The Fortune Men
A novel
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5.0 • 1 Rating
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- $15.99
Publisher Description
BOOKER PRIZE FINALIST • Based on a true event, this novel is “a blues song cut straight from the heart ... about the unjust death of an innocent Black man caught up in a corrupt system” (Walter Mosley, best-selling author of Devil in a Blue Dress).
In Cardiff, Wales in 1952, Mahmood Mattan, a young Somali sailor, is accused of a crime he did not commit: the brutal killing of Violet Volacki, a shopkeeper from Tiger Bay. At first, Mahmood believes he can ignore the fingers pointing his way; he may be a gambler and a petty thief, but he is no murderer. He is a father of three, secure in his innocence and his belief in British justice.
But as the trial draws closer, his prospect for freedom dwindles. Now, Mahmood must stage a terrifying fight for his life, with all the chips stacked against him: a shoddy investigation, an inhumane legal system, and, most evidently, pervasive and deep-rooted racism at every step.
Under the shadow of the hangman's noose, Mahmood begins to realize that even the truth may not be enough to save him. A haunting tale of miscarried justice, this book offers a chilling look at the dark corners of our humanity.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
Set in Cardiff, Wales, in 1952, this searing novel from Mohamed (The Orchard of Lost Souls) draws on a real-life miscarriage of justice—the hanging of Mahmood Mattan, a Somali man, for a murder he didn't commit. Mahmood, a small-time thief who has been desperate enough to steal money from the mosque he attends, has learned, or thinks he has, how to survive as a Black man in a city where the cops once beat a drunk to death simply because of his race: "to walk with his shoulders high, his elbows pointed out, his feet sliding slowly over the ground, his chin buried deep in his collar and his hat low over his face, to give nothing away apart from his masculinity." Unfortunately, when someone slits the throat of shopkeeper Violet Volacki, the police arrest Mahmood, setting the stage for his execution. Mohamed maintains a high level of tension as the tragedy slowly unfolds. An epilogue details how Mahmood was exonerated years later. This is a powerful portrayal of an innocent man trapped by a racist system that will resonate with readers familiar with such travesties of justice in the U.S.
