Fine Dreams

"Fine Dreams is a wrenching novel in which young women claw back control of their lives after unimaginable violence."

—Foreword Reviews, starred review

“Set against the backdrop of Islamist insurgency, Fine Dreams traces the quiet devastation of stolen dreams, shattered homes, and communities forced to live with the deep scars of violence. This book is a golden revelation.”

—Obase-Sam Ikoi, author of The Comedian’s Diary

“In an age when domestic and personal dramas capture most literary attention, Fine Dreams breaks the mould, bravely and forthrightly investigating geo-religious and political history via the personal. Four kidnapped teenage schoolgirls guide us through the seemingly unbearable—appalling brutality and collective terror—toward life, death, and hope beyond. I read this book straight through. It was impossible not to.”

—Robin McLean, author of Pity the Beast

“Masi writes with so much resolve, gravity, and unwavering sincerity that her debut novel, Fine Dreams, gave me almost constant chills.”

—Catherine Lacey, author of Biography of X

“In Fine Dreams, Linda Masi’s clear-eyed prose vividly renders the fates of five Nigerian schoolgirls caught up in violent clashes of religion and culture. A moving ghost story for our turbulent times, this powerful multi-voiced novel dives deep into the rapids of extremism, skilfully alternating between voices that each mount their separate bids for survival with whatever tools lie closest to hand. Affecting and intense, Masi’s first novel may break readers' hearts wide open, but the resiliency of the human spirit that emanates from each page is sure to stitch them expertly, beautifully, back together.”

—Katie Cortese, author of Make Way for Her and Other Stories and Girl Power and Other Short-Short Stories