Hafsa Lodi’s book explores the intersection of faith, love and identity

Dubai-based publisher The Dreamwork Collective has launched a powerful new novel exploring faith, feminism, and identity through the eyes of a young Muslim woman living a life she never planned. Penned by award-winning American-Muslim journalist and author Hafsa Lodi, Turbulence is an introspective work of female fiction that confronts the precarious balance between culture, ambition and family obligation. The book launched with a sold-out session at the Emirates Airline Festival of Literature on January 22nd and will be released globally on February 8th.

Set across London, New York and an unnamed city in the Middle East, Turbulence follows aspiring documentary-maker Dunya Dawood, whose plans for her future are upended when she falls in love. A decade later, pregnant and travelling to New York, Dunya is upgraded to business class, separating from her husband and young son. Removed from her life of domesticity in the Middle East, she reflects on the personal choices, compromises and relationships that have shaped her trajectory. When a shocking discovery sends her into labour mid-air, Dunya is forced to make an impossible decision that will redefine her faith.

Through Dunya’s internal monologue and shifting timelines, Turbulence examines the delicate balance many women navigate between culture, faith, ambition, family obligation and feminism. It speaks to mothers, wives and even young adult readers interested in global stories, while shedding light on some of the grey areas and the unspoken struggles that a young Muslim woman might face, which are often absent from portrayals of Muslim women in contemporary literature.

Discussing her motivation for writing the book, Lodi explains, “The struggle between faith and feminism is a common one, not only among women of my generation, but especially among Muslim women. I wanted to craft a protagonist who felt empowered by, and passionate about her religion, who was motivated by her faith in all aspects of life, from her career aspirations to her approach to motherhood. So often, Muslim women in fiction are written in binaries: the ‘pious’ good girl or the ‘rebellious’ secular woman who ultimately rejects her faith. With Turbulence, I wanted to explore the internal dilemmas that a young Muslim woman might have about balancing culture, career, faith, family and feminism.”

The inspiration for Turbulence began with a real-life news story Lodi encountered in 2020 about a woman who gave birth on an Emirates flight to Lagos. When Lodi later became pregnant herself, the image stayed with her, becoming the novel's narrative hook. The writing process evolved organically, with Lodi initially drafting the story in third person before later rewriting it in first person to heighten its intimacy and introspection.

A seasoned journalist with more than a decade of experience and the former features editor at Vogue Arabia, Lodi is widely known for her writing on the intersection of faith, fashion and feminism. Her debut non-fiction book, Modesty: A Fashion Paradox, became a #1 bestseller on Amazon UAE.

Turbulence is available at The Dreamwork Collective.