Loved One: A Novel

“[Loved One] is special . . . full of wildly astute, delectably thorny questions about love and loss and possession.” —Maggie Shipstead, New York Times bestselling author of Great Circle

“Shimmers with wit even as it explores deep loss.” —Rachel Khong, New York Times bestselling author of Real Americans

Julia is eighteen when she meets her first-love-turned-close-friend, Gabe, at a party in Barcelona. Twelve years later, Julia meets Elizabeth, Gabe’s most recent ex-girlfriend, at Gabe’s funeral—an interaction that leaves Julia with more questions than answers about Gabe and their shared history.

When Gabe’s mother asks Julia to retrieve the sentimental objects her late son left in the London home he shared with Elizabeth, Julia leaps at the chance to track down her ex’s ex and make sense of their brief encounter. Soon, the two women find themselves in a complex dance of withholding and revelation. Both, it turns out, have something to hide.

An emotional mystery spanning years, continents, and relationship statuses, Loved One introduces Aisha Muharrar as a novelist intimately attuned to the intricacies of love, memory, and ambiguous loss. What happens when we admit that the deepest feelings never die? How do we reconcile various—and sometimes contradictory—truths about those closest to us? An engrossing, transformative coming-of-age story with a powerful love at its heart, Loved One is poised to become an instant classic.