Heba Al-Wasity was inspired to write by her own experiences of being born an Iraqi-refugee in Libya, growing up in Canada, and attending medical school in the UK.
As a junior doctor, she has worked in emergency care and several psychiatric inpatient units, allowing her to gain first-hand insight in the ways that poverty and deprivation can lead to social inequalities. She is based in Greater Manchester.
‘Leena didn’t believe in monsters until she saw Weavingshaw.’
The Saint of Silence trades coins for every sordid divulgence uttered to him. The darker the secret, the higher the price.
Leena has a secret, one that has haunted her since she was seventeen – she can see the dead. When her brother falls ill, she knows what she must do: seek the Saint.
But Leena’s secret is more valuable to him that she could have imagined. To save her brother, she must make a deal with him to find the ghost he’s searching for.
All paths lead to Weavingshaw, a cursed estate on the moors. As Leena grows closer to the Saint, and is plunged into his world of danger, deceit and desire, she learns that he is hiding his own secrets – ones that have the power to destroy them all.
Blending the haunting gothic house setting of Rebecca with a richly imagined fantasy world in the vein of Babel and Ninth House, and the tantalising slow-burn romance of Belladonna, Weavingshaw is a mesmerising, page-turning and prescient debut that is destined to become a classic.
Heba Al-Wasity is a timeless voice and a classic of the future! Written from her own experiences as refugee raised between two cultures and as a doctor in the NHS, Weavingshaw is a masterpiece of a debut that will mark Heba as a unique talent and must-read author.
One part sumptuous Gothic mystery, another part all the yearning and coy wordplay of a Jane Austen novel. I adored every minute of Weavingshaw -S. A. Chakraborty
On Sale Date: 26 Feb 2026 (Penguin Random House UK)