In 1982, a militia entered Sabra and Shatila refugee camps in Beirut, Lebanon. They slaughtered over three thousand Palestinian refugees. This poignant novel examines the ramifications of two horrible day and the ripples it makes in the lives of two young Lebanese childhood friends. Elias Badawi and Laura Malak two childhood friends came of age among the dangers and disasters of the Lebanese Civil War. But when the shocking events of the Sabra and Shatila massacre force Elias to emigrate from the unstable country, Laura is confused and heartbroken. She leaves her home two years later, destined for Paris and a series of lovers who can never take the place of Elias. Even as Laura starts a career and a family, her thoughts turn to the young man with the piercing eyes. She feels like Elias was the only one who really knew her, and she is determined to discover what spurred him to leave.

Elias, meanwhile, cannot escape the sight of thousands dying in the camps. As Retrospective follows him through a self-imposed exile in Brazil, it explores the cruelties of man and the possibility of redemption.