Ancestors

De: Jan C. Thorpe

Narrado por: Kimberly Ingram

Life should be happy for Moremi Ashanti with her comfortable life in Berkeley, California, a handsome and successful husband, Professor Peter Abosanjo, and a bright and joyful eight-year-old son - but something is wrong, and she doesn't know what or why. Ten years into her life in the U.S., Moremi remains haunted by the untimely deaths of her parents. Forced to leave her Nigerian homeland during the military regime, Moremi feels more than ever the loss of the friends and culture she left behind. Her ancestors and shapeshifting water spirit Mami Wata, ramp up their intrusive, cryptic warnings.

Confused and in need of help, Moremi finds an ally in psychologist Rebecca Calhoun, who understands dreams and the perilous implications of these warnings. Moremi and Rebecca are pulled into a tense cat and mouse game as they enlist a team of brilliant, but eccentric, friends to confront an agile, psychopathic assassin. They must solve the ultimate puzzle involving a chain of secrets and betrayals that began long ago. Ancestors encompasses a circuitous world of lies, political murder, corporate cover-ups and African Voudou that pulls unlikely American allies into a drama that plays out across Northern California, Washington State and Nigeria, ending with a final reckoning set in motion long before Moremi and Peter were born.

©2022 Jan C. Thorpe (P)2024 Jan C. Thorpe

Story and Narrator a perfect match – I was hooked

I was entranced from the start by the combination of the narrator's voice and a unique story from an exciting new author. I was intrigued and pulled into Moremi's dual life as a wife and mother trying to be American and the Ancestors and shape-shifting spirit who won't allow her to forget that she's an African Vodou princess,

The synchronicities of Moremi finding Rebecca, a therapist who has long been drawn to Africa, and the carved "women's" masks reflect some of life's mysteries, how our dreams speak to us, and how we are guided by not only dreams but attraction to objects that speak to a deeper part of our soul. Allowing ourselves to be touched and changed by these mysterious forces can open us to deeper understanding and compassion. In this case, Moremi is forced to listen to herself and acknowledge that something in her life isn't right, and she must discover the truth about her past and what happened to her parents.

Moremi's realization that she can't ignore her past and the importance of her connection to her country pushes and pulls her to search deeper to find the truth. Through twists and turns, Moremi, Rebecca, and her brilliant and unexpected friends begin to uncover truths that have been long buried, keeping the reader/listener on edge and listening past the time the lights should have been turned off.

I couldn't stop listening and read the book two years ago. The narration was so perfect that the story took on depths I hadn't perceived in my reading; I was awake for hours, continuing to listen in the middle of the night, hanging on to every word, right up to the unexpected twist at the end.

A new voice who believably blurs the lines between life, reality, dreams, and spirit. I look forward to future books from Jan Thorpe and the Narrator, Kimberly Ingram.