DAZZLING

356pp., paperback, London, 2023

"Emelumadu’s novel is a magnificent coming of age story, empathetic in its exploration of character and culture within a rich tapestry of African mythology and magic."Cherie Jones, author of How the One-Armed Sister Sweeps Her House

“I was bewitched by this story of Treasure, a young girl who has lost her father and is taken in by a spirit, intertwined with Ozoemena, another girl who becomes part of a Nigerian Leopard Society whose members are normally men. The premise is intriguing, the writing confident. I particularly loved the evocative descriptions, where I felt was in the market, or in Treasure’s rat-ridden shack ... I would not have guessed this was a first novel; Emelumadu seems to have writing naturally in the blood.” Tracy Chevalier, author of Girl With a Pearl Earring and A Single Thread

Chikodili Emelumadu was born in Worksop, Nottinghamshire, and raised in Awka, Nigeria. Dazzling won the inaugural Curtis Brown First Novel Prize for a work in progress. She lives in Newhaven, England.