African Magical Realism

A Ghanaian journalist based in the US returns to Ghana with a few friends for the holidays in December 2019. That month is meant to be the climax of the Ghanaian government’s year-long "Year of Return" initiative, commemorating 400 years since the first slaves from West Africa arrived in Virginia. "The Year of Return" takes on a whole new meaning when large numbers of ghosts—formerly enslaved Africans who drowned during the Middle Passage—emerge from the Atlantic Ocean, leading to months of global pandemonium, and concluding with a series of vengeful homicides.

A group of women contemplate violence after they’re sent into foreign territory to make husbands of the enemy. A support network of traumatized joggers meets to discuss the bodies they’ve found on their runs. And a town replaces its Confederate monument with a rotating cast of local residents. Slippery but muscular, sly but electric, this stunning debut collection moves from horror to magical realism to satire with total authority. In these stories, characters build and remake their sense of home, be it with one another or within themselves.

In this last story of the Orisha series, The Queen’s Ascension, Queen Palina must navigate a web of secrets, betrayals, and shifting power dynamics to secure her rightful place as ruler of the Oyonan Empire. With her mother, High Priestess Tengdana by her side, Palina uncovers long-buried truths about her lineage, the empire's past, and her own role in its future. As rebellion brews and alliances are tested, Palina faces the ultimate challenge: to unify the empire under a new order or see it fall into chaos. Love, loyalty, and legacy collide in a gripping tale of ambition and redemption, ...

Canisia Lubrin's debut fiction is that rare work of art—a brilliant, startlingly original book that combines immense literary and political force. Its structure is deceptively simple: it departs from the infamous real-life “Code Noir,” a set of historical decrees originally passed in 1685 by King Louis XIV of France defining the conditions of slavery in the French colonial empire. The original Code had fifty-nine articles; Code Noir has fifty-nine linked fictions—vivid, unforgettable, multi-layered fragments filled with globe-wise characters who desire to live beyond the ruins of the past.

Chicago, 1954. When his father, Montrose, goes missing, 22-year-old army veteran Atticus Turner embarks on a road trip to New England to find him, accompanied by his uncle George - publisher of The Safe Negro Travel Guide - and his childhood friend Letitia. On their journey to the manor of Mr. Braithwhite - heir to the estate that owned one of Atticus’ ancestors - they encounter both mundane terrors of white America and malevolent spirits that seem straight out of the weird tales George devours.

The saga of the Orisha people continues as they are forced to flee westward from the savage might of their Saracen persecutors, whose soul aim is for their annihilation. It is a tale of brute survival and spiritual fortitude, where strategy and deception are weapons as vital as a blade. Makeri, the ingenuous blacksmith, and the enchanting Priestess Mariami, with her magical powers, navigate the trials that come with leading a people towards their destiny. The Nine-Sided Talisman and its great magical powers, is used by the Great Spirit Hogan to bring Priestess Mariami under his spell, ...

In this sixth book of the Orisha series, Tyrant King – Blood of the Forest,, secrets run deep, and loyalties are tested as power-hungry King Olufe grows ever more ruthless. Amid the political and personal machinations of the royal court, King Olufe is driven by dark desires, indifferent to the mourning for his late queen and fixated on finding a new bride—by any means necessary. High Priestess Tengdana, keeper of sacred rites and dangerous secrets, holds her own plans close, even as she orchestrates the protection of Efuna, the hidden firstborn daughter of King Gurara. As Olufe ...

In this, the fifth Orisha book, Tyrant King – Echoes of Betrayal, Queen Ayaba's pregnancy brings unexpected kindness from King Olufe, quickly souring as her morning sickness disrupts royal events. The king's cruelty emerges through prisoner executions and political scheming. Palace scandals erupt involving General Buburu and the king's illicit affairs. Lewa, a servant, becomes entangled in royal promiscuity, leading to a staged execution by High Priestess Tengdana. Queen Ayaba gives birth to twins before dying. King Olufe's indifference to her death and the surviving twin reveals his true...

In Shadows Amongst Roots, the eighth book of the Orisha series, alliances forged in secrecy face their greatest test as former palace servants navigate love, deception, and power struggles. While Efuna wrestles with the hidden truth of a royal heir, High Priestess Tengdana reveals her far-reaching control and Palola’s true identity. Amidst political intrigue and personal desires, characters must confront their pasts while King Olufe’s insatiable thirst for dominance threatens to unravel the delicate balance of the kingdom. In the shadows of the palace, deep-rooted secrets surface, ...

Perched high on the snowy slopes of the Mabombo Ranges lies The Grandest Hotel on Earth. It's wilder than the African savanna, more fantastical than Disneyland and more magical than Shangri-la. So when ordinary 11-year-old Vincent meets the hotel's young Florence, he sets off on a path leading into his most wondrous dreams. But, of course, dreams have a funny way of taking strange and surprising turns, and, before long, Vincent is torn between right and wrong, friendship and family and the most enticing of desires—to see into the future.

Since her encounter with Ori years ago, Jessica has continued her mission to print the truth that the world needs to hear. This pursuit has led her to meet with a source, Zach Carver, a leading mind at Singularity Group. The meeting goes awry, and Jessica awakens to find that she has a gap in time and memory and that Zach is now missing. To her surprise, Ori reappears to help her. His solution involves a promising young recruit, Malik, whose research could be the key to recovering Zach. Yet the forces they are up against have proven they will go to great lengths to remove any obstacle.