Where the Dead Brides Gather by Nuzo Onoh

(Titan Books, 2024)

Reviewed by Amirah Muhammad

Ghosts are a classic horror fiction trope. We expect them to be creepy, terrifying, and somewhat unhinged, so much so that it can be hard to do something inventive with ghosts. Nuzo Onoh writes a fantasy novel set in 1977 Nigeria, which draws on the emotive elements of possession stories in African folklore to create Ibaja-La, the spirit world where dead brides gather. Here, brides of all faiths and cultures who have met untimely deaths become Ghost-Brides, waiting for the chance to possess a living bride and have their dream wedding. Most of the Ghost-Brides that 11-year-old Bata encounters are friendly if tragic, but as she spends more time among them, she begins to recognise that the vengeful Ghost-Brides pose a serious threat to living brides in their determination to possess them.

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Review from BSFA Review 25 - Download your copy here.