The Spider King's Daughter - Softcover

Onuzo, Chibundu

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0571268919 ISBN 13: 9780571268917

Publisher: Faber & Faber, 2013

Synopsis

Winner of a Betty Trask Award

Shortlisted for the Dylan Thomas Prize and the Commonwealth Book Prize

Longlisted for the Desmond Elliot Prize

Seventeen-year-old Abike Johnson is the favourite child of her wealthy father. She lives in a sprawling mansion in Lagos, protected by armed guards and ferried everywhere in a huge black jeep. But being her father's favourite comes with uncomfortable duties, and she is often lonely behind the high walls of her house.

A world away from Abike's mansion, in the city's slums, lives a seventeen-year-old hawker struggling to make sense of the world. His family lost everything after his father's death and now he runs after cars on the roadside selling ice cream to support his mother and sister.

When Abike buys ice cream from the hawker one day, they strike up an unlikely and tentative romance, defying the prejudices of Nigerian society. But as they grow closer, revelations from the past threaten their relationship and both Abike and the hawker must decide where their loyalties lie.

About this title

Product Description:

Spider King's Daughter

Review:

'Terrific.' --Lisa Appignanesi, Independent

'This is a dark, tense, gripping first novel, peeling back layers of Nigerian society.' --The Times

'Chibundu Onuzo's confident debut alternates between [Abike and the hawker], deftly capturing their contrasting perspectives on life and society ... there are promising flourishes here that catch the eye.' --Financial Times

'An energetic thriller debut.' Observer

Two teenagers from opposite sides of the tracks are the central players in a fiery Nigerian revenge tragedy ... as Runner G digs deeper, the results are explosive.' --Guardian

'Onuzo deftly portrays two disparate worlds contained in one sprawling city: one heaving with sweat, casual violence and poverty; the other coolly distant and, in light of such hardship and brutality, absurdly concerned with European brands - and equally violent.' Irish Times

'In Chibundu Onuzo's compelling and assured debut, an ill-fated romance is played out on the mean streets of Lagos between an 18-year-old street hawker, Runner G, and super-rich 17-year-old Abike Johnson. So far, so Romeo And Juliet, except there's nothing innocent about Abike, and there are no family feuds (seemingly) and no family ties either.' --Daily Mail

'Debut novelist Chibundu Onuzo's story of two star-crossed lovers in Lagos quickly outstrips its premise to become a much darker and more thrilling tale ... [Onuzo] keeps a taut hold of her material so that the threads of revelations of the past gradually enmesh the reader in a sinister tangle of events. Told with controlled clarity, The Spider King's Daughter is a gripping, involving and very impressive debut.' --Metro

'This is a dark, tense, gripping first novel, peeling back layers of Nigerian society.' --The Times

'Debut novelist Chibundu Onuzo's story of two star-crossed lovers in Lagos quickly outstrips its premise to become a much darker and more thrilling tale ... [Onuzo] keeps a taut hold of her material so that the threads of revelations of the past gradually enmesh the reader in a sinister tangle of events. Told with controlled clarity, The Spider King's Daughter is a gripping, involving and very impressive debut.' --Metro

About this edition

• Publisher: Faber & Faber
• Publication date: 2013
• ISBN 10: 0571268919
• ISBN 13: 9780571268917
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 304