A darkly comic, boundary-pushing debut following an adrift Pakistani translator in London who attends a mysterious language school which boasts complete fluency in just ten days, but at a secret, sinister cost.

'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.

"Fantastic . . . This Black Mirror take on the world of language opens up questions of cultural appropriation, the power of language, memory and privilege . . . Siddiqi’s easy storytelling and her heroine Anisa’s sweet narrative voice slip down like summer rosé. Siddiqi has the gift of maintaining propulsion and mystery, while keeping things human and realistic . . . compelling . . . wonderful " - The Observer

"Siddiqi . . . has the gift of maintaining propulsion and mystery, while keeping things human and realistic . . . a wonderful novel" - The Guardian

"Ingenious . . . This is a book whose many delights and horrors are unlikely to be lost in translation" - New York Times

"Filled with astute insights into life as a brown person in a predominantly white country . . . A fast-paced thriller with its finger firmly on the pulse of contemporary social discourse" - Kirkus

"Manazir Siddiqi’s ambitious debut packs insightful observations about racism, classism, and colonialism into a dark mystery . . . a writer to watch" - Publishers Weekly

"Truly fascinating . . . a dialogue-rich drama with comic undertones and a creepy thriller nestled within" - Shelf Awareness

"One of the most original books published this year" - Eastern Eye, Best books of 2023

"The novel explores friendship, purpose, and power" - New Yorker, The Best Books of 2023