Uprising

A 2026 BOOK TO LOOK OUT FOR IN THE OBSERVER, FINANCIAL TIMES AND NEW STATESMAN

'Captivating, gripped me from the first page' — ELIF SHAFAK

'An unflinching, violent storm of a novel' — TASH AW

'Extraordinary' — SALMAN RUSHDIE

'A dark, brazen fairytale' — LEILA ABOULELA

'Part holy legend, part undeniable, illuminating prophecy of how we will overcome' — V.V. GANESHANANTHAN

Any moment now, we would grow up, and we would become them, waking late and hungry and with a job that had no name

On a desolate, sinking island, a group of children witness their mothers living lives of cruelty and servitude.

Bought and sold by Amma, the sadistic madam who was once herself sold into slavery, the women have learned to accept their fate. Yet their children weave fantastic tales of escape, imagining that someday they will leave the island and enjoy a life of freedom.

When Kusum Khan, a young, educated woman from the city, is forcibly brought to the island, she too is subjected to Amma's violent induction. Yet Kusum refuses to yield, and soon the collective complacency of her fellow prisoners turns into a ferocity and defiance. Together, they begin a rebellion that will upend their island, their world and the very order of things.