Confessions of a Gambler

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Abeeda Ariefdien is a 49-year old Muslim woman who wears double scarves, prays five times a day, is a wonderful mother, and a good friend. Left by her husband when she is nine months pregnant at the age of twenty-nine, Abeeda raises her four sons without a father. There is Zane, the eldest, 31, the twins (28), and Reza (27), who is gay. One day Abeeda goes to the casino with a friend, and wins R4,500. She is stunned by the winnings, and soon finds herself going back. Her addiction spirals out of control after she discovers Reza has Aids, and that he is dying. There is also Imran, the man she has loved her whole life and who is married to her sister, Zulpha. At the time they first meet, Imran is engaged to Zulpha, but soon falls in love with Abeeda. When her mother dies, this love affair comes to a head, and to avoid scandal and not to hurt her sister who had already been jilted once before, Abeeda tells Imran that she cannot marry him - that he must go to her sister. She later regrets this bitterly. Abeeda has two best friends: Garaatie, whose husband is a womanizer and takes a second wife, and Rhoda, who "falls out" with Beeda after a R10,000 incident in the casino. Within a month after her son's death, Abeeda has lost everything and arranges to have her car stolen for the insurance money. Things go wrong. At the same time, her sister, married to Imran, finds a lump in her breast. Abeeda is a pious woman with a strong streak of earthy humor, daring and independence. We discover at the end that Zulpha - the gentle and caring one - had known all along about Imran's love for Beeda, and had still married him. This is a story of great friendships, of loyalty, of love and compassion. Abeeda struggles with her addiction and with many other things in her life. In the end she triumphs.