Product Description

Set in seventeenth-century Iran, THE BLOOD OF FLOWERS is the powerful and haunting story of a young girl's journey from innocence to adulthood.

A village girl's dreams of marriage end on the death of her father. Cast on the mercy of relatives in fabled Isfahan, she and her mother are reduced to servitude until she reveals a talent for designing carpets – an invaluable skill. Hope is short-lived, for a disastrous, headstrong act results in the girl's disgrace. Caught between forces she can barely comprehend, she faces a life lived at the whim of others – unless she is prepared to risk everything and choose a future based on her own strength and will. 

THE BLOOD OF FLOWERS tells an unforgettable story: a tale of sensuality, of the treachery of friendship, of the power of love, and of the fragile possibility of finding happiness against all odds.

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Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #21391 in Books
• Published on: 2008-04-03
• Original language: English
• Binding: Paperback
• 464 pages

Amazon.co.uk
Word-of-mouth is often a reliable guide to the interest of a novel, and in the case of Anita Amirrezvani’s The Blood of Flowers, the considerable preliminary excitement was fully justified. This is a vivid and atmospheric picture of Iran: the way in which the people live, the sunbaked scenery and the architecture. But most of all, this is the involving story of a young girl's journey from a state of innocence to that of sober adulthood. Amidst the colour and excitement of the bazaars of Isfahan, a spirited young village girl is approaching the age when it is expected that she will marry. But suddenly her life is thrown into turmoil at the same time as a luminous comet blazes across the sky. After the death of her much-loved father, the young woman and her inconsolable mother find themselves obliged to cope with a challenging new life in the busy city of Isfahan. They are taken in as house servants by an uncle, a wealthy carpet designer, and his unsympathetic wife. Although life is difficult, Amirrezvani’s protagonist quickly shows her skills as a maker of carpets, and under her uncle's watchful eye, life begins to look positive again. But then an ill-considered action results in the heroine’s fall from grace, and she is forced into a grim secret marriage.

The narrative here is couched in prose by Anita Amirrezvani that positively glows on the page, and the characterisation is similarly acute, notably of the wonderfully drawn heroine. As a journey into a society that will be alien to most readers, this is a remarkable achievement. --Barry Forshaw

Review

'I've just read the most wonderful book by Anita Amirezzvani... it is fascinating, totally original and utterly gripping. It will remain one of my favourite books'

(Esther Freud, Independent on Sunday )

'Sensuous and transporting...filled with the colours, tastes and fragrances of life in seventeenth-century Isfahan'

(Geraldine Brooks )

'Amirrezvani... infuses her heroine with lilting eloquence'

(Washington Post )

(San Francisco Chronicle )

'Lushly written, sensual'

(Australian Women's Weekly )

About the Author

Anita Amirrezvani was born in Iran but has lived in the USA since she was a young child. She has visited Iran many times and has been steeped in tales of Iranian life and history from an early age. THE BLOOD OF FLOWERS is her first novel. 

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Customer Reviews

An Interesting Read
Whilst this book is well researched and contains a level of detail as a work of fiction it falls down a little. The characters are a little unidimensional and the prose can be a little flat at times. That said the plot is an interesting if rather contrived one and better than the plot are the tales of ancient Persian that pop up from now and again. The real delight though is the detail especially in concerning the traditional method of carpet making. The story tells the tale of a young (nameless) girl who following the death of her father is forced into the city of Isfahan to stay with her relatives. Treated very much as a servant she is coerced into a temporary marriage with a rich benefactor and we're presented with a fairly standard storyline where the girl builds up her talents and tries to achieve her independence. As a male reader one gets the distinct impression that the author is making (a very unsubtle) attack on males and whilst her novel on 17th centaury Iranian feminism is enjoyable it feels slightly unrealistic.

As a novel the book lacks somewhat, however it is worth reading for its descriptions of 17th centaury life in Isfahan and its descriptions of carpet making.

A highly enjoyable novel, very vivid!
The Blood of Flowers by Anita Amirrezvani tells the story of a young Iranian girl as she makes her way in the world. As she reaches marrying age a comet crosses the sky foretelling doom and bad luck. Shortly after, our narrator's life is turned upside down; her father dies leaving her and her mother with no way to earn a living. Having barely managed to survive a desolate winter in their village, they contact a distant relative in the city and move to Isafhan. In the city, their luck seems to be changing; their family welcome them, and the narrator is learning to nurture her talent as a carpet knotter under her uncle's vigilant eye. However, the bad luck of the comet is not finished with her yet. After a series of hasty decisions she and her mother find themselves homeless. Both women have to learn to become independent and find happiness by themselves and on their own terms. I enjoyed this novel because of the empathy the author causes the reader to feel with the main character, even though we never find out her name. She is a truly three-dimensional character, with flaws and strengths that has the reader cheering for her and raging at her in equal measure. The structure of the novel is also engaging for the reader as it is punctuated with traditional Iranian folk stories, telling tales of magical birds, princesses and naughty angels. 17th century Iran is spectacularly brought to life by Amirrezvani, the squares, the mosques and the bazaars are all described in such a way that you can almost smell the fragrant spices. In this respect the novel is like the carpets at the heart of the story; small knots made of stunning setting, realistic characterisation and unique structure all combine to create an intricate work of art. If you enjoyed The Kite Runner and Memoirs of a Geisha then this novel is for you.

wonderful new author
I have to say I was enormously impressed and moved by this novel. Firstly the setting in ancient Iran and the unamed heroine really gripped me. You can sense how much research went into this book, the descriptions of the clothes, food, architecture, and the daily lives of the Iranian people in the 17th century. Very cleverly structured with short tales interwoven into the narrative. What most impressed me though was that during halfway I thought the author was going to tip the book into slushy romance, but then switches it back and in the process made the heroine even more of a fighter.

I always like to compare it to The Kite Runner, not because the stories are similar, but because both writers have done something magical, and captured in print the lives of ordinary beings doing extraordinary things. As such it is very great achievement. Unforgettable.