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Book Description
Kingstown Burning is an engaging tale of Caribbean life that explores the societal impact of cannabis culture on outlying communities. This immersive debut novel tells the story of three women who are inadvertently caught in a regional ganja war unfolding on the island of Barbados.
Forced to navigate secrets as they confront encroaching danger in a tropical paradise where the mystical realm of Rastafari faith and Obeah spirituality collide with real-world consequences, the women must make life-changing decisions that could destroy their friendship and put into question whether their choices make them heroes or villains.
What Readers Are Saying
“Descriptions flow with a poetic simplicity that touched me.”
“I loved that the book was authentic to Bajan culture and dialect. I think those elements are so important to highlight in Caribbean literature and Rachelle nailed it.”
“I look forward to more stories by Rachelle Gray, because I would love to meet and get to know more of these characters she creates.”
“Kingstown Burning is your favorite pastry with extra filling, you are thinking this is going good and somewhere in the middle you are awed, because you get to transcend into a paranormal, folklore realm that’s exactly what you live to read.”
“I thoroughly appreciate that Gray did not centre this narrative on the movement of the herb across land and sea. She takes the time to build her characters, introduce us to their lives and motivations, as well as highlight the natural world influences, impacts and is a major pillar in the lives of Rastafarians.”
— @2treads
Writer’s Statement
“I write because of the restless stories that squabble within, derived from lived experiences and collected wisdom. As a practicing archivist, my stories preserve the intangible cultural heritage of Rastafari and Caribbean culture that faces erasure as the world re-orders itself.
Employing my penchant for adventure, lush imagery, and wordplay to birth future folkstories, I stitch together fantastic tales of identity, resistance, and mysticism to create a cultural garment that encapsulates the essence of my heritage.”- Rachelle J. Gray
About Rachelle
Photo by Bizenga Biz
Born in Brooklyn, New York, and raised in Barbados, Rachelle J. Gray writes contemporary Antilles-based stories that combine Caribbean folklore and social justice themes with elements of magical realism.
Rachelle studied business and broadcast production at SUNY Buffalo State University (formerly Buffalo State College). She is the founder of LadyGray Publishing—a creative outlet manifesting social change through independent literature, and an adjunct professor of English at DUNIS Africa – University of International Studies in Dakar, Senegal. Rachelle was longlisted and shortlisted in the BCLF Elizabeth Nunez Caribbean-American Writers Prize. Her writing has appeared in PREE.
A mother, an adventurer, and an avid gardener, Rachelle is working on her upcoming sophomore novel, Because Nobody Sleeps, the sequel to her adventure-thriller debut, Kingstown Burning.
