The Lagos Wife A Novel

This lush and suspenseful Good Morning America Book Club pick “will have you glued to every page” (HuffPost) as it follows a woman to Nigeria to uncover what happened to her missing estranged niece…no matter the cost.

Previously published as The Nigerwife.

Nicole Oruwari has the perfect life: a handsome husband, a palatial house in the heart of Lagos, and a glamorous group of friends. She left gloomy London and a troubled family past behind for sunny Lagos, becoming part of the Nigerwives—a community of foreign women married to Nigerian men.

But when Nicole disappears without a trace after a boat trip, the cracks in her alleged perfect life start to show. As the investigation turns up nothing but dead ends, her auntie Claudine decides to take matters into her own hands. Armed with only a cell phone and a plane ticket to Nigeria, she digs into her niece’s life and uncovers a hidden side filled with dark secrets, isolation, and even violence. But the more she discovers about Nicole, the more Claudine’s own buried history threatens to come to light.

Offering a razor-sharp look at the bonds of family, the echoing consequences of secrets, and whether we can ever truly outrun our past, The Lagos Wife “is a gripping work of suspense, a psychological puzzle, a mystery, and a critique of marriage and high society” (Shelf Awareness).

Vanessa Walters was born and raised in London and has a background in international journalism and playwriting and is a Tin House resident and a Millay resident. She is the author of two previous YA books and The Nigerwife. She currently lives in Brooklyn.