Book Review: The Fist of Memory by Wole Talabi

5/5 stars. Imagine starting a science fiction story about ‘first contact with aliens’ (the Irunmole) with a pay-for-hire assassin, Tope, in the middle of stalking a cult leader. Add in religious and spiritual disillusionment of an astrophysicist named Itumeleng, who discovers the approaching space anomaly. Then, include a revenge tale of a third character, Ahanna, who is hunting the murderers of his family. Now you have an inkling of the breadth of human experience, set in a futuristic Africa, that this novel from Wole Talabi encompasses.

The prose of this story is magnificent, and Talabi does an impressive job of bringing these seemingly disparate threads together to build an interesting and fascinating story of past, present, future, religious experience, aliens, death, life, and community. I recommend this novel without reservations. Everyone who reads can find something to appreciate, enjoy, and learn from in this novel. It is a powerful story filled with tragedy, friendship, love, conflict, and adventure on a galactic scale.

The Fist of Memory releases on October 27, 2026. Read it as soon as you can. It might be the best novel you read this year.

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