Norma Khouri is a thief, a saint, a seductress and a sociopath – depending on who is talking. Men want to marry her, Islamic extremists want to kill her, and the global publishing industry wishes she would just disappear.
Khouri won fame and fortune with her “true story” Forbidden Love, about a shocking honour killing in Jordan. The book was a runaway bestseller, translated into multiple languages, and Khouri became the toast of the literary world. That was until July 2004, when esteemed Sydney Morning Herald journalist Malcolm Knox exposed her book as a work of fiction.

She’s been in hiding ever since. Now she wants to talk.

Weaving between the literary salons of London, the mosque-lined vistas of Jordan, the beachside suburbs of Queensland and the seamy Chicago backstreets of Norma’s dubious past, Forbidden Lie$ pits Norma’s tale against the stories of those who believe she duped them: the publishers, the FBI, her next door neighbour...even her husband. But the most compelling character of all is Norma – encouraged by director Anna Broinowski to journey through every shade of grey that separates fact from fiction.

A real-life thriller that will leave you with your jaw on the floor, Forbidden Lie$ is Catch Me If You Can with a smirk and a swagger that would make Helen Demidenko gasp in admiration.

You won’t believe it until you’ve seen it.