Good Girl

SHORTLISTED FOR THE 2025 WOMEN'S PRIZE FOR FICTION

Born in Germany to Afghan parents, Nila has spent her adolescence disappointing her family while searching for her voice. Now in Berlin's techno-filled warehouses, their walls still scarred by the ravages of the last century, she has found her tribe.

Then Nila meets American writer Marlowe. As she is sucked into his seductive but controlling orbit, and ugly racial tensions begin to roil through Germany, she is forced to ask herself the question she's been running from: who does she want to be?

A portrait of the artist as a young woman in a Berlin that can't escape its history: an electric debut novel about the daughter of Afghan refugees and her year of nightclubs, bad romance, and self-discovery.

'A must-read ... breathtaking, profound, so fresh' Guardian
'Vivid, shockingly moving ... unwinds complex histories and legacies - of people, places and politics alike' Financial Times
'With her novel, Aber has made the world more spacious: more people will find a place to fit' New York Times
'Once in a blue moon a debut novel comes along, announcing a voice quite unlike any other' Los Angeles Times