Recent Publications
Read more at www.henriettarose-innes.com.
My new novel, Nineveh, is out from Umuzi / Random House Struik.
There’s an out-of-control swarm of insects hampering the completion of Nineveh, a luxury estate outside Cape Town. When Katya Grubbs, proprietor of Painless Pest Relocations, is called in, she discovers far more to exorcise than the mysterious infestation. Her own past returns to torment her, and with Nineveh crumbling around her, Katya is forced to question her own place in a rapidly changing world.
“Rose-Innes is a pleasure to read – inventive, intelligent and entertaining. She has a gift for precise, revelatory description that remakes familiar things in astonishing ways. In Nineveh, she has created a densely layered, totally absorbing tragicomedy for our anxious time and place.” Ivan Vladislavic
“A gripping, thrilling allegory of a troubled nation, Nineveh is executed with wit, panache, precision and something that I can only call wounded love for the country the author calls her home.” Neel Mukherjee
“Never losing the ironic edge, Rose-Innes deepens the story and deepens it again, brilliantly probing the big question that reverberates through the book: who belongs? Rose-Innes’s writing is entertaining and subtle, a rare combination.” Steven Amsterdam
“Nineveh is a most original novel; its plot is derived from strange and unlikely material yet, in its understated way, it is relentless and perfect … This deep novel is full of writerly delights for the delectation of readers … one of the best [novels] to come out this year.” Jane Rosenthal, Mail & Guardian
“[W]hat a delightful novel Rose-Innes has worked out of her offbeat material … The originality of Nineveh lies in the way it honours the small people and small animals of the built and natural city, and demonstrates their power … even the caterpillars and metallic longhorn beetles that creep through the text shine with iridescent toughness and gleam with humour.” Ken Barris, Cape Times
“[A] cautionary and penetrating passage into the dark heart of a postcard city, coupled with an intimate portrayal of a woman’s search for a place to call home as the city continuously remakes itself. The result is a feat of imagination that has the potential to make readers re-examine the social dynamics and materiality of the spaces they inhabit.” Jonathan Amid, SLiPnet
“[A]t once a passionate homage to place and space, and a sensuous exploration of metamorphosis … The opening chapter alone – Katya’s revenge on the rich and rude Mrs Brand – is worth the price of the book … Under her inquisitive gaze, the tiny insectile lives are exposed, embossed, rendered in exquisitely intimate detail.” Diane Awerbuck, Times/TimesLIVE
“Rose-Innes’ prose is sure and steady with characters that are full-bodied and warm-blooded. The metaphor and message are veiled and subtle in this complex narrative that is simply told … Visitors to Cape Town wanting a memento of the city to take home will do well to put this accomplished tragicomedy in their suitcases. Nineveh is beautiful, eccentric and thoroughly readable.” Liesl Jobson, FMR Book Choice
“The multidimensional novel recalls Italo Calvino’s beautiful, challenging and descriptive novel, Invisible Cities … Such delicacy is evident in Nineveh, where the architecture is finely spun, amid the ugliness of urban life.” Maureen Isaacson, Sunday Independent
“[An] imaginative and cleverly contrived work … mobile with crawlers and creepers … A little disturbing, sometimes tipping into the bizarre, the work is concise and compelling. Rose-Innes writes fresh, invigorating prose, vividly creating character and evoking the spirit of place.” Moira Lovell, The Witness
“Nineveh is not all it seems … This wonderful novel may be about dysfunctional families and pestilence but it’s loaded with sly, dark humour … A hugely entertaining read.” Willem Möller, YOU
“Rose-Innes writes like a virtuoso; each word is as carefully placed as in a poem.” Margot Pakendorf, Rapport
“This prophetic novel takes the reader on a sinister, yet entertaining ride … With beautiful, unconventional descriptions … Nineveh is entertaining, yet exciting heavyweight reading.” Jonathan Amid, Die Burger / Volksblad / Beeld
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