The Nexus

Into The Afroverse #1

by Vered Ehsani

Destiny calls. But who will answer? Leading a secret society and taking on a deadly enemy wasn’t part of Zawadi’s life plan. Neither was inheriting control over the Kuvu, the most valuable medical discovery in existence. An elixir that can grant unimagined health and longevity… or a painful death. But when powerful forces take an unhealthy interest in her hometown in the heart of Kenya, the consequences are fatal. Her mother is killed, and her village is threatened with destruction. To save her family and secure her people’s future, Zawadi must give up who she thinks she is to become who she’s meant to Chief Zawadi, the spiritual and political leader of an endangered tribe. Only then can she find the Kuvu before it’s destroyed. Assuming it doesn’t kill everyone first. Empires will rise or fall based on her decisions. No pressure. The Nexus is the first book in the Into The Afroverse Series by Vered Ehsani, author of a hAPPening , The Last Ten Minutes , and A Christmas Camel . Pick up your copy today!

Genres: Science Fiction, Social Issues, Fiction

253 pages, Kindle Edition

Published February 24, 2023

About the author

I've been a writer since I could hold pen to paper, which is a lot longer than I care to admit. I live in Kenya with my family and other animals. When I'm not writing, I pretend to work as an environmental consultant.

Visit my world at http://veredehsani.co.za/free-books/ & pick up 3 FREE books about paranormal mysteries set in colonial Africa.

Reviews

[Laura Ruetz · Rating 5 out of 5]

Absolutely enthralling

This book pulled me in from the first chapter. The premise was engaging and the author has a very vibrant way of storytelling so that characters and setting just come alive on the page. I highly recommend this and look forward to more in the series.

[Jacqueline Nyathi · Rating 3 out of 5]

Zawadi has secret superpowers--the ability to connect to a network that can save lives. She doesn't know yet that she does. A group of scientist-capitalists wants to get their hands on this network. What could go wrong?

There are corporate assassins, magical mushrooms, tuk-tuks, hakuna matatas, and there's a villain origin story (which, I'm like, ok but you know it's your own fault, innit??). The villain has a concerned mom-scientist, too, which is truly wholesome.

This is a very cute YA-oriented story, the first in a series. The story is fun, and although I found the dialogue annoying, your teen/YA probably won't. This is a very strong start from Ehsani, and it will be interesting to see where the series goes.

Thanks to NetGalley and to Sterling and Stone for access.

[Tony Aj · Rating 2 out of 5]

Giving it a generous 2 stars, but I tapped out at 13 chapters. The author struggles with writing multiple characters in a single room and the over-descriptive dialogue tags become repetitive and frequent. The plot devices are unnecessary.i.e. wiping memory of a character for quite frankly no actual solid reason , other than to create artificial drama. I don't want to spil this with my other problems in the first 13 Chapters, but I always give an extra star to a book I DNF. Silly rule? Maybe. But ideally this was shaping up to a 2.5 for me I think there is an audience for this book, just probably not me.

[Janet Redhead Tree Frog · Rating 3 out of 5]

The "root" premise of this book was so interesting and grabbed my attention in the first few pages but the characters were so annoying and/or boring that by the time I was at the half-way point, I didn't even care what happened to anyone except maybe the old ranger and the crazy mushroom lady. I did read the whole thing AND it gets 3 stars because, like I said-- really interesting premise and decent pace for the plot. Could have been so good!

[Julie · Rating 3 out of 5]

It was a good book, just not great. I loved the family part of it and enjoyed the interactions with them. Some of the discussions on the magic and how it was used just kind of jumped all over the place. It was a little confusing what would happen and why it happened.

[Chet A. · Rating 4 out of 5]

First, I want to thank NetGalley and Sterling & Stone for allowing me access to an ARC in exchange for my honest review.

Zawadi dreams of lightning in the ground, and it’s spreading. When she wakes, Zawadi is still the adopted daughter of a ranger in a small town near the base of Mt Kenya. Although these things have remained the same, much about her small town and the people in it has changed. They’ve been changing for some time as Medicor, a multinational pharmaceutical company, has taken up residence in their small town, determined to take advantage of a medicinal fungus found only in this part of Kenya. Little does Zawadi realize that her fate, and the fate of her family, is tied to the same elusive mushroom, one her ancestors called Kuvu.

I really enjoyed the premise of The Nexus. There are a number of obvious connection to other recent works that involve miraculous or sometimes malevolent fungus. This also taps into mythology similar works by other African diaspora writers like Nnedi Okorafor where ancient lore serves to hide technology forgotten due to the passage of time. In the case of the Nexus this is more a case of biological tech rather than extraterrestrial, but this is just a first dip into a fascinating alternate history of Kenya that leaves plenty of room for more stories to come in the Afroverse. I also really enjoyed the visual nature of the

I have one critical issue with the pacing of some of the chapters. There are a few perspective shifts between players on all sides of the narrative, which adds to the immersive nature of the world. My one issue is that there are times when switching narrative also pulls us back in time slightly and makes the story feel stuttering. To give an example, there are a few chase scenes and in one we go from the hunted to the hunter, and we know which direction the hunted crawled to, so returning to the hunter’s perspective a few moments before doesn’t move the story forward and breaks that dramatic tension. Other than this very specific editorial concern, I still enjoyed the book a lot and want to read more.

The final verdict here for me is that I would definitely read more in this world and would strongly suggest The Nexus to any sci-fi fans, especially those who enjoy Afrofuturism and Africanfuturism like NNedi Okorafor. Please go check it out, and I hope you enjoy it as much as I did.

[Plots and Reviews · Rating 4 out of 5]

Dearests, here we have an interesting premise, wicked pharmaceutical companies, found family & an heiress in disguise - a pretty okay read, except for characters who feel slightly empty.

𝗠𝘆 𝗧𝗶𝘁𝗹𝗲: Bushes, Bruises and Blood
𝗥𝗲𝗮𝗱𝗮𝗯𝗶𝗹𝗶𝘁𝘆: Normal
𝗧𝘆𝗽𝗲: Novel
𝗚𝗲𝗻𝗿𝗲: Nature Fantasy Futuristicish
4/𝟱
SOME Remote Control vibes, but not quite.

🌱At the foot of Mount Kenya, non-native scientists seek to use the miraculous Kuvu (type of mushroom) to make money (🙄 what else is new). In an attempt to thwart their plans, the last of the Kuvu people burn their fields of Kuvu & disappear - all to the irritation of Dr. Baires, she of the sick children.

Twenty years later, she is back to hunt the last of the Kuvu, the orphan child who survived the last encounter, a chief who knows nothing of her heritage & powers but who must find answers to protect herself, her heritage and her family.

🦖On one hand, the story is filled with potential. Morally grey villains, desperation, found family, loyalty & betrayal, greed & mercenaries. There are characters who should be layered, BUT for some reason are shallow. Almost like people I ‘knew of’ but had no real encounter with. This gave the story a void where more character building should have been. The characters aren’t bad though, they just felt incomplete.

✨𝗚𝗶𝘃𝗲 𝗶𝘁 𝗮 𝗿𝗲𝗮𝗱.
♡🌱 𝗕𝘂𝘁 𝘁𝗵𝗮𝘁'𝘀 𝗷𝘂𝘀𝘁 𝗺𝗲 ;)
—
🎁 𝗧𝗵𝗮𝗻𝗸 𝘆𝗼𝘂 @𝗻𝗲𝘁𝗴𝗮𝗹𝗹𝗲𝘆 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗴𝗶𝗳𝘁.

[Stephen Matlock · Rating 5 out of 5]

I picked this up as a free e-book, and I had set it aside to read.

I had not expected to be as satisfied as I was by this book! I know that writing spec fic can be difficult, but this was so very well done. The characters are interesting, complex, and believable, and some are just funny, yet everything feel real in the "what-if" world of this book.

What if there is a source for healing for all people, protected by guardians to keep it from exploitation, that is then discovered by exploiters, some well-meaning, and some who just want to take it for themselves?

That's the theme of this book, set in Africa in a not-too-distant future, where a people are tasked with guarding this resource from those who would despoil it for profit.

I read this almost straight through I enjoyed it so much, and I'm looking forward to buying the next books in the series.

[Vintagebooklvr · Rating 3 out of 5]

Environmental advocates vs. exploitative capitalism with a touch of magic and some action pretty much describes this book. The main character struggles to find her way between what she wants to do with her future and the unexpected revelation of what she is born to protect. There is an unusual creature that is a source of magic in this story. There are some beautiful descriptions of nature. I like that the solution to beat exploitative capitalism is found not just in magic but using present society's methods to also. The people are using every method in their repertoire to be successful not relying on one method. The more bricks in your wall the better the strength.

Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for an ARC in exchange for an honest opinion.

[Janet Ober · Rating 5 out of 5]

The Underpinning of Life Lies in Africa

The Nexus is like an intricate maze. Connections everywhere. It tells of a fungal web within the earth. Reaching and branching from a sacred mountain in Africa, invisible to most. There are always those who want to find it, hoard it and exploit it. There are also those chosen to protect it.
After sowing death and destruction in the name of gaining the ability to save lives, after the death of the chief of those connected to this web, a pharmaceutical company is coming to claim the mountain and its orchard. The hidden daughter of the Chief must have her awareness sparked and awakened. Will it be in time?

[Annie Lima · Rating 3 out of 5]

I enjoyed this story. Having grown up in Kenya, it was fun to revisit the land of my childhood through this unusual fantasy story. I took off a star because I found a few discrepancies and inconsistencies, and there were elements in the story that could have been better written. But my biggest problem with it was the lack of professional editing. There were numerous typos and errors in grammar and punctuation. Still, it was an interesting story with good cultural elements, and I recommend it to anyone who enjoys fantasy or wants to read a book set in Africa.

[James F. Bowerman · Rating 4 out of 5]

different

The theme was definitely unique and interesting to me, but not enough to warrant a five star rating. There were inconsistencies in the story line that were not reconcileable.

[Lili · Rating 5 out of 5]

I always enjoy this author's writing, her love of nature and all living things shines through.

This is a story of the struggle between the cruelty of people doing anything for profit - or just for the enjoyment of seeing others hurt, and the innocence of the Nexus princess, finding her way into her heritage.

Action, imagination and goodness - you'll find it all here.

[Shannon Moskowitz-Wade]

This book kept you wanting to read on. I finished the book in one sitting. Very exciting yet simply written.

[Ariel · Rating 3 out of 5]

Around the World - Kenya

I never got over my issue with multiple - MULTIPLE! - POVs, but I could enjoy this for the fun time it was.

[Flo · Rating 4 out of 5]

thoroughly enjoyed this!

[Brittney · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wow! This book was incredible and captivated me from the beginning. I had never read a book by this author prior to this one and cannot wait for the second book of the series to come out. I LOVED the MC. Zawadi was so strong and brave, though initially reluctant to assume her position as Chief. The author did a great job of describing the setting of the book as well. This book really explores ethics in medicine, and I feel as though the author did a wonderful job giving voice to the unethical practices within medicine/healthcare. Overall, I really enjoyed reading this book and look forward to reading more from this author. Favorite quote from the book "Change is the one constant, girl. Change is inevitable."

I want to thank NetGalley and Sterling & Stone for allowing me access to an ARC in exchange for my honest review.