Blitz Bazawule’s Scent of Burnt Flowers is headed to Nigeria, as Masobe Books closes deal with the author on a Nigerian edition. The novel explores themes of political intrigue, magical powers, and forbidden romance, and will be published sometime in April 2025. 

Bazawule is a Ghanaian filmmaker, known for directing Beyoncé’s visual album Black Is King and The Burial of Kojo, the first Ghanian film to premiere on Netflix. 

Scent of Burnt Flowers is the story of Melvin and Bernadette, a couple on the run after a violent encounter forces them to flee to Ghana, where they seek help from Melvin’s old friend, President Kwame Nkrumah. Their journey has a bit of political intrigue and magical encounters and becomes increasingly perilous as secrets are revealed, tensions rise, and the regime around them crumbles.

Scent of Burnt Flowers was originally published by Ballantine Books in 2022. It received considerable acclaim and was featured on Brittle Paper’s Notable African Books of 2022. It has also been optioned for TV, with Emmy Award-winning Yahya Abdul-Mateen II, known for his roles in Watchmen and Matrix 4, set to act as well as executive produce.

Othuke Ominiabohs, C.E.O. of Masobe Books, said in a message to us that he is confident Nigerians will love the book:

Bazawule’s debut is chock full of magic, wonder and suspense. We fell in love with it from the very first chapter and are so excited to be bringing it back home to African readers. We are certain that with ‘The Scent of Burnt Flowers’, there’ll be something to love for every reader.

Congrats to Masobe Books and Bazawule!