The Forty Rules of Love

Aziz Zahara is the author of Sweet Blasphemy, the first book Ella is assigned to read for her new job as an assistant to a literary agent. Aziz is in his mid-fifties and is a Sufi who travels around the world as part of his religious work. Aziz is originally from Scotland but moved to Holland with his late wife; after she died, Aziz spiraled and became addicted to drugs before getting involved with other Sufis and having a change of heart. Aziz is dying of cancer and strikes up a flirtation that turns into a relationship with Ella after Ella sends him an email asking questions and complimenting his work. Ella eventually meets Aziz and a romantic relationship blossoms, causing Ella to leave her husband and travel with Aziz. When Aziz dies, Ella is at the hospital and arranges his burial and funeral. Aziz inspires Ella to break out of her monotonous, unenjoyable life and challenges her to believe in love again.

David is Ella’s husband and the father of their children. David is a hard worker but has very little interest in his wife; in fact, Ella knows that David frequently has affairs with secretaries and other women he meets, though Ella and David have never explicitly discussed this. David seems content to have Ella at home and finds Ella’s pursuits to be trivial. David seems largely detached from family life aside from catering to the kids when they are arguing with Ella.

Jeanette is Ella and David’s college-aged daughter. At the beginning of the narrative, Jeanette is hoping to marry her boyfriend, Scott, though her parents do not support this. Jeanette is idealistic and passionate and, unlike her mother, believes that love reigns supreme.

Shams is a central figure of the narrative and one of the narrators of the text. Shams is a wandering dervish from Baghdad who has the ability to see visions and, according to some, perform black magic. Shams is a passionate Sufi, a sect of Islam that values mysticism and is interested in the way in which the world is interconnected by love and relationships. Shams believes he is destined to work with a master in Konya, Turkey, and eventually becomes the companion of the mystical scholar and poet Rumi. Shams is very eccentric; no matter where he goes, he stands out, especially after he shaves his head, beard, and eyebrows. Shams does not seem to be especially interested in sexual relationships and is instead driven by his desire to engage more deeply with Islam and spread his Sufi beliefs. Above all, Shams wants to engage with Rumi and wants to share ideas and spread the knowledge that the two of them create.

Rumi is another protagonist and narrator of the novel. Rumi is a well-respected scholar who has a large following in Konya, Turkey; people come from far and wide to attend his sermons. Rumi’s first wife and the mother of his children died; his second wife is named Kerra. Rumi has two adult sons, Sultan Walad and Aladdin, and an adopted daughter named Kimya, who studies with Rumi. Rumi is more lavish than Shams; he owns expensive clothing and lives in a relatively plush home. Rumi learns about Sufi through Shams and is interested in thinking about new practices compared to those with which he was more familiar. Rumi is first and foremost a scholar.

Kerra is Rumi’s second wife and the stepmother to his three children. Kerra is another protagonist and narrator of the novel who does not appear very often except to show suspicion related to Shams’s relationship with Rumi. Kerra and Sultan Walad have a good relationship but her relationship with Aladdin is precarious.

Sultan Walad is the eldest son of Rumi and his late wife and another narrator and protagonist of the novel. Sultan Walad cares deeply for his father and is peace loving, often encouraging his more temperamental brother, Aladdin, to disengage from arguments with other characters. Sultan is fair and just and seems to be interested in doing what is right, though this can occasionally be complicated if what is right is not something that Sultan wants to do.

Another protagonist and narrator, Aladdin is Rumi’s youngest son and the edgy, vengeful brother of Sultan Walad. Aladdin is a classic outcast kind of character and his emotions run deep and strong. Aladdin deeply dislikes his father’s relationship with Shams and eventually plays a role in Shams’s death.

Kimya is the adopted daughter of Rumi and Kerra, and the sister of Sultan Walad and Aladdin. She was adopted after it became clear that she had the ability to commune with the dead. Because of this, Rumi took Kimya under his wing as one of his students, even though Kimya is female. Kimya is idealistic and naïve and eventually falls in love and marries Shams, but the relationship is not romantic. Kimya ultimately dies of a broken heart after attempting to seduce Shams six months into their marriage.

Desert Rose is a prostitute who meets Shams and decides to devote her life to God. Her upbringing was traumatic, with her brother murdering her father and her stepmother. Desert Rose suffers both sexual and physical abuse throughout her life, nearly dying after an altercation with Baybars.

Baybars is the nephew of a powerful man in Konya who believes his strict, militant version of Islam is the only one that should be practiced. Baybars is abusive, frequently taking his anger and frustration out on people indiscriminately; in one instance, he nearly kills Desert Rose after raping her.