The Western Cape is now an independent country. Successful, safe, murderous.

Lisa Robinson has moved from Durban to Cape Town to be with Grant, the prospective next First Minister of the Good Hope Territory. The GHT is the safest and most prosperous country in the southern hemisphere – at a price.

Citizens contract to be tracked by drones, executions are synchronised to the Noon Gun and only those with qualifications are permitted to vote in the Qualified Franchise system.

Life here is picture-perfect. The Mother City is pristine. Everyone has a job. Tourism is booming. But this shiny new state has decided that Lisa is a problem, and problems here disappear quickly and quietly.

When an unusual building appeared overnight in a remote northern Cape community in the 1970s, and disappeared a few weeks later, it seemed to point to a series of baffling existential overlaps.

Some individuals claimed that occasionally they found themselves on the other side of a restive civil war divide, in identity embodiments that were highly contrary versions of themselves. In other cases, absurd social situations seemed to mock ‘normal reality’ by alternating with it. When a small-town journalist reported on the events, his quiet life became cruelly disrupted by unwanted attention.

Were these accounts imagined or real? Real enough to the eyewitnesses.

Traumatised and adrift, the journalist wrote up his story in reportage style when a childhood friend invited him to recuperate on her farm. He believed he had narrowly escaped the disappearance of an entire region – a place nobody has ever heard of – and its people, including the love of his life. As the mystery unfolds, with an aura of retrieved memory, the narrator’s lost love becomes an increasingly evocative presence. The Equality of Shadows is a compelling novel – in some places uproariously funny, in others filled with deep pathos – about the vagaries of identity, love and time.

I Do ... Don't I? is the much-anticipated sequel to the popular novel The Thing with Zola. It continues the sparkling and tender love story of free-spirited Zola and charismatic Mbali, traversing the vibrant landscapes of Kigali and Johannesburg as they navigate a long-distance relationship and the question of commitment. Will they say I do?

The cast is complete with the interweaving of the vivacious Okuhle on her heart-stirring journey to marriage, the audacious Thobile rebelling against societal norms, and the stoic Ongama navigating upheavals in her married life.

Personal desires collide with expectations, painting a unique picture of the nuances of love, dreams, and the trials of responsibilities and relationshipping.

The result is a whirlwind of emotions, laughter, poignant revelations and the quest for a fairytale ending.

I Do … Don't I? is guaranteed to sweep you off your feet.

The Near North is a vivid account of life in Johannesburg in times of crisis.

From the stony ridges of Langermann Kop in Kensington to the tree-lined avenues of Houghton, we follow the writer through the city's streets, meeting its ghosts and journeying through time and (often circumscribed) space, finding meaning in the everyday and incidental.

At once an echo of Ivan Vladislavić’s award-winning Portrait with Keys and an original work of intense acuity and quiet power, The Near North is both intimate and expansive, ranging from small domestic dramas to great public spectacles.

Wryly playful at times, fiercely serious at others, it is certain to move and delight all who accompany the writer through its pages.

Dekades lank het Peet van Jaarsveld sy bokplaas Syferfontein in die Karoo met 'n ysterhand bestuur. Na die afsterwe van sy eggenoot leef hy in toenemende isolasie van sy kinders en die gemeenskap en probeer homself probeer oortuig dat sy dade en ongenaakbare houding teenoor ander verantwoord is.

Tydens Geloftenaweek in 1960 gebeur daar enkele dinge op sy plaas wat sy ouderdom, eiesinnigheid en verval onder die vergrootglas plaas. Syferfontein is die noukeurige en vaardige bestekopname van die herinneringe, denke en drome van ’n bejaarde man en vertel die verhaal van die uiteindelike ondergang van ’n patriargale Afrikaner oor die tydsverloop van 'n enkele naweek.

In hierdie tragedie waarin Peet van Jaarsveld van sy verlede rekenskap neem, wys outeur Cas Wepener ons 'n wereld en 'n denkwyse wat op makabere manier sowel vertroud as vreemd is.

An undocumented immigrant returns home after facing the indignities of the American dream working as a washer of the dead – only to be met with a tragedy. A child struggles to come to terms with the fate of their beloved one-eyed chicken Otuanya, who is treated as a family pet but is destined for the cooking pot. A family lives in fear of the dreaded Shadow Fever that haunts their town, keeping them trapped indoors after sunset lest they risk falling into an eternal sleep.

From realistic explorations of family life, parenthood and infidelity, to gritty noir and fantastical horror, the stories collected here are a testament to the endless imagination and possibilities of African literature. These witty, provocative and compulsively readable stories grapple with feminism, patriarchy, class and exploitation and showcase these writers as astute observers of life. This anthology is a generous feast of diverse, delectable narratives that offers something for everyone.

Midnight in the Morgue also features three remarkable South African literary talents: Sibongile Fisher, Morabo Morojele, and Nadia Davids. Davids has the distinction of being the first South African to win the Caine Prize since Lidudumalingani Mqombothi in 2016. Her story, Bridling, about a conflicted early-career actress performing in a subversive theatrical production was hailed as ‘a triumph of language, storytelling and risk-taking‘ by Chika Unigwe, Chair of Judges.

From the bestselling author of The Search for the Rarest Bird in the World comes On That Wave of Gulls. An audacious novel, the tale is told by three characters – an architect, a Khoisan vagrant and a seagull, all of whom recount their lives in Cape Town.

Hieronymus Vos is an overweight, white architect, recently fallen on hard times, and married to a beautiful, black British-Caribbean woman. Although he hates the ocean, his practice has, until recently, been doing very well by designing glitzy millionaires’ mansions on the Atlantic Seaboard. Pooi is a homeless man, recently arrived from the Kalahari, with a patchy grip on reality. He thinks he is the moon and wants to teach himself to swim so that he can reach Robben Island and fulfil a promise. The third narrator is Calypso, a female seagull who needs to find a mate and lay an egg to pass on her legacy and her identity.

On That Wave of Gulls is a shrewd and lyrical tour de force by a natural storyteller. By times heartbreaking and thrilling, this unforgettable novel propels the author into the lives of the novel’s three main characters, throwing light on living and being in Cape Town – a Cape Town that is part wilderness, part glamorous high-rise developments, part ocean. Their interactions are at times fleeting, at times profound, and behind them lies the joy, pain and tragedy of living at the southern tip of Africa.

Annelie Botes se afsterwe op 12 Desember 2024 het die einde van ’n era ingelui. ’n Era van byna meer as twee dekades waarin sy gedagtes, opinies en insigte oor die lewe met ’n toegewyde lesersgehoor gedeel het. Vir Afrikaans lesers was haar weeklikse rubrieke ’n bron waaruit hulle mildelik geskep het om sin te maak van die wêreld en om inspirasie te vind sodat hul eie skale kon balanseer.

Die rubrieke in hierdie bundel het van 2020 tot 2024 verskyn en volg op Voetstoots, ’n keur van Annelie se rubrieke tussen 2006 en 2020. Vir die menigte lesers vir wie Annelie se stem oor die jare ’n vertroude instelling geraak het, is haar menings ’n besielende kleinood
waarheen hulle meermale sal terugkeer om woorde te vind wanneer dit in hul eie stemme ontbreek.

Hierdie bundel is ’n versameling kantaantekeninge tydens tydperke van ingrypende inkeer en verlies. In Maart 2020 het die Covid-19-pandemie die wêreld getref – bunkertyd in Annelie se taal. In haar wêreld was die tyd van korona ’n voorspel tot haar eie finale
periode van aflegging, siekte, amputasie en uiteindelik, die onvermydelike seisoen van “die engele met raspervlerke”.

Everybody’s favourite agony aunt and crime fighter Tannie Maria needs some counselling advice of her own. Lingering troubles from a previous marriage still sit heavy on her, while fresh worries about Slimkat, a local man whose fight for his people’s land threatens his life, keep her up at night. Tannie Maria seeks out counsellor, jokily known to all as “the satanic mechanic”. Straight out of The Rocky Horror Picture Show and from hot-as-hell Hotazel, Ricus fixes both cars and people.

But Maria’s counselling tune-up switches gears when a murder flings her straight into Detective Henk Kannemeyer’s investigation. Not only is she dating the dashing Henk, she now has to work beside him: a potential recipe for disaster.

Blending an intriguing mystery with characters as lovable as the setting of the rural Klein Karoo, this book is Sally Andrew’s delightful, warm-hearted sequel to Recipes for Love and Murder.

Die wonderwêreld van Willem Landman gaan onder andere oor Mintaka, een van drie sterre in Orion se gordel. Dis eintlik tweelingsterre, die een ʼn bloureus, die soldaat, en die ander sagter, vriendeliker. Dit speel op die twee broers in die boek: Alex, meestermanipuleerder en sy afwesige broer, Zander.

Alex het vir hom ʼn aansienlike sakeryk uit gekonkel opgebou. Hy het vir hom ʼn vesting op ʼn koppie gebou nadat hy Bella, die Griekwa-vrou aan wie se familie die grond reeds geslagte behoort, bedrieg en die munispaliteit omgekoop het. Van daar bedryf hy sy sake en daarheen laat kom hy sy “agente”. Hy is magsbehep en ʼn sekspes. Hy is ook psigoties, bossies en vermoedelik skisofrenies.

Die karakter wat die kollig steel, is die titelkarakter, Willem Landman – een van Alex se agente. Lesers het hom leer ken as die sukkelende kulkunstenaar in Die formidabele Ling Ho. Willem is ʼn formidabele bullshitter, ’n stiksienige siener wat moontlik, per ongeluk, wel oor sekere gawes beskik, effens kommin, ongeleerd maar vol planne en ʼn oog vir ʼn gaping. Onrus broei in die gemeenskap en dinge word op die spits gedryf wanneer ’n hele paar agente tegelyk by Alex se vesting byeenkom.

Kom ontmoet die mense van Volksvreemd, ’n gemeenskap in die Bruinstad van Suid-Afrika. Hulle is ’n hegte klomp, al kan hulle ook heerlik oor mekaar skinder.

Die vurige en ondeunde Marie is ’n tipiese 12-jarige-effens aan die katterige kant, meestal selfbehep, dikwels in die moeilikheid. Sy maak haar streng Oupa Martinus en godvresende Ouma Hettie mal! Wanneer gaan sy leer dat die lewe nie net om haar draai nie, en dat ’n mens soms opofferinge moet maak om ander te help wat nie so bevoorreg is soos jy nie?

Marie se neef, Leroy, is baie wyser as wat sy ouderdom verklap. Ou Wouks, die suinige buurman wat homself sien as ’n sjarmante heer, en Lêven, die dorpie se grapjas, sorg vir kleur in die alledaagse doen en late van Volksvreemd.

Die kleine klitse is ’n verhaal van hoop – ’n vars, humoristiese storie oor wat dit werklik beteken om deel te wees van ’n gemeenskap.

Lotus is focused and ambitious, and is as cunning as she is beautiful. Although she seems to have it together, secrets from her past haunt her. She despises men because of her absent father and abusive ex-boyfriend.

Against her vow to stay away from men, she finds herself entangled with two guys; Alpha, the leader of the Wolves, a notorious Cape Town gang, and Dalubuhle, a gentle guy who audits the company she works for.

Lotus is witty, charming and tells more lies than she can remember. But who can steal her heart?

Gabriel Laucus has lost his job and his parent’s home is about to be repossessed. Desperate and on the brink of financial ruin, he devises a risky insurance scam to salvage his crumbling life. This sets in motion a catastrophic chain of events.

Soon, Gabriel and his friends have a psychopathic hitman, a ruthless drug lord, and a relentless investigator on their tail. As Gabriel navigates a world of fraud and dangerous alliances, he must outwit his pursuers and confront the harrowing repercussions of his choices.

Deadly Benefits is a heart-pounding journey through the high-stakes game of survival. The price of one wrong move could mean life or death.

When a wedding forces them to return home, two childhood friends must face the secrets and heated longing between them in this New Adult romance debut by Cameron Capello (BookTok's @ChamberofSecretBooks).

Remember why you left. Remember who you left.

Once so close to her big family, Magdalen Savoy is now paralyzed with anxiety every time she's tempted to leave her safe haven at Oxford and return to their sleepy Italian village. But when Magdalen receives an invitation to her sister’s upcoming wedding, she has no choice but to pack her bag for what is sure to be a long summer.

After seven years, Theo finds himself back in Chivasso, where nothing changes. It's as if time has stopped here. But upon seeing his sister's best friend after all these years, it's obvious that the sweet little Maggie from his childhood is long gone. In her place is a young woman with long legs, thick hair, and walls built around the innocent heart he once knew.

Now too close for comfort during the preparations for a wedding that will join their two families, they must confront the long-buried secrets of their past and the burning tension slowly pulling them together. But their old secrets threaten to tear their worlds apart—and could possibly separate them forever. . .

Ná ’n storm spoel ’n kleutermeisie op die Olifantsrivier se oewer uit. Wie is klein Ellie, hoe het sy in die rivier beland, en waarom soek ’n Romeense bendebaas na haar?

Op die plaas Spoelklippe rou Annie nog oor die dood van haar seuntjie en die verbrokkeling van haar huwelik. Ellie kruip gou in Annie se hart in, maar gevaarlike mense is op die kind se spoor. Gou word Annie ook bedreig.

Gaan sy uit dié maalkolk kan ontsnap of gaan sy weer alles verloor? En wat van Nico wat hoop om hul jeugliefde te hervat?

As klippe kon praat is ’n eg menslike verhaal oor verlies, keuses en keerpunte.

Anthony Loxton, reluctant third-generation funeral director by day, is by night Tony the Fox, a guitarist in the bars of Kalk Bay. It looks like there’s no escape from the burden of the past. But when Lily, Tony’s one-night stand, arrives in a body bag at the Loxton Funeral Parlour, he surprises himself by breaking his own rules.

As the boundaries separating the two worlds he has created for himself collapse, Anthony’s journey of self-discovery begins, accompanied by a cast of unforgettable characters. A chain of events takes him to the edge of tragedy and disaster and back again.

He discovers that the living are more fragile than the dead and that joy can arise in the most unlikely circumstances.

When The Village Sleeps is a visionary novel about what the loss of identity and dignity can do to people afflicted by decades of brokenness.

Told through the lives and spirits of four generations of amaTolo women, including The Old, who speak wisdom with ever-increasing urgency, it moves between the bustling township setting of Kwanele and the different rhythms of rural village life. It recalls the sweeping sagas of the great A.C. Jordan and the Dhlomo brothers and invokes the poetry of S.E.K. Mqhayi, while boldly exploring urgent and contemporary issues.

An ode to the complex strengths of South African women, When The Village Sleeps is also a powerful call to respect the earth that nurtures human life, and to live in self-sufficiency and harmony with the environment and each other.

In die Oos-Kaapse veld maak ’n skrywer haar in sy verbeelding staan: Vir Decima – ’n formidabele swartrenosterkoei. Haar dogter, Tandeka, is dragtig, en die handvol renosters sien uit na die kalf se koms in die lente. Maar vir Decima is daar vrees wat met elke volmaan in haar opwel. Sy kan steeds die gebeure onthou wat haar baie seisoene vantevore wees gelaat het.

Al werkend aan Decima se verhaal, is Eben. Hy vra: Hoe skryf mens oor hierdie dier as gevoelvolle wese? Deel van die storie is die verskillende karakters wat ’n impak op die lot van die renosters het: stropers, hul kliënte, beoefenaars van tradisionele medisyne, ook die bewaarders. En tussendeur is daar Eben se brose ma wat in die land agtergebly het. Soos hy sy weg vind deur die bladsye van sy manuskrip, is dit die stem van Decima wat die suiwerste in sy gedagtes klink.

Eben Venter se boek kombineer outofiksie, fabel, ’n speurverhaal en die wetenskap, en is ’n dringende pleidooi vir die bewaring van een van die wêreld se megaherbivore. Decima is ’n elegiese werk vir baie stemme waarin die skrywer die aard van verlies in sy vele gestaltes besing en besweer.

Originally released in October 2020, shortlisted for the 2021 UJ Literary Award and now available in paperback b-format.

Meet the Mafus, a close-knit, traditional family with three daughters. As leaders of their church, The Kingdom of God, Pastor Abraham and his wife Phumla are guiding the community of Bulawayo in faith, while trying to keep the different branches of their family intact. Independent and feisty Xoliswa returns home, after a hiatus abroad, hoping for a fresh start and a chance to steer the family business; rebellious Yandisa has met the love of her life and is finally getting her act together; while dutiful newlywed Zandile is slowly becoming disillusioned with her happily ever after.

The Mafus always present a united front, but as their personal lives unravel, devastating secrets are revealed that threaten to tear the family apart. For how long will they be able to hide behind the façade of a picture-perfect family?

Luzuko Goba, a South African studying at Oxford, navigates the worlds of the undocumented, and the people living on the margins of life in Oxford, England. His father, a former political exile, has just died, and Luzuko is weighing up his father’s life of sacrifice and the price they both paid for freedom back home.

This is a book about wayfarers, out of time, and on the wrong side of the UK’s department of immigration. They are the paperless.

Sweeping and soulful, Buntu Siwisa observes the hidden and exceptional modern lives of migrant Africans in England in this beautiful debut.

Talk of the Town by award-winning writer Fred Khumalo comprises short stories he wrote over many years. In this vibrant collection Khumalo explores identity and belonging through tales about African foreign nationals in South Africa, xenophobia, South Africans abroad, exiled comrades during apartheid, and past and current township life. At times hilarious and at times gut-wrenching, this is a collection that will move you.

Hoe gebeur dit dat ’n hele gevestigde gemeenskap sy tentpenne uitruk en die wildernis intrek?

In Geknelde land gee FA Venter ’n diep-menslike antwoord op dié en ook op baie ander vrae oor die Groot Trek. Dit is die verhaal van die Dreyer-gesin van Grensplaas en vertel van die ontberings en terugslae wat dié boeregesin moes verduur voor hulle uiteindelik ook besluit om te trek.