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Maryse Condé

In 1797, on the volatile frontiers of a powerful Bambara kingdom, Dousika Traore, the king's trusted advisor, and his four sons find their world irrevocably altered. As the encroaching forces of Islam from the east and north, and the pressures of Christianity, commerce, and slavery from the west, converge, the family's loyalties are strained and the kingdom's stability begins to crumble. Maryse Condé masterfully crafts a narrative that challenges romanticized notions of precolonial Africa, revealing the complex interplay of internal strife and external pressures that reshape societies and individuals. This sweeping historical novel delves into themes of empire, faith, moral compromise, and the profound human cost of survival amidst violent historical upheaval.