LoveReading Says
Thought-provoking, unnerving and utterly gripping, Adorah Nworah’s House Woman is a tremendously accomplished debut. A first-class psychological thriller, it follows the traumatic experiences of Ikemefuna, a young dancer who’s sent from her Lagos hometown to live in Sugar Land, Texas.
Led to believe her new life in America will lead to landing a fine husband, freedom and education, reality bites hard when Ikemefuna discovers she’s all-but imprisoned, with her in-law’s desire for a grandson reaching abusively desperate levels.
Ahead of her new husband’s return from a business trip, Ikemefuna is instructed to show their son she’s “wife material”: “You must be ladylike. Cross your legs and shine your teeth. But not too much. You are a girl, not a goat.”
On his return, though she’s “tired of blending into the lives of men who did not love her”, and though she imagines her escape, Ikemefuna realises, “I still have to kiss that man for now”, because “She only had one shot to play her cards right and when she did, it must be powerful enough to set her free.”
Into this tension, Ikemefuna makes a startling discovery. At the same time, her husband begins to doubt his parents. Indeed, a major theme of this readable thriller is the nature and effects of truth: “Truths were rigid and unwieldy. Once allowed to enter, they changed lives and crushed spirits.”
Offering astute commentary on America (“Anyone can be anyone here” versus “anyone can disappear here”), white bigotry, and the valuing of men over women, House Woman builds to an audacious and brilliantly bold finale that will leave you reeling.
Joanne Owen
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House Woman Synopsis
When Ikemefuna is put on a plane from Lagos, Nigeria to Sugar Land, Texas, she anticipates her newly arranged All-American life: a handsome husband, a beautiful red-brick mansion, pizza parlors, and dance classes.Desperate to please, she'll happily cater to her family's needs. But Ikemefuna soon discovers what it actually means to live with her in-laws. Demands for a grandson grow urgent as her every move comes under scrutiny. As Ikemefuna finds theres no way out, her new husband grapples with the influence of his parents against his own increasing affection for her.As family secrets boil to the surface, Ikemefuna must decide how to scrape herself out of an impossibly sticky situation: amarriage succumbing to generational cycles of pain and silence.In the end, she may be carrying the greatest secret of all.An unforgettably delicious thriller,HouseWomanis about awomantrapped in a dangerous web of conflicting desires, melting in the Texas heat.
About This Edition
| ISBN: |
9781951213572 |
| Publication date: |
6th June 2023 |
| Author: |
Adorah Nworah |
| Publisher: |
The Unnamed Press |
| Format: |
Ebook (Epub) |
| Primary Genre |
Thriller and Suspense
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| Other Genres: |
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| Recommendations: |
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Adorah Nworah Press Reviews
'Adorah Nworah has written a deeply immersive and wrenching study of the life of a young woman in an arranged marriage and the thorny paths she must navigate in her quest for freedom. This debut shines with a brilliance that will run through you clean as an arrow. I've yet to read a story so gutting, yet tender and thoughtful in its handling of such an important subject.' Ukamaka Olisakwe, author of OGADINMA
'HOUSE WOMAN unfurls bloody truths about the lives of girls and women in language that writhes and burns on the page. A jaw-dropping debut of intimate horror perfect for fans of Silvia Moreno-Garcia and Daisy Johnson.' Amy Gentry, author of BAD HABITS
'To read HOUSE WOMAN is to encounter characters that are alive in their desires. They want what they want and they want it now. Nworah's debut is full of twists and sentences that will stun you. A book rich in surprises.' Kemi Falodun, writer, journalist and author of SOUNDBENDER: THE MANY LIVES OF BEAUTIFUL NUBIA
'Deliciously sinister, HOUSE WOMAN engulfs in slow, insidious waves. This novel is compellingly paced and alive with searing detail. Though woven through familiar elements of Nigerian diasporic literature, Nworah's prose quickly, provocatively subverts expectations. With characters who are flawed as flesh and a plot that twists and snatches from one terrifying brink to another, HOUSE WOMAN is fresh and thoroughly enjoyable. I'm just jealous that I didn't write it!' Francesca Ekwuyasi, author of BUTTER HONEY PIG BREAD
'An unflinching, unforgettable slow-burn thriller, HOUSE WOMAN reveals searing truths about women's bodily autonomy and the hidden Gothic horrors of marriage while refusing to provide any simple answers - and the novel is all the more satisfying for it. Adorah Nworah is a stunning literary talent, and her debut will enthral you, incense you, and haunt you forever.' Layne Fargo, author of THEY NEVER LEARN
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