'Thrillingly suspenseful . . . Reveals its riches, layers and secrets through effortlessly elegant prose' BERNARDINE EVARISTO
'A brilliantly original novel about family, motherhood, identity and diaspora, with a crime thriller twist' AFUA HIRSCH
Nicole Oruwari has the perfect life: a handsome husband, a palatial house in the heart of glittering Lagos, Nigeria, and a glamorous group of friends. She left gloomy London and a dark family past behind for sunny, moneyed Lagos, becoming part of the Nigerwives-a community of foreign women married to wealthy Nigerian men.
But when Nicole disappears without a trace after a boat trip, the cracks in her so-called perfect life start to show. As the investigation turns up nothing but dead ends, her Auntie Claudine decides to take matters into her own hands. Armed with only a cell phone and a plane ticket to Nigeria, she digs into her niece's life and uncovers a hidden side filled with dark secrets, isolation, and even violence. But the more she discovers about her niece, the more Claudine's own buried history threatens to come to light.
An inventively told and keenly observant thriller where nothing is as it seems, The Nigerwife is a razor-sharp look at the bonds of family, the echoing consequences of secrets, and whether we can ever truly outrun our past.
'The Nigerwife is an exceptional debut . . . pacy and unique. An absolute treat - it took all my expectations and threw them to the wind.' JANICE HALLETT
'A murderously good read' SARAH LANGAN
Genre: Mystery
'A brilliantly original novel about family, motherhood, identity and diaspora, with a crime thriller twist' AFUA HIRSCH
Nicole Oruwari has the perfect life: a handsome husband, a palatial house in the heart of glittering Lagos, Nigeria, and a glamorous group of friends. She left gloomy London and a dark family past behind for sunny, moneyed Lagos, becoming part of the Nigerwives-a community of foreign women married to wealthy Nigerian men.
But when Nicole disappears without a trace after a boat trip, the cracks in her so-called perfect life start to show. As the investigation turns up nothing but dead ends, her Auntie Claudine decides to take matters into her own hands. Armed with only a cell phone and a plane ticket to Nigeria, she digs into her niece's life and uncovers a hidden side filled with dark secrets, isolation, and even violence. But the more she discovers about her niece, the more Claudine's own buried history threatens to come to light.
An inventively told and keenly observant thriller where nothing is as it seems, The Nigerwife is a razor-sharp look at the bonds of family, the echoing consequences of secrets, and whether we can ever truly outrun our past.
'The Nigerwife is an exceptional debut . . . pacy and unique. An absolute treat - it took all my expectations and threw them to the wind.' JANICE HALLETT
'A murderously good read' SARAH LANGAN
Genre: Mystery
Praise for this book
"Dark secrets seethe beneath the glamorous lives of Nigeria's uber rich. A propulsive and complex tale of passion and betrayal. Electrifying!" - Liv Constantine
"Evokes skillfully the atmosphere of a wealthy life by the Lagos Lagoon . . . A shimmering success." - Diana Evans
"A thrillingly suspenseful novel that reveals its riches, layers and secrets through effortlessly elegant prose, while exposing the imprisoning dynamics inside transactional relationships of patriarchal power. I was hooked right through to the shocking end." - Bernardine Evaristo
"A murder-mystery set in Nigerian high society, The Nigerwife is an exceptional debut. Vanessa Walters has fashioned a fresh, edge-of-your-seat thriller that's pacy and unique. Her characters are so real I felt complicit in their glamorous, stifling world, while cheering Claudine on as she searches for her missing niece. An absolute treat--it took all my expectations and threw them to the wind. I'm still in shock from those final chapters." - Janice Hallett
"The Nigerwife is a dazzling exploration of deceptions--both intimate and internet--that keep the everyday afloat, and the pages turning, despite the weight of our deepest secrets, regrets, and devotions. I raced through this sumptuous, suspenseful, and smartly-layered book, and gasped at its fearless, soul-baring end." - Nancy Jooyoun Kim
"The search for a missing woman, set against the backdrop of glamour and wealth, is utterly captivating. Lush, poignant and gripping with a killer ending to boot, The Nigerwife shows that sometimes the perfect life and the perfect marriage aren't exactly what they seem. Vanessa Walters is one to watch!" - Mary Kubica
"The Nigerwife explores the ways a set of ex-pat women in Nigeria exchange autonomy for comfort. But it's a raw, and potentially fatal deal. A murderously good read!" - Sarah Langan
"The Nigerwife is a hypnotically lush and atmospheric novel about the lengths we go to for the ones we love most and all the ways we weave past traumas into strength for the future. A stellar debut!" - Wanda M Morris
"As wise as it is gripping, The Nigerwife captures the glory of post-colonial literature in a masterfully paced thriller. Vanessa Walters' debut marks a major addition to the canon." - Margaret Wilkerson Sexton
"The Nigerwife solidifies Vanessa Walters as a literary force. Walters boldly and incisively examines race, class, and culture amongst a group of complicated women in a manner that will continue to resonate with me for years to come!" - Catherine Adel West
"A superb thriller with a devastating conclusion." - Alex Wheatle
"Evokes skillfully the atmosphere of a wealthy life by the Lagos Lagoon . . . A shimmering success." - Diana Evans
"A thrillingly suspenseful novel that reveals its riches, layers and secrets through effortlessly elegant prose, while exposing the imprisoning dynamics inside transactional relationships of patriarchal power. I was hooked right through to the shocking end." - Bernardine Evaristo
"A murder-mystery set in Nigerian high society, The Nigerwife is an exceptional debut. Vanessa Walters has fashioned a fresh, edge-of-your-seat thriller that's pacy and unique. Her characters are so real I felt complicit in their glamorous, stifling world, while cheering Claudine on as she searches for her missing niece. An absolute treat--it took all my expectations and threw them to the wind. I'm still in shock from those final chapters." - Janice Hallett
"The Nigerwife is a dazzling exploration of deceptions--both intimate and internet--that keep the everyday afloat, and the pages turning, despite the weight of our deepest secrets, regrets, and devotions. I raced through this sumptuous, suspenseful, and smartly-layered book, and gasped at its fearless, soul-baring end." - Nancy Jooyoun Kim
"The search for a missing woman, set against the backdrop of glamour and wealth, is utterly captivating. Lush, poignant and gripping with a killer ending to boot, The Nigerwife shows that sometimes the perfect life and the perfect marriage aren't exactly what they seem. Vanessa Walters is one to watch!" - Mary Kubica
"The Nigerwife explores the ways a set of ex-pat women in Nigeria exchange autonomy for comfort. But it's a raw, and potentially fatal deal. A murderously good read!" - Sarah Langan
"The Nigerwife is a hypnotically lush and atmospheric novel about the lengths we go to for the ones we love most and all the ways we weave past traumas into strength for the future. A stellar debut!" - Wanda M Morris
"As wise as it is gripping, The Nigerwife captures the glory of post-colonial literature in a masterfully paced thriller. Vanessa Walters' debut marks a major addition to the canon." - Margaret Wilkerson Sexton
"The Nigerwife solidifies Vanessa Walters as a literary force. Walters boldly and incisively examines race, class, and culture amongst a group of complicated women in a manner that will continue to resonate with me for years to come!" - Catherine Adel West
"A superb thriller with a devastating conclusion." - Alex Wheatle
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