Bound

About the Book

Dorothy is haunted by a familiar face from her past—a face she thought was just a figment of her imagination; she reassures herself he wasn’t real. When she encountered a guy at school, the vision of this striking man appeared, his expression twisted in warning, hands outstretched, finger-wagging ominously as he whispered, “Don’t, you will die.” Confused and frightened, Dorothy brushes it off until a fateful kiss lands her in the emergency room, where the man reappears, chillingly confirming her fears: “Told you not to.” As the pieces of her past start to unravel, Dorothy discovers she is the reincarnation of Udomma, Akuomma and Ugochi, Igbo Nigerian witches whose ancestors settled in a land where water was never scarce. She gains knowledge of the tragic history that connects her to Daniel, a man from Melbourne with a traumatic past bound by a blood oath, a tale of love and betrayal entwined with their fateful destinies. The spirits guide her through a maze of hidden truths in the form of Daniel’s humanity. They also reveal the love story of James Richie and Ugochi Okorie to Dorothy and Daniel. Dorothy longs for that connection, fearing the consequences. Daniel, an orphan with a sad history, has never dared to pursue love elsewhere after he listens to Ugochi’s humanity tell her story and lets Dorothy’s humanity guide him to her. Will their inevitable fate be embraced, or will it change due to Dorothy’s uncertain nature?

About the Author

I am Cynthia Chiazokam Jilalo from Imo state, Nigeria, and I currently live and attend school in Sydney, Australia. My journey to writing this book is connected to my past and current experiences of my childhood, the culture and society I grew up with and my personal and social experiences in both countries.