Lauri Kubuitsile explores witchcraft and trust in her new work of historical fiction

But Deliver Us from Evil tells the story of two young women whose lives converge at a crucial juncture

03 April 2019 - 15:11
By penguin random house sa AND Penguin Random House SA
by Lauri Kubuitsile.
Image: PRH But Deliver Us From Evil: by Lauri Kubuitsile.

But Deliver Us from Evil tells the story of two young women whose lives converge at a crucial juncture.

The story opens in 1870, when Nthebolang’s father is unjustly accused of being a witch and sentenced to death. After he has been ritually thrown off a high cliff, Nthebolang and her mother are forced to flee.

Beatrice, a fair-skinned Koranna girl, has lost her parents to captors in ongoing conflicts with the white settlers.

When she moves to the small village of Nstweng, she meets Nthebolang and the two strike up an unlikely friendship.

Here, a tightly menacing tale plays out. When Nthebolang’s lover is accused of witchcraft, it seems as if her childhood is repeating itself all over again.

Will she be able to save him, or will he meet the same fate as her father?

And is Beatrice a friend in whom Nthebolang should place her trust, or not?

A moving work of historical fiction by the author of The Scattering.

  • Article provided by Penguin Random House