Dust

by Justine Hardy

KATE is a woman who chooses to work in Pakistan. She creates a second family for herself, far from the cherished warmth of her parents in rural Suffolk, their surrounding soft landscape in stark contrast to the raw land and humanscape of a remote corner of the northwest Himalayas. Kate then disappears and the worlds of genteel English countryside and harsh Gilgit collide in the search for a lost aid worker.

310 pages, Hardcover

Published October 26, 2021

About the author

Justine Hardy is a British journalist, author, and conflict trauma therapist specializing in South Asia, and the Kashmir region in particular. She is the author of six books, ranging from journeys through Tibet, Hindi film, her time working on an Indian newspaper, the realities of orthodox Islam, and war.

Hardy has contributed to the BBC, the Financial Times, The Times, Traveler, and Vanity Fair. Her journalism extends from travel in Europe, India, the United States, and the Caribbean, to book reviews and social affairs reporting. Among other topics, she has written articles on the search for peace and the mental health crisis in Kashmir, and on female activists within Islam.

In addition to her writing, Hardy is involved in several aid projects.

Reviews

[Reading_ Tamishly · Rating 4 out of 5]

"Me and her, light and dark, dark and light, curled together."

Thank you, Batik Press, for sending me a copy of the book in exchange of an honest review.

This is a complex story of adult relationships, a marriage that seems not so perfect, a family we find for ourselves in another part of the world.
I really like the character study specially of the main character, Kate.

I really love the way the book has been written. I appreciate the short chapters that just kept flying as I kept on reading.

The plot flew above my head somehow. I was more into the characters rather than I was enjoying what was going on. At times, I find the writing and character description raw and quite honest.

More of a character driven read, you will enjoy this book if you like reading books which more of character presence.

[Stephanie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Kate Black has decided to work in aid relief in Pakistan in the aftermath of the September 11th attacks in the United States. Her parents are in constant worry with Kate so far from home in Suffolk. However, despite Kate's childhood panic attacks, she has found a purpose and second home in Gilgit. Kate has picked up the languages of the land swiftly and made fast friends in the desert landscape. Her confidence and proficiency in her job causes Kate to break rules meant to keep her safe and she is kidnapped. Her kidnapping sets off a domino effect of worry for those she worked with, her family and the military. To survive, Kate must go deep inside herself and use all of her knowledge from training.

Dust is a story of survival and hope amidst a bleak landscape. It did take me a while to get into the story as the first several chapters hopped back and forth between characters and took large hops back and forth in time. This style created a sense of chaos and confusion in the beginning that mirrored the feelings of Kate, her parents, coworkers and friends. As the timeline settles on bouncing back and forth between Kate's current role in Pakistan and her parents in Suffolk, I was fully immersed in the story. All of the characters are well developed, especially Kate and her mother. I had a good sense of Kate's passion and tenacity. The story picked up as Kate was kidnapped and a chain of events with her family, friends and coworkers were set off. It was really interesting to see Kate's training for emergency events kick in and her mental well-being while dealing with being kidnapped. Her parent's reaction was just as interesting to see how the unknown affected Kate's parents differently. The ending sort of fizzled, I'd love to know the after effects of the whole scenario for everyone involved.

This book was received for free in return for an honest review.