Haram (January 2026, Paperback, 272 pg) Zubayr Charles

As a young man in a close-knit Muslim community in Woodstock, Muhammad used to feel trapped between who he was and who he was expected to be. But then he met Riyaaz, and his world shifted in unexpected ways. Many years later, on the day of his wedding, Muhammad is pulled into memories of his adolescence – a time when faith and forbidden desires collided.

Haram is an unflinching tale alive with hidden and unspoken desires.

Read more below.

Zubayr Charles

R350.00

Available on back-order

SKU: 9780795711244 Categories: , , , Brand:

Description

Muhammad has always tried to be the praise-worthy son. In the close-knit Muslim community in Cape Town where he was raised by his fiercely religious mother, Zaynab, he performs his prayers on time and he lives by the rules of his faith. But beneath the surface, Muhammad feels trapped between who he is expected to be and who he truly is.
When Muhammad meets Riyaaz at a braai one evening, his world suddenly shifts in drastic and unexpected ways.

Set against the vivid backdrop of Cape Malay culture and the complexities of Coloured identity, Haram is both tender and unflinching. The novel captures the rhythms of prayer as well as the secrets that families hide – in a bustling city alive with unspoken desires.