Zayneb is in her first year of law school in Chicago, with too much on her plate and no idea how to scale back; Adam is living in Doha, desperate for a new commission so he can prove to Zayneb's family that he can provide for her. Instead of their planned Thanksgiving break - just the two of them in a cottage in England - they wind up on a group Umrah trip along with an almost-girlfriend of Adam's from his first year of college. Most of the tension and conflict comes from Zayneb and Adam keeping secrets from each other out of wanting to protect each other or be seen as worthy.

Quotes

I was afraid she would leave me because I needed her too much. (Adam, 165)

It all came down to how much of our comfort we were willing to give up to confront the injustices hiding among us. (Zayneb, 198)

"...we're not tasked with the outcome of anything. A lot of my anxiety in life came from thinking that it was all in my hands....But only the effort is in our hands....We can't force or focus on what the end looks like; that's in Allah's hands." (Janna to Adam, 297)

I didn't need to take things off my plate. I needed to put the right things on it. (Zayneb, 303) ( )