Isma Pasha

Isma Pasha is 28 years old, and the older sister of the twins, Aneeka and Parvaiz, whom she has raised since their mother's death when the twins were children. Their father was Adil Pasha, a famed/notorious Muslim jihadi who died in military custody while being transported to Guantanamo Bay. When the novel begins, Isma is taking advantage of the twins coming into adulthood by moving to Amherst, Massachusetts to attend graduate school. It is here that she meets Eamonn Lone, son of the British home secretary, for whom she develops romantic feelings. He does not feel the same way and soon becomes involved with Aneeka instead. When Parvaiz is killed in Istanbul, Isma rushes home to console Aneeka, but Aneeka is angry with her for turning Parvaiz in to the police.

Isma's internal conflict revolves around her loyalties. She wishes to be loyal to her family, she...