The Lion Women of Tehran by Marjan Kamali will be one of my favorite books of this year. Kamali is also the author and previous award winner for the Stationary Shop (also a favorite of mine).

The Lion Woman of Tehran takes place in 1950's Tehran through present day and follows the intertwined lives of Ellie and Homa who meet as young girls. What follows is poignant story about the testament to a friendship that is tested through time and yet flourishes despite the odds.

I liked how Kamali's story focuses on how lives can be impacted by socioeconomic differences. I learned a lot about what it was like living life during the Iranian revolution. This was an amazing story, well written, wonderful character development with an impactful plot. Also, lets talk about the cover. Kamali's books have some of the most beautiful covers that I have ever seen!!

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for an advance copy of this impactful novel.

When I first started reading this book I felt I had stumbled upon a combination of Mean Girls, The Color of Our Sky by Amitra Trasi and the Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseini. It starts with the class based negative treatment of school age girls towards each other based on their economic status. The last two books tell the stories of betrayals that have far reaching ramifications, but ultimately the injured individuals demonstrate great depths of grace and forgiveness. The guilt that the betrayers feel is an ever present reminder and influences their lives/actions from thereon.
Taking place (for a great deal of the book) in Tehran before, during and after the shah's ouster and the
religious extremists takeover, the relationship between the two main characters (Ellie and Homa) is always in the forefront. The description of the political upheaval and how it affected the girls (as well as the population) and their relationship was very effective and simply put. I felt like I had an up close and personal look at how the people were being affected.
The more I got into the book, the less I thought about the similarities (of the mentioned novels) and appreciated the story for it's simplicity in explaining the characters feelings thoughts and actions.
The author did an excellent job in tying all loose ends together. All of the delimas had resolutions.

The characters in this book are the best defined of any I've read. I feel I've known Ellie and Homa from when they were little girls to adult women. One rich, one poor, both living in a country with a caste system. Life for both was stifled by the Shah and then the Imam. Their friendship was tested by forces they couldn't control. A 'Goodread'. I was gifted this from Net Galley.

This story follows the lives of two females who meet as children and follow their lives into adulthood. Once I got into it, I couldn't put it down. This is a powerful story that is female-centered in a time and place where females didn't have much power or say.

Oh my Persian heart! The struggles that Iranian women faced and are facing, it hurts. I loved the Stationary Shop so I was beyond excited to read this one. Not disappointed at all… Little heartbroken, but loved the element of friendship!

Thank you for the early copy,
Much love to the women of Iran.

"The Lion Women of Tehran" is about a lifelong friendship between two women living in Tehran. The story begins in the 1950s and follows Ellie and Homa's relationship and the changes they go through throughout their lives. Recommended for readers who loved "The Stationary Shop," stories of female friendships, and the value of history. Thanks to NetGalley for the ARC.

The Lion Women of Tehran is a heartfelt, emotional novel about the power of friendship and the cost of betrayal. Moving and politically charged, Kamali delivers an epic story about the women’s movement and political climate in 1950s Tehran, Iran.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the advanced reading copy of this book in exchange for my review.

I loved the book! It made me laugh and cry, be angry and sad; but it was so worth it. Ellie and Homa are wonderful characters. Marjan Kamali brought them to life and made me care so much.

Set amidst the backdrop of the fall of freedoms in Iran, the story shows what women had to go through and still do. It shows the strength and determination of women and how we must never take freedom for granted. It's a wonderful book.

This poignant novel tells the story of generations of Iranian women and their struggle for freedom. Throughout the deceaseds the novel covers, the author show us how, across the world, we are connected by our desire to live free lives. I highly recommend this one!

A HUGE thank you to Net Galley. Gallery Books and author, Marjan Kamali for the opportunity to read The Lion Women of Tehran. I LOVED this amazing story and finely developed characters. This is a heart wrenching account of unconditional friendship of two very different yet so similar girls, young women and adults-their entire lifespan. Strong women, like lions, who are fiercely loyal and loving grow up in unstable Iran. Many heart breaking events occur. I felt like I was directly with the girls as they were growing up and living with them as they traveled through their lives. I remember these historical events but this story opened my eyes in a different way. I will definitely read more from this author.

This story was such a beautiful, haunting, and impactful read. I fell in love with Kamali’s prose when I read The Stationery Shop and I was so excited to get to read this one! I was in tears reading the story of this friendship between Ellie and Homa. The things they both went through and the struggles they faced were heartbreaking, but their strength and courage through it all was beautiful.

I was unfamiliar with a lot of the history of the revolution in Iran in the 70s/80s. The fear and uncertainty surrounding these women’s everyday lives was tragic. Even though the story was fiction, you could feel the truth behind what life is/was truly like for these women during this time in history up to present day.

+ coming of age
+ bonds of friendship
+ women’s rights & female empowerment
+ love & sacrifice
+ resilience

What a wonderful read. So full of emotion and life. While taking place in the recent past the author did a great job of mirroring the present in the way women are still fighting the exact same fight world over and will continue to. Should be required reading for those interested in getting involved. There is no wrong way to fight oppression as evidenced here.

This was a richly written book, set mostly in Tehran. There is friendship, jealousy, betrayal, yes, but the richness of the descriptions of place, time, food, and friends is what makes the book worth reading.

Thank you for this ARC. I thoroughly enjoyed The Stationery Shop and was excited to read this. Kamali again re-created a world with rich characters that you care deeply about. At times I did think it read a bit like a history book, but this did not last throughout. The ending had a nice twist that I did not see coming. If you enjoy historical fiction and decades-spanning family dramas, this is a great book for you!

This was a wonderful novel about women in Iran, set during the time of the Shah and after the Islamic Revolution. We meet the main character, Ellie, as a seven-year-old, who (as a result of the death of her father) must move with her mother to a lesser neighborhood. It is there that she meets Homa, the other main character. The girls form a deep, but complicated, friendship as children, then separate when Ellie moves to an upper-class neighborhood. The girls reunite as teenagers, and their (now very complicated) relationship continues through adulthood.
However, the women’s friendship is only the framework in which the reader experiences Iran. Throughout the novel – and deeply affecting the girls’/teenagers’/women’s relationship - are both the culture and politics of Iran. Homa is an activist from her youth, while Ellie “goes with the flow” of her time and culture. Homa, who wants to be a judge, is a strong supporter of women’s rights and also supports the communist cause, while Ellie (although supportive of advancement for women and education) is focused more on school, high school girlfriends and her boyfriend. Through these (and other) characters, the reader experiences the lives of, and issues facing, women in Iran. During the Shah’s time we see teenage girls dressed in pants and shorts, having parties and worrying about hair and makeup. We also see the brutality of the Shah’s regime and the horror of his prisons, including the devastating and lingering effect of being imprisoned on a teenage girl. We watch as most of the upper-class Iranians support the Shah (who provides many benefits to them) and believe that a fundamentalist revolution “just won’t happen” - - but, of course, it does. The reader must then watch as most women’s rights are quickly and irrevocably withdrawn by the new fundamentalist regime. The new Morality Police enforce mandatory hijab and other laws are enacted to the great detriment of women. Ellie winds up in the United States, while Homa continues her risky, lifelong fight for the betterment of women in Iran.
This novel was nicely written, but what it did best was to portray the lives and plights of Iranian women. The title of the novel is derived from an Iranian phrase “Lion Women” that was applied to Homa. I wish that I could say that this story of women in Iran had a happy ending, but, as we know even from current news, it does not. My hope is that the real Lion Women of Iran continue their fight and succeed in their battles. I highly recommend this novel – particularly to anyone who has an interest in Iran or women’s rights.

I truly, thoroughly enjoyed this book. Kamali writes with such strength and quiet wisdom. I learned so much about the history of Iran through the pages of this novel and came to love nearly all of its characters so deeply. There were a few moments where I felt information was included for information’s sake, but I think the story as a whole is incredibly valuable and one I will carry with me for a long while.

Thank you to NetGalley and Gallery Books for providing me this eARC in exchange for my honest review.

*Thank you to NetGalley and Gallery Books for providing this book, with my honest review below*

An absolutely beautiful story that I will recommend to all readers for its vivid description of some very relevant historical events as well as the fallout that followed. I especially think young women would find an interest in this book and those who want to better understand a country that is rich in culture, but in the news often for its extremist turns.

I thought the friendship was well written and was drawn to Homa especially throughout the story. Marjan Kamali has written about life through the lens of fiction, but it’s believable and a vivid depiction of what life truly was for Iranian women going through the revolution and living beyond it. Lion women, indeed.

I really wanted to give this book a better rating because I did like the plot and learning about the plight of women in Iran, but the writing itself was not up to par. I found too many anachronisms, multiple instances of poor word choice, poor word order in sentences, and repetitive phrases. For example, the author described the women's laughter as "giggling" many, many times. I found that to be demeaning to the women. There was also a description of the smell of the bathroom after one of the character's husbands was in there. Not appropriate to the story at all.
I know that this author has many fans because the descriptions of the life in Iran and the food and customs are interesting. The main characters are likeable. If only the editing had been better!
Note: My review is based on an advance copy of the book provided by Netgalley. I appreciate the opportunity to read and review the book!

Gorgeous story that’s beautifully done aboht the friendship between two women in Iran. Thanks for the arc and cheers

Ebook received for free through NetGalley

I’d read this author's previous book “The Stationary Shop” so jumped at the chance to read this one. It didn’t disappoint. The story was amazing, the characters oh so real; and everything pulled me in. Overall I’m so glad I came across this book.