Shamim Sarif is a writer and director and also a long-time advocate for the rights of women and the LGBTQ+ community. Her most recent feature as writer/director is Despite the Falling Snow, which was based on her second novel set in Cold War Moscow. She has also written and directed I Can’t Think Straight and The World Unseen. Her documentary The House of Tomorrow, was shot on location in Jerusalem. The Athena Protocol was her first novel for teens.
Jessie Archer faced down death to prove her dedication to Athena, the elite organization of female spies she works for. In The Shadow Mission (HarperTeen), the gripping sequel to The Athena Protocol, a feminist Bourne Identity-style thriller, Jessie is back on the team, in time to head to Pakistan to take down the man whose actions spurred Athena’s founders to create the secretive squad. But his connections spread farther than anyone knew, and when a girls’ school in Mumbai is bombed, a shadowy far-right organization reveals itself—and its evil plans to continue attacks. When someone close to the investigation turns on Athena, Jessie knows that their time to save everyone is nearly up. Once again, she’ll have to risk everything to protect the vulnerable and prove herself. Kirkus Reviews noted that “Jessie continues to confront the universality of patriarchal norms, misogyny, and oppressive treatment of women worldwide. A badass, action-packed, feminist page-turner.”