The Centre

Shortlisted for the Nota Bene Prize. A dark and surreal literary thriller following an adrift Pakistani translator in London who attends a mysterious language school. It boasts complete fluency in just ten days, but at a secret, sinister cost . . . ' Black Mirror take on the world of language' – The Observer 'Absolutely stunning . . . thrilling and unique' - Gillian Flynn 'Creepy, provocative and wildly entertaining' - Emma Stonex 'A thrillingly ambitious literary chiller' - The Guardian Anisa Ellahi longs to become a translator of 'great works of literature', but right now she is stuck in her London flat writing subtitles for Bollywood films. Then she is told about the Centre, an elite, invite-only programme that guarantees complete fluency in any language in just ten days. Seduced by all that it could make possible, Anisa enrols. But the Centre's services come at a disturbing hidden cost. Still - it's worth it, right? After all, success comes at a price . . . By turns dark, funny and surreal, The Centre by Ayesha Manazir Siddiqi takes you on a journey through Karachi, London and New Delhi. Throughout it interrogates the sticky politics of language, translation and appropriation and asks: what price would you be willing to pay for success?

Shortlisted for the Nota Bene Prize. A dark and surreal literary thriller following an adrift Pakistani translator in London who attends a mysterious language school. It boasts complete fluency in just ten days, but at a secret, sinister cost . . . ' Black Mirror take on the world of language' – The Observer 'Absolutely stunning . . . thrilling and unique' - Gillian Flynn 'Creepy, provocative and wildly entertaining' - Emma Stonex 'A thrillingly ambitious literary chiller' - The Guardian Anisa Ellahi longs to become a translator of 'great works of literature', but right now she is stuck in her London flat writing subtitles for Bollywood films. Then she is told about the Centre, an elite, invite-only programme that guarantees complete fluency in any language in just ten days. Seduced by all that it could make possible, Anisa enrols. But the Centre's services come at a disturbing hidden cost. Still - it's worth it, right? After all, success comes at a price . . . By turns dark, funny and surreal, The Centre by Ayesha Manazir Siddiqi takes you on a journey through Karachi, London and New Delhi. Throughout it interrogates the sticky politics of language, translation and appropriation and asks: what price would you be willing to pay for success?

'Absolutely stunning . . . thrilling and unique' - GILLIAN FLYNN 'Creepy, provocative and wildly entertaining' - EMMA STONEX 'A banger!' - CHELSEA G SUMMERS 'Fantastic . . . compelling . . . wonderful' - THE OBSERVER Welcome to The Centre. You'll never be the same . . . Anisa Ellahi spends her days writing subtitles for Bollywood films in her London flat, all the while longing to be a translator of ‘great works of literature’. Her boyfriend Adam’s extraordinary aptitude for languages only makes her feel worse, but when Adam learns to speak Urdu practically overnight, Anisa forces him to reveal his secret. Adam tells Anisa about the Centre, an elite, invite-only programme that guarantees total fluency in any language in just ten days. Sceptical but intrigued, Anisa enrols. Stripped of her belongings and contact with the outside world, she undergoes the Centre’s strange and rigorous processes. But as she enmeshes herself further within the organization, seduced by all that it’s made possible, she soon realizes the disturbing, hidden cost of its services. By turns dark, funny and surreal, The Centre takes the reader on a journey through Karachi, London and New Delhi, interrogating the sticky politics of language, translation and appropriation with biting specificity, and ultimately asking: what price would you be willing to pay for success? A remarkable debut from Ayesha Manazir Siddiqi, announcing the arrival of an extraordinary new talent.

'Absolutely stunning . . . thrilling and unique' - GILLIAN FLYNN 'Creepy, provocative and wildly entertaining' - EMMA STONEX 'A banger!' - CHELSEA G SUMMERS 'Fantastic . . . compelling . . . wonderful' - THE OBSERVER Welcome to The Centre. You'll never be the same . . . Anisa Ellahi spends her days writing subtitles for Bollywood films in her London flat, all the while longing to be a translator of ‘great works of literature’. Her boyfriend Adam’s extraordinary aptitude for languages only makes her feel worse, but when Adam learns to speak Urdu practically overnight, Anisa forces him to reveal his secret. Adam tells Anisa about the Centre, an elite, invite-only programme that guarantees total fluency in any language in just ten days. Sceptical but intrigued, Anisa enrols. Stripped of her belongings and contact with the outside world, she undergoes the Centre’s strange and rigorous processes. But as she enmeshes herself further within the organization, seduced by all that it’s made possible, she soon realizes the disturbing, hidden cost of its services. By turns dark, funny and surreal, The Centre takes the reader on a journey through Karachi, London and New Delhi, interrogating the sticky politics of language, translation and appropriation with biting specificity, and ultimately asking: what price would you be willing to pay for success? A remarkable debut from Ayesha Manazir Siddiqi, announcing the arrival of an extraordinary new talent.

A The New Yorker Best Book of the Year - A New York Times Editors' Choice - An Amazon Editors' Pick for Best Mystery, Thriller & Suspense "The most fascinating debut I've read in years―enigmatic, biting, absurd, and right when you think you've got it figured out, utterly horrifying." ―Daniel Kraus, New York Times bestselling author of Whalefall and The Shape of Water (with Guillermo del Toro) "A gripping, surreal mystery about language, identity, and greed." ―Peng Shepherd, bestselling author of The Cartographers " The Centre draws you in with a gentle hand until it throws the mallet down." ―Chelsea G. Summers, author of A Certain Hunger " The Centre is as haunting as it is tempting; this book devoured me back." ―Sarah Gailey, author of Just Like Home and Eat the Rich In this "dazzling" speculative debut, a London-based Pakistani translator furthers her stalled career by attending a mysterious language school that boasts near-instant fluency―but at a secret, sinister cost (Gillian Flynn). Anisa Ellahi dreams of being a translator of "great works of literature," but mostly spends her days subtitling Bollywood movies and living off her parents' generous allowance. Adding to her growing sense of inadequacy, her mediocre white boyfriend, Adam, has successfully leveraged his savant-level aptitude for languages into an enviable career. But when Adam learns to speak Urdu practically overnight, Anisa forces him to reveal his secret. Adam begrudgingly tells her about The Centre, an elite, invite-only program that guarantees complete fluency in any language, in just ten days. This sounds, to Anisa, like a step toward the life she's always wanted. Stripped of her belongings and all contact with the outside world, she enrolls and undergoes The Centre's strange and rigorous processes. But as Anisa enmeshes herself further within the organization, seduced by all that it's made possible, she soon realizes the hidden cost of its services. By turns darkly comic and surreal, and with twists as page-turning as they are shocking, The Centre journeys through Karachi, London, and New Delhi, interrogating the sticky politics of language, translation, and appropriation along the way. Through Anisa's addictive tale of striving and self-actualization, Ayesha Manazir Siddiqi ultimately asks the reader: What is the real price we pay in our scramble to the center?

A The New Yorker Best Book of the Year - A New York Times Editors' Choice - An Amazon Editors' Pick for Best Mystery, Thriller & Suspense "The most fascinating debut I've read in years―enigmatic, biting, absurd, and right when you think you've got it figured out, utterly horrifying." ―Daniel Kraus, New York Times bestselling author of Whalefall and The Shape of Water (with Guillermo del Toro) "A gripping, surreal mystery about language, identity, and greed." ―Peng Shepherd, bestselling author of The Cartographers " The Centre draws you in with a gentle hand until it throws the mallet down." ―Chelsea G. Summers, author of A Certain Hunger " The Centre is as haunting as it is tempting; this book devoured me back." ―Sarah Gailey, author of Just Like Home and Eat the Rich In this "dazzling" speculative debut, a London-based Pakistani translator furthers her stalled career by attending a mysterious language school that boasts near-instant fluency―but at a secret, sinister cost (Gillian Flynn). Anisa Ellahi dreams of being a translator of "great works of literature," but mostly spends her days subtitling Bollywood movies and living off her parents' generous allowance. Adding to her growing sense of inadequacy, her mediocre white boyfriend, Adam, has successfully leveraged his savant-level aptitude for languages into an enviable career. But when Adam learns to speak Urdu practically overnight, Anisa forces him to reveal his secret. Adam begrudgingly tells her about The Centre, an elite, invite-only program that guarantees complete fluency in any language, in just ten days. This sounds, to Anisa, like a step toward the life she's always wanted. Stripped of her belongings and all contact with the outside world, she enrolls and undergoes The Centre's strange and rigorous processes. But as Anisa enmeshes herself further within the organization, seduced by all that it's made possible, she soon realizes the hidden cost of its services. By turns darkly comic and surreal, and with twists as page-turning as they are shocking, The Centre journeys through Karachi, London, and New Delhi, interrogating the sticky politics of language, translation, and appropriation along the way. Through Anisa's addictive tale of striving and self-actualization, Ayesha Manazir Siddiqi ultimately asks the reader: What is the real price we pay in our scramble to the center?

'Absolutely stunning . . . thrilling and unique' - GILLIAN FLYNN 'Creepy, provocative and wildly entertaining' - EMMA STONEX 'A banger!' - CHELSEA G SUMMERS 'Fantastic . . . compelling . . . wonderful' - THE OBSERVER Welcome to The Centre. You'll never be the same . . . Anisa Ellahi spends her days writing subtitles for Bollywood films in her London flat, all the while longing to be a translator of ‘great works of literature’. Her boyfriend Adam’s extraordinary aptitude for languages only makes her feel worse, but when Adam learns to speak Urdu practically overnight, Anisa forces him to reveal his secret. Adam tells Anisa about the Centre, an elite, invite-only programme that guarantees total fluency in any language in just ten days. Sceptical but intrigued, Anisa enrols. Stripped of her belongings and contact with the outside world, she undergoes the Centre’s strange and rigorous processes. But as she enmeshes herself further within the organization, seduced by all that it’s made possible, she soon realizes the disturbing, hidden cost of its services. By turns dark, funny and surreal, The Centre takes the reader on a journey through Karachi, London and New Delhi, interrogating the sticky politics of language, translation and appropriation with biting specificity, and ultimately asking: what price would you be willing to pay for success? A remarkable debut from Ayesha Manazir Siddiqi, announcing the arrival of an extraordinary new talent.

'Absolutely stunning . . . thrilling and unique' - GILLIAN FLYNN 'Creepy, provocative and wildly entertaining' - EMMA STONEX 'A banger!' - CHELSEA G SUMMERS 'Fantastic . . . compelling . . . wonderful' - THE OBSERVER Welcome to The Centre. You'll never be the same . . . Anisa Ellahi spends her days writing subtitles for Bollywood films in her London flat, all the while longing to be a translator of ‘great works of literature’. Her boyfriend Adam’s extraordinary aptitude for languages only makes her feel worse, but when Adam learns to speak Urdu practically overnight, Anisa forces him to reveal his secret. Adam tells Anisa about the Centre, an elite, invite-only programme that guarantees total fluency in any language in just ten days. Sceptical but intrigued, Anisa enrols. Stripped of her belongings and contact with the outside world, she undergoes the Centre’s strange and rigorous processes. But as she enmeshes herself further within the organization, seduced by all that it’s made possible, she soon realizes the disturbing, hidden cost of its services. By turns dark, funny and surreal, The Centre takes the reader on a journey through Karachi, London and New Delhi, interrogating the sticky politics of language, translation and appropriation with biting specificity, and ultimately asking: what price would you be willing to pay for success? A remarkable debut from Ayesha Manazir Siddiqi, announcing the arrival of an extraordinary new talent.