina Wilkinson was thirty-one years old when she lived in Iraq and was befriended by a woman i......more