The Story of the Cannibal Woman
A Novel
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- £5.99
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- £5.99
Publisher Description
One dark night in Cape Town, Rosélie's husband goes out for a pack of cigarettes and never comes back. Not only is she left with unanswered questions about his violent death but she is also left without any means of support. At the urging of her housekeeper and best friend, the new widow decides to take advantage of the strange gifts she has always possessed and embarks on a career as a clairvoyant. As Rosélie builds a new life for herself and seeks the truth about her husband's murder, acclaimed Caribbean author Maryse Condé crafts a deft exploration of post-apartheid South Africa and a smart, gripping thriller.
The Story of the Cannibal Woman is both contemporary and international, following the lives of an interracial, intercultural couple in New York City, Tokyo, and Capetown. Maryse Condé is known for vibrantly lyrical language and fearless, inventive storytelling -- she uses both to stunning effect in this magnificently original novel.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
Caribbean author Cond (Crossing the Mangrove) makes one woman's search for identity a vehicle to explore a vast range of racial, cultural and gender issues in a seething novel that exposes the violent ferment of postapartheid South Africa. Ros lie Thibaudin's travels and travails have led her from Guadeloupe, the island of her birth, to Paris, London, Tokyo and, finally, Cape Town. With the mysterious murder of her white husband, Stephen Stewart, the son of an English father and a French mother, Ros lie, whose self-doubt is almost paralyzing, is suddenly without the support that has kept her going for 20 years. Her resolve to stay in Cape Town in order not to abandon her slain husband forces her to adapt and to re-examine her past. As the secrets of Stephen's life unravel, Ros lie's self-examination becomes more painful and rewarding. This literary novel with its multicultural themes may disappoint those expecting a conventional murder thriller.
