Somebody Else's Life

I always thought that it would never happen to me.

My upbringing was unconventional. My father had 2 wives, living with both at the same time. We lived together harmoniously, my dad sleeping between the 2 of them. We only spoke English at home. I never imagined the Pakistani culture of honour would impinge on my life. The sad reality is it did. It was because of these cultural values that at age 17 I became a bartered bride, forced into a loveless marriage to a man I can only describe as repulsive. A much older man who saw me as another chattel with parents willing to pay for the sale of a troublesome teenager.

This book is the story of my life. Of freedom gained and lost, and found again when I escaped Pakistan, return to the safety of England, only to be betrayed by those closest to me.