God of Mercy

"Nwoka's debut feels like a dream, or a fable, or something in between . . . Recommended for fans of Nnedi Okorafor's Remote Control or Nghi Vo's The Empress of Salt and Fortune." --Ashley Rayner, Booklist

[God of Mercy] owes a debt to Chinua Achebe's Things Fall Apart, revising that novel's message for the recent past . . . A well-turned dramatization of spiritual and social culture clashes. --Kirkus Reviews

Homegoing meets Black Leopard, Red Wolf, Okezie Nwọka's debut novel is a powerful reimagining of a history erased.

God of Mercy is set in Ichulu, an Igbo village where the people's worship of their gods is absolute. Their adherence to tradition has allowed them to evade the influences of colonialism and globalization. But the village is reckoning with changes, including a war between gods signaled by Ijeoma, a girl who can fly.

As tensions grow between Ichulu and its neighboring colonized villages, Ijeoma is forced into exile. Reckoning with her powers and exposed to the world beyond Ichulu, she is imprisoned by a Christian church under the accusation of being a witch. Suffering through isolation, she comes to understand the truth of merciful love.

Reimagining the nature of tradition and cultural heritage and establishing a folklore of the uncolonized, God of Mercy is a novel about wrestling with gods, confronting demons, and understanding one's true purpose.

Author: Okezie Nwoka
Publisher: Astra House
Published: 11/02/2021
Pages: 304
Binding Type: Hardcover
Weight: 1.20lbs
Size: 9.10h x 6.10w x 1.30d
ISBN: 9781662600838

Review Citation(s):
Booklist 09/15/2021 pg. 18
Publishers Weekly 09/27/2021
Kirkus Reviews 10/01/2021
Foreword 10/26/2021
Shelf Awareness 11/05/2021

About the Author
Okezie Nwọka (he/they) was born and raised in Washington, DC. They are a graduate of Brown University, and attended the Iowa Writers' Workshop as a Dean Graduate Research Fellow. They are presently teaching and living in their hometown.