Night is Not For You by Eman Quotah

The Night is Not For You . . . It Has Always Belonged to HER

She’s a cautionary tale told by mothers to their young children, ‘Come back before it gets dark.’

She’s a warning to lecherous young men, ‘Don’t wander the streets late at night.’

A man’s body is found viciously murdered behind a neighbourhood’s 24-hour corner store, sending shockwaves through the tightknit community in this small-town neighbourhood. All the victim’s family and bystanders want is to make sense of this brutal crime and move on with their lives.

But all seven-year-old Layla wants is a pet donkey. To her, a donkey is the epitome of freedom and being self-sufficient – to think for herself, go anywhere by herself and live an independent life.

As the killings continue, Layla’s world unravels. Rumours start to fly of supposed hoofprints and a woman with hair like black silk. As the ambiguous messages in lipstick and sweet smell of perfume cause the finger of blame to point towards the women, Layla herself grows into a woman.

The kind of woman she has always dreamt of becoming – A woman with sharp instincts. A woman who cannot be tamed.

This is a story of old world meets new, of modernity and isolation as a community turns on its women in an effort to protect their boys and men – but mostly importantly, this is the story of one woman’s freedom.

From the award-winning author of THE BRIDE AT SEA comes this visceral tale of feminine rage and magical realism as Layla navigates the very human pains of growing up and realising the world isn’t as safe a place as it should be.

About the Author: Eman Quotah’s debut novel, Bride of the Sea, won the Arab American Book Award for fiction. Her writing has appeared in The Washington Post, USA Today, and many other publications. She lives outside Washington, DC, with her family.

07 Oct 2025
 

The Night is Not For You: A beguilingly dark coming of rage story, based on a jinn from Arabic folklore by Eman Quotah ISBN 9781035411658