Hussain - The Hopes and Triumphs of the Amir Sisters

Funny, warm and uplifting

OK! Magazine

Breezy, funny and winning

Daily Mail

A lovely story about family, faith and self-acceptance

Red Magazine

Packed with humour and warmth

Heat

An enriching, thought-provoking and yes entertaining read.

Independent

Proves shes more than just a dab hand with a piping bag

Daily Telegraph

Over 14 million people tuned in to see NADIYA win 2015s Great British Bake Off. Since then she has captured the heart of the nation. A columnist for The Times and Essentials, Nadiya is also a regular reporter for The One Show and presented a two-part series, The Chronicles of Nadiya on BBC One. She is the author of Nadiyas Kitchen (Michael Joseph), Bake me a Story (Hodder) and has been named as one of the top five most influential Asians in the UK.

The Secret Lives of the Amir Sisters

The Fall and Rise of the Amir Sisters

Nadiya Hussain with Ayisha Malik

ONE PLACE. MANY STORIES

An imprint of HarperCollins Publishers Ltd

1 London Bridge Street

London SE1 9GF

First published in Great Britain by HQ in 2020

Copyright Nadiya Hussain 2020

Nadiya Hussain asserts the moral right to be identified as the author of this work.

A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library.

This novel is entirely a work of fiction. The names, characters and incidents portrayed in it are the work of the authors imagination. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, events or localities is entirely coincidental.

All rights reserved under International and Pan-American Copyright Conventions. By payment of the required fees, you have been granted the non-exclusive, non-transferable right to access and read the text of this e-book on-screen. No part of this text may be reproduced, transmitted, downloaded, decompiled, reverse engineered, or stored in or introduced into any information storage and retrieval system, in any form or by any means, whether electronic or mechanical, now known or hereinafter invented, without the express written permission of HarperCollins.

Ebook Edition January 2020 ISBN: 9780008192402

This ebook contains the following accessibility features which, if supported by your device, can be accessed via your ereader/accessibility settings:

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• Page numbers taken from the following print edition: ISBN 9780008192389

I t was meant to have been the time of Maes life. It was the time of her life. Last nights doner kebab wrapper was still on her night-stand so she scrunched it up and threw it in the bin. Scratching her head she ate another cheese Dorito out of the packet. Crumbs fell on to the jeans shed packed on top of her bag, but she couldnt be bothered to clean them off. It wasnt as if anyone noticed her. Nor as if she actually wanted to be noticed, she supposed. Not any more, anyway. Whatever. So, she zipped up the bag, mumbled, Laters, as she walked out of her room in the halls of residence, and closed the door behind her.

A slew of students scurried past and she waited at the door, shifting on her feet, glancing at people to see if anyone would catch her eye. There was Marcus who was in her Studying Television class. And Dilek who sat next to him. Dilek would spend the lecture crumpling up pieces of paper and throwing them at Marcus, whod just spread out his legs, slump further down in his seat and chuckle. The paper ball once bounced off Marcus and hit Mae, who was sitting in the row in front of him.

Oops. Soz, whispered Dilek.

Its all right, replied Mae, picking up the ball and wondering what to do with it.

Shed wanted to make a joke while handing it back: More useful than making notes in this class. Lucky it didnt hit Buxom Buxton or itd have bounced off her, straight into her face. But something caught in her throat. Everything that sprang to mind sounded lame. She picked holes in her retorts before she ever said them out loud and by that time the person had moved on, just like Dilek had, whod carried on taking notes as Marcus snatched her pen.

Mae eyed them both now as they ambled past, Marcus with his arm casually around Dileks shoulders. Maybe theyd see her and smile. Maybe even say hello. Except they hadnt noticed her. By the time Mae realised that there wasnt anything lame about her saying hello to them, theyd walked past and the chance was gone.

It was fine. She was going back home for Easter and there she didnt have to always worry about words catching in her throat or saying something stupid. Mae wove her way through the corridors, out into the crisp spring air and walked towards the station. True, the Christmas holiday at home hadnt gone as planned. Between two new babies and her mum and dads gross newly blossoming romance, Mae found herself scurrying from one place to the next, helping out, changing nappies, babysitting, helping her mum in the kitchen. Her mum, by the way, who didnt once ask how university was going.

Typical, said Mae to herself as she boarded the train, taking a seat by the window.

Shed expected better of her sister, Fatti, but motherhood. Mae sighed.

This time would be different because the babies werent as new any more, and there was a party, of course, because the whole family was getting together after so many months. Her dad had said they were throwing it in her honour. They might not say it very often or at all but Mae was sure they were proud of her being at university, even if she was only doing Media Studies. Maybe her family would ask her enough questions about university for her to see that university wasnt that bad. Because it wasnt, really, was it?

A few hours later she stepped off the train on to a small platform under an overcast sky. Ash, her brother-in-law, would be waiting to pick her up so they could drive down to Wyvernage.

Mae waited for a response, but after a few minutes, when she saw no one was typing, she called her mum and dads house phone. It rang twelve times before her harassed-sounding mum picked up.

Haam, she exclaimed.

Whoa, madre. Easy on the eardrums.

Oh, Mae. What is it?

Er, just waiting here at the station.

There was a pause.

What station? her mum asked.

Waterloo.

What?

Sewell station, obvs. Where else? Wheres Ash?

Another pause.

Oh my God. FATIMA.

Mae pulled the phone away from her ear.

Fatti, where is your husband? exclaimed her mum. He was meant to pick up Mae at the station.

What? Today? came Fatimas faint but recognisable voice.

Yes, today. She is waiting now. Okay, Mae. Hes coming.

He must have forgotten.

Adam has been crying so much, ya Allah. Teething. Fatti and Ash are both walking around like those zombies. Hes on his way so wait there. Have to go, the fish is burning.