Gin McPhee grew up in poverty, with a strict grandfather who preached and taught her the consequences of sin. Almost to her disbelief, Gin finds herself escaping her life and married to Mason, a former prom king who gives up a scholarship to Oklahoma State when she finds herself pregnant and gets a job in oil. Houston is replaced by Saudi Arabia and Gin finds mending and making do replaced by living in the luxury compound run by the Arabian American Oil Company.

It is 1967, but things have changed very little in the desert. Although Gin has a lovely house, a gardener and a houseboy (the witty and intelligent Yash) she is unable to leave the compound on her own, as she suffers the strict rules imposed on a country where women are largely housebound and reliant on men. It seems to her she has escaped the limits of her childhood only to end in a gilded prison. With Mason away for weeks at a time, Gin relies on the company of Yash, her new found friend Ruthie and her new hobby of photography. Mason is determined to make his new job a success, but is uncomfortable about the way the Arab workers are treated and wants to improve their lives.

This is not a traditional mystery, but is more about the way Gin responds to the confines of her new life, as she attempts to understand her new home and the people there. There is Abdullah, Mason's driver, who is certainly capable of a much better role and feels resentment. Yash, who used to work for the Bodeen's, the couple who lived in the company house before Gin and Mason and is more aware of why they left so suddenly than anyone realises. Ruthie, wicked and lovable, Carlo the Italian photographer and Abdullah's beautiful sister, Nadia. Mason's idealistic views and Gin's inability to accept the limits of her new life, bring them both into danger and, everywhere, the company wives are watching... This is an excellent, interesting novel with great characters and would be wonderful for a reading group, with lots to discuss. If you enjoy this, you might also like "The Night of the Mi'raj", another excellent novel set in Saudi Arabia.