Today I talked to Chikodili Emelumadu about Dazzling (Harry N. Abrams, 2023).

Treasure and Ozoemena are young Nigerian girls forced to deal with spirits after losing their fathers. Treasure is forced to beg in the marketplace as her mother lies bedridden and depressed, and a wicked spirit finds her there and tries to make her his wife. He promises to bring her father back to life if she helps him by finding other girls for his friends. Ozoemena’s father has disappeared, leaving the family with questions and responsibilities. She learns from her grandmother that she is descended from a wild, ancient beast, the Leopard from an Igbo legend, which gives her terrible dreams and sometimes takes over her body. Touching on Igbo mythology and African folklore, Emelumadu’s dual-voiced stories focus on family, traditions, growing up, and the forces that conspire to prevent people from overcoming their grief.

Chikodili Emelumadu was born in Worksop, Nottinghamshire and raised in Awka, Nigeria. Her work has been shortlisted for the Shirley Jackson Awards (2015), the Caine Prize for African Literature (2017 & 2020) and has won a Nommo award (2020 & 2024). In 2019, she emerged winner of the inaugural Curtis Brown First Novel prize for her debut novel, Dazzling. Her short fiction is available in many magazines and anthologies such as Isolation: The Horror Anthology (2022), Screams from the Dark (2022), Experimental Writing: A Writer’s Guide and Anthology (2024) and as part of the Royal Literary Fund’s Writer’s Mosaic. She can be found raving about books and art on Twitter @chemelumadu, or Instagram @chikodiliemelumadu.

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