Things Left Unsaid: A Novel

by Sara Jafari

Overview

A dazzling, electrifying, and thought-provoking novel for readers of Maame and Honey Girl, Things Left Unsaid is a mesmerizing and deeply-felt exploration of discovering your place in the world and the lasting power of love.

When twenty-six year old Shirin Bayat bumps into Kian at a house party in London, she is taken aback by the immediate feelings that resurface. It’s been a decade since they were close friends at school, before painful events pulled them apart, suddenly and seemingly forever. Ever since, Shirin has lived with the aching weight of things left unsaid between them.

Now they're back in each other's lives, at a time when Shirin needs someone she can trust the most. Feeling stuck in a sea of slippery friendships and deeply burned out by her publishing job, Kian is a bright light amongst a sea of gray. There’s nothing worse than losing the person you trust most with your deepest secrets and desires, and Shirin and Kian are determined to hold tightly to each other.

But of course, life often has other plans. Will it be different this time around, or are Shirin and Kian destined to fall apart once more?

"A love-craving, tumbling tale." —The Associated Press

"A delicate yet impactful look at depression, disillusioned dreams, second chances at love and the power of bravery. What a book!" —Jessica George

"Intricate and deft...Jafari has written a total stunner." —Amy Jo Burns, author of Mercury

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781250288837
Publisher:	St. Martin's Publishing Group
Publication date:	04/15/2025
Pages:	320
Product dimensions:	6.40(w) x 9.30(h) x 1.20(d)

About the Author

Sara Jafari is a London-based British Iranian author of the novels The Mismatch and Things Left Unsaid. She is a contributor to I Will Not Be Erased and the romance anthology Who’s Loving You. Jafari also works as an editor and runs TOKEN magazine, which showcases writing and artwork by underrepresented writers and artists.

Editorial Reviews

02/24/2025

Two former friends reconnect as adults in this perceptive literary romance from Jafari (People Change). It’s been 10 years since British Iranians Shirin Bayat and Kian Rahimi last saw each other, following a blowout at their school in northern England, where they were the only nonwhite students. Now in their mid-20s, they run into each other at a London house party hosted by mutual friends. In alternating threads, Jafari explores how Shirin, now an editor at a publishing house, faces an onslaught of racist microaggressions and is upset to learn that one of her former school bullies, a racist comedian, has landed a major book deal with another publisher. Meanwhile Kian, a painter who’s planning to leave for New York City on a one-year fellowship, still harbors guilt over his role in his older brother’s imprisonment for assault. Flashbacks reveal how Shirin deflected Kian’s advances when they were in school, for fear of losing their friendship. Now, as Shirin and Kian attempt dating, they struggle with whether a long-term relationship could make them stronger or hold them back from fulfilling their ambitions. Jafari convincingly conveys Shirin’s shattered self-worth and Kian’s crippling guilt. Sally Rooney fans will savor this. Agent: Katie Greenstreet, Paper Literary. (Apr.)

Publishers Weekly

"Sally Rooney fans will savor this." —Publishers Weekly

"A love-craving, tumbling tale." —The Associated Press

"A delicate yet impactful look at depression, disillusioned dreams, second chances at love and the power of bravery. What a book!" —Jessica George, New York Times bestselling author of Maame

"I absolutely fell in love with this romantic and incisive novel. Intricate and deft, Things Left Unsaid reads like smooth jazz on the page. Shirin is the kind of heroine I love to root for—smart, flawed, honest, and resilient. Jafari has written a total stunner." —Amy Jo Burns, author of Mercury

"Things Left Unsaid explores the rough edges of early adulthood with such clarity, unpacking what it means to both lose and rediscover yourself — and your relationships — in that hazy, messy era we call our twenties. Sara Jafari's writing is as deeply perceptive as it is relatable, tackling both heavy themes and lighter topics with nuance and poise. Fans of Sally Rooney will eat up this brilliant novel, no doubt." —Genevieve Wheeler, author of Adelaide

“Blistering and tender. In Things Left Unsaid, Sara Jafari examines the insidious nature of racism—in the workplace, school, our friendships and families—as well as the necessity of using our voices, individually and collectively, to speak up. Things Left Unsaid is also a story about the past’s ability to haunt—and to heal.” —Daphne Palasi Andreades, author of Brown Girls

“A topical, compelling story of fragmented personhood, the systemic racism and inherited trauma first generation children must shoulder, and the bliss of meeting the one person who might understand. Shirin’s identity subtly informs the way she moves through and interacts with the world, creating a captivating master class in writing representation without tokenization.” —Iman Hariri-Kia, author of A Hundred Other Girls and The Most Famous Girl in the World

"A careful, beautiful story that reminds us about the importance of time - how it shapes us, changes us and gives us second chances we could only dream of." —Ore Agbaje-Williams, author of The Three of Us

"Nuanced and beautifully written, Things Left Unsaid is a thoughtful, deeply felt story about longing, growing up, second chances, and finding your place in the world. Delving skillfully into complex issues of race and mental health, Jafari writes with great honesty and insight." —Cecile Pin, author of Wandering Souls

From the Publisher

Honor Gilles and Majid Mehdizadeh-Valoujerdy provide an alternating narration of this audiobook about two 20-something British Iranian friends. Shirin and Kian meet again after 10 years and embark on a romantic relationship. Gilles depicts Shirin, an assistant editor, who is subjected to racist microaggressions in the workplace. Shirin is outraged when the publishing house decides to publish the memoir of a comic who bullied her in high school. At first, Gilles's portrayals of Shirin and others sound a little flat, but she infuses more emotional vibrancy into the characters as the story progresses. Mehdizadeh-Valoujerdy, however, is a natural storyteller. His accents are strikingly authentic. He ably conveys emotional urgency, especially with Kian and his father, and his investment in the story is evident. M.J. © AudioFile 2025, Portland, Maine

MAY 2025 - AudioFile