The Persians

Five women. Three generations. A whole lot of family history.

The Valiat family are in crisis. Elizabeth, the regal matriarch, remained in Tehran despite the revolution with only the Islamic law-breaking Niaz for company. Meanwhile, in America, Shirin, Seema and Bita are wondering if their gleaming lives in ‘the land of plenty’ are all they had hoped for.

When an annual vacation goes wildly awry and Shirin is arrested, long-held Valiat family secrets begin to surface. As their lives are turned upside down, could revealing the truth save their family or might it break them apart, once and for all?

Review

Praise for The Persians:

‘This polyphonic novel is brimming with larger-than-life characters … funny, gutsy and confidently written … outstanding’ Diana Evans, 2025 Women’s Prize Judge

‘I found myself lost in this beautifully written novel and laughing as much as I wept’ Pippa Evans, 2025 Bollinger Everyman Wodehouse Prize for Comic Fiction Judge

'Magnificent … I lapped up its wonderful characterisations, profound insights and vivacious prose' Bernardine Evaristo, author of Girl, Woman, Other

‘A richly textured, sometimes tragic novel that’s enormously entertaining’ The Times

‘Unputdownable … an undoubtedly assured debut’ Harper's Bazaar

'The word-of-mouth breakout … will have you hooked from the first action-filled chapter' Stylist

‘Full of outrageous laughter, retaining its fire even in tender moments’ Observer

‘Mahloudji’s moving, madcap saga of women in exile [is] a relentlessly entertaining exploration of Iranian-American immigrant life’ Financial Times

‘It’s impossible to overstate how much I loved The Persians. Funny, sharp and insightful – this book is a triumph’ Lauren Laverne

‘A novel bursting with grudges, gossip and complex personal dynamics’ Mail on Sunday

‘Mahloudji writes with a wisdom and confidence rarely seen in a debut’ Guardian

‘Exuberant, whip-smart, infused with melancholy, tragicomic, huge-hearted and sharp-toothed … A joy of a debut novel by the real deal' David Mitchell, author of Utopia Avenue

'A wonderful multi-generational family drama with characters you really care about … I enjoyed it enormously' Marian Keyes, author of My Favourite Mistake

‘Mesmerising … Gorgeously written, with a flair for the comic and characters that dance off the page and into your heart’ Monica Ali, author of Love Marriage

‘An ambitious, glorious feat … darkly funny, richly satisfying’ Sarah Winman, author of Still Life

‘At once funny and profound, sprawling and personal’ Tash Aw, author of The South

About the Author

Sanam Mahloudji is an American writer born in Tehran and based in London. She is the winner of a Pushcart Prize for her fiction and was nominated for the PEN/Robert J. Dau Short Story Prize for Emerging Writers. Her debut novel, The Persians, was shortlisted for the Women's Prize for Fiction and the Bollinger Everyman Wodehouse Prize 2025.