"As Far as She Knew"

Diana Awad is an Arab American who grew up all over the world as the daughter of a United States Foreign Service Officer. After college, she became a local television journalist and often covered stories about violent crimes and mysterious disappearances. She eventually decided to write her own stories with unexpected endings. Awad also writes historical romance as Diana Quincy and historical mystery as D. M. Quincy. She is now happily settled in Virginia but still gets the itch to explore far-off places. When she’s not bent over her laptop, Awad reads, devours streaming thriller series, and plots her next travel adventure.

Awad applied the Page 69 Test to her new novel, As Far as She Knew, and shared the following:

From page 69:

Compassion filled Lulu’s face. “The facts do seem to point to a pretty ugly reality.”

Tears stung my eyes. “I was married to the man for more than two decades. I knew who he was, didn’t I?”

“But you didn’t know about the secret house in North Carolina,” she gently reminded me.

“Yes, Ali lied. That’s for sure.” I took a breath, still holding on to hope. “But maybe there’s another explanation for why he did that.” Please, God, let there be.

Lulu dipped celery into the hummus. “I hope you’re right. But I just want you to be prepared for the worst.”

I would never be ready for that. “What if I sue her?”

Nasser poured himself more iced tea. “Who?”

“Carol Darius.”

Doubt crossed Nasser’s face. “You don’t even know if Carol Darius got the house.”

“Then I’ll sue the LLC. I’d learn what I need to know during discovery, right?” I warmed to the idea. “Wouldn’t they have to show me the operating agreement?”

“They might,” Nasser admitted. “It could work, actually.”  

As it turns out, page 69 gives readers an excellent capsule of what As Far as She Knew is about and marks a significant turning point in the novel. Several of the novel’s central themes—primarily the question of how well we really know the people closest to us—are explored on page 69. The scene features a three-way conversation between Amira, the protagonist, who recently discovered that her late husband, Ali, owned a secret house; Nasser, her husband’s cousin and best friend; and Lulu, Amira’s sister and often the voice of reason. The scene foreshadows the numerous twists ahead, delves into family and marital devotion, and the complexities of grief when a wife is no longer sure her marriage was as happy as she thought.

Ultimately, the scene marks a decisive moment. Amira resolves to take control of her life by investigating how and why Ali came to acquire the house, and to explore what that means not only for her past, but also for her and her children’s future.

Visit Diana Awad's website.

My Book, The Movie: As Far as She Knew.

--Marshal Zeringue