Little Rot

Praise

Praise for Little Rot

“A masterwork. . .mesmerizing. . .We come away troubled, unsettled — and in some subtle way changed.”—The New York Times Book Review

“Twisty, poetic roller-coaster ride of a novel. . .If you want a book that grabs onto your brain and shakes it, I highly recommend Akwaeke Emezi’s genre-defying Little Rot. It gutted and enthralled me in equal measure.”—NPR (2024 “Books We Love”)

“A gritty yet hypnotic novel about a web of loosely connected friends grappling with hidden desires in Lagos. . . Emezi portrays the African city as a corrupting force—but only because falling from grace is so painfully, exquisitely human.” —Minneapolis Star-Tribune

“[Little Rot is] fast-paced and devourable in one or two sittings. The writing is as sensuous as reader’s of Emezi’s work have come to expect, with vividly depicted action, colors, and scenery. . .Little Rot will take you on a pulsing ride beneath the surfaces of people, places, and things. Just don’t expect to linger—note the most interesting landmarks as you come to them, then brace yourself for the next enthralling stretch of pandemonium.” —Chicago Review of Books

“[H]as the dark twists and pace of a thriller, the ambitious scope of literary fiction, the language of poetry and the yearning of romance…[T]he blend of melodrama, peril and existential angst in Little Rot is shockingly entertaining and beautifully wrought.”—Los Angeles Times

“Step into the dark side of Nigerian high society in this sexy, thrilling novel…the perfect steamy read for those hot summer nights.”—People Magazine

“Existential literary fiction meets underworld caper in this unflinching tale . . .Holding it all together is a plot that ducks and dives with cinematic verve, gaining momentum and menace from a series of coincidence-fuelled twists. . .Emezi has a flair for descriptive exuberance that is by turns poetic, melodramatic and scorchingly graphic, perfectly captuing the texture of this tainted world in which amoral decap seeps into every fiber of life.” —The Guardian

“Drama, mystery, beautiful clothes, expensive cars, explosive sex. . .Emezi takes readers to an abyss from which there is no escape.”—Kirkus Reviews

“Emezi unspools a web of erotic danger. . .readers in search of a decadent good time will find it here.“—Publishers Weekly

“Little Rot hurtles toward devastation, but even as you anticipate the horrors ahead, the escapist thriller-style pacing will keep you pushing on.”—BookPage

“Multimedia polymath and gender-norm disrupter Emezi. . . examines taboo and trauma in their creative work…Emezi can be counted upon for an ambience of dread and a feverish momentum.” —The Millions

“Little Rot…forces us to see the world with painfully sharp clarity.”—The Cut

“Emezi is a genius, IMHO. . . Super queer, disturbing and unflinching, Emezi’s latest will leave you uncomfortably questioning morality, power, sex and, well, humanity as a whole.” —Ms Magazine

“Little Rot is somewhat ineffable. Emezi is, in my opinion, one of the best writers of the 21st century, and this is them at their best. . .The hard part about trying to write about good writing is that I don’t want to tell you with my words to read this book, I want to shove it into your hands and make you devour it in one sitting. Just read it.”—Pride.com

“Prolific and brilliant multigenre Nigerian author Akwaeke Emezi is back with a novel chronicling the end of a relationship and a sex party that throws its characters into chaos. Read everything Emezi writes!”—Autostraddle