This was an absolute joy to read. As someone coming in with virtually zero knowledge of the Quran, this novel was perfectly accessible and broadened my understanding of the Quran and Islam. It also filled in some knowledge gaps I had regarding the innovations of the Islamic golden age.

I think my personal favorite section in the book was discussing the evolution of the way the Quran's message was interpreted after Muhammad died. I had very little knowledge on when and how the additional texts had come into being (most notably the Hadith), so the book filling in the gap so elegantly was delightful. The historical discussion of the early years of the Sunni and Shia divide was also fascinating.