A child of Iranian immigrants, Shahed was born and raised in California, and her family moved to Ladera Ranch in 2017. She works as an OB/Gyn, taking care of our neighbors in Ladera Ranch and the surrounding cities of Orange County. She is also a mother of two children, ages 13 and 10. As a mother, wife, and physician, Shahed believes that life and love can be complicated, and happy endings are never guaranteed.
An avid reader for years, she longed for a story that mirrored the resilience she saw daily in the lives and experiences of her patients and friends. Her novel, Partial Truths, explores the consequences of meeting the perfect person at the worst possible time. It’s a story about falling in love—not tidy love, but complicated and messy love—with a strong female character who is able to be her own hero through her journey toward love.
Partial Truths
After a breakup and a car accident that leaves her stranded, Camila meets Ben in a UCLA Spanish class. They quickly become friends as she is charmed by his integrity and thoughtfulness, and he is enamored by her bohemian upbringing in a Mexican-Persian family. As both begin to feel the pull of romance, Camila learns of Ben’s secret. Choices are made and lines are crossed, changing the trajectory of their lives until their paths cross again 10 years later.
Partial Truths reflects Shahed’s deeply held belief that women are allowed complexity, that strength can exist alongside doubt, longing, and imperfect decisions. Through characters shaped by timing, circumstance, and consequence, she explores how well-intentioned choices can alter the course of a life. Rather than presenting love or identity as something that simply happens to a woman, her story centers on a protagonist who actively chooses, wrestles with those choices, and lives with their aftermath.
Partial Truths has resonated with readers and tells a story that feels both intimate and universal, and one that lingers long after the final page. ShahedWrites.com / @shahed_writes
