THIS IS A NOT A GOOD book, but it is a brave one – and deserves to be read for that reason. Offering an insider’s view of a closed society – Saudi Arabia – might be provocative enough, but to do so from the point of view of a woman, and a young, unmarried woman at that, is revolutionary indeed.

Needless to say, it was banned in Saudi Arabia. For this is a society in which women have no voice, no vote and no rights. They are not allowed to drive, or travel without permission from a male family member; nor to show their faces in public.

All this has been much deplored by Western commentators; what has been missing is any comment from women themselves. So here it is and, in some respects it lives up to expectations. Here are the stories of stifled voices and stunted lives; the loveless arranged marriages and disappointed hopes. Told in a series of e-mails, it gives the stories of four friends from wealthy Saudi families, all living in Riyadh.

There is Gamrah, first seen at her wedding to Rashid, a suitor chosen by her family. Rashid turns out to be a rotter, who has been unfaithful before the marriage contract is even signed. The pregnant Gamrah returns to her family in disgrace – a divorced woman whom no one wants. Sadeem also hopes to get married – to Waleed, who seems like a nice boy. But after she models her black lacy negligée for him, he drops her.

Mashael – aka Michelle – has no better luck with her boyfriend Faisal. He buys her red roses on Valentine’s Day, but dumps her when his mother objects that Michelle is not of “pure” Saudi ancestry. Lamees finds true love, but not until after humiliating setbacks.

In sharp – even incongruous – contrast to the depressing subject matter, is the relentless “Valley Girl” perkiness of the narrative. For, despite liberal quotations from Middle Eastern literature, the author, who lives in America, has preferred the airport bestseller and the self-help guide as her stylistic models. Clunking phrases and clichéd images are found on every page. Resplendent in a designer dress at a friend’s wedding, Lamees “was proud to show off her gym-toned body”, while Sadeem “was longing to have her curves liposuctioned” to compete with her. Michelle’s American uncle is considered “if not loaded, at least a member of the upper middle class”. Hamdan, one of Michelle’s prospective suitors, is “stylishly turned out . . . in a nice pair of jeans and a name-brand T-shirt.” Faisal, who treats her so badly, is “a truly cultivated guy.” And so on.

This would matter less if there were not, at the heart of this slangy, designer-label-obsessed catalogue of misfortunes, a serious novel trying to get out.

Girls of Riyadh by Rajaa Alsea

Fig Tree, £12.99, 320pp

Buy the book here at the offer price of £11.69 in p&p

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