Synopses & Reviews
A president has been overthrown by a military coup in a nameless country in an unspecified era. The president's barber, chef, and portraitist are imprisoned, with many others, in a remote palace in the hills high above the city center. Before the coup, these three men worked with unquestioning loyalty, serving the president in seemingly benign jobs. Now, forced to serve the country's new leader, they begin to reconsider their role in the old regime.
In simple, elegant prose Blood Kin alternates between the voices of the barber, the chef, and the portraitist. Later in the book their wives, lovers, and daughters tell their own tales. As the old order falls, so does the veil that hides the truth about these men and women's secret passions. No one, it seems, is entirely immune to the many temptations of power.
Ceridwen Dovey's debut is a welcome addition to the important tradition of allegorical writing about political upheaval and personal guilt. Her clever, magnetic story will resonate with fans of J. M. Coetzee, Mario Vargas Llosa, and Gabriel Garcá Márquez.
Review
"A compact but ambitious fable...Dovey displays a mastery over her material and the pacing of her narrative worthy of a much more experienced writer." Elle
Review
"A fable of the arrogance of power, beneath whose dreamlike surface swirl currents of complex sensuality." J.M. Coetzee, Nobel prize-winning author of Disgrace and Waiting for the Barbarians
Review
"A precise and terrifying debut novel...[Blood Kin offers] candid and chilling insights into the seductive nature of power." New York Times Book Review
Review
"Dovey's surgical prose and cool apprehension of the machinations of ambition and lust make her a writer to watch." O, The Oprah Magazine
Synopsis
Rarely does a debut novel attract the sweeping critical acclaim of Ceridwen Dovey's Blood Kin. Shortlisted for two prestigious awards, this tale centers around a military coup in an unnamed country, with characters who have no names or any identifying physical characteristics. Known simply as the ex-President's chef, barber, and portrait painter, these three men perform their mundane tasks and appear unaware of the atrocities of their employer's regime. But when the President is deposed, the trio are revealed as less than innocent. A deeply chilling yet sensual novel, Blood Kin illustrates Lord Acton's famous quip, "Absolute power corrupts absolutely," and marks the beginning of an illustrious literary career.
Synopsis
Rarely does a debut novel attract the sweeping critical acclaim of Ceridwen Dovey's
Blood Kin. Shortlisted for two prestigious awards, this tale centers around a military coup in an unnamed country, with characters who have no names or any identifying physical characteristics. Known simply as the ex-President's chef, barber, and portrait painter, these three men perform their mundane tasks and appear unaware of the atrocities of their employer's regime. But when the President is deposed, the trio are revealed as less than innocent. A deeply chilling yet sensual novel,
Blood Kin illustrates Lord Acton's famous quip, "Absolute power corrupts absolutely," and marks the beginning of an illustrious literary career.
About the Author
Ceridwen Dovey grew up in South Africa and Australia. A graduate of Harvard University, she is now a doctoral student in anthropology at New York University. Her stories "Vasbyt" and "Coma Karma" were selected for the anthology African Road: New Writing from Southern Africa judged by J. M. Coetzee.