Description

A wild scavenger hunt spanning continents and centuries

Lisbon, 1954. In the Military History Archives, a mysterious figure steals the Final Will and Testament of Garoto Barbaro de Castro-a list of thirteen bequests, and a record of Garoto’s remarkable life story. It is also a window onto the many other lives connected to his, including that of the archival thief: his descendent, Nuno Barbaro de Castro.

After stealing Garoto’s Final Will and Testament, Nuno Barbaro de Castro-artifact hunter, grave robber, fake veterinarian, and agent of Angolan Independence-sets off to hunt the listed artifacts, while also collecting the distant relatives of those mentioned in the Will, even when they don’t want to be collected…

A rowdy, darkly funny, centuries-spanning revenge drama, The Wreckers moves between Portugal, Angola, Cuba, and Louisiana’s ‘Angola’ prison to examine the scars of the transatlantic slave trade, and the consequences of prolonged civil war.

Publisher Review

“It is difficult not to admire its scope and verve, and not to be keen to know what its author does next.” (Praise for The Raw Man) * Times Literary Supplement * “Compelling and beautiful. A complex tale of family, racial identification, and storytelling.” (Praise for The Raw Man) * Wasafiri * “Mythic, dark, and oracular.” Praise for The Raw Man * Adam Johnson * “Ambitious and many-layered, The Wreckers is a dizzying feat of storytelling. Historical, piratical, darkly compelling, it charts new depths.” * Chantel Acevedo, author of The Distant Marvels * “A vast, endlessly inventive, and often very funny masterpiece. The Wreckers seems to contain the history of several continents, without ever once becoming a chore.” * Thomas Peermohamed Lambert, author of Shibboleth * “A sprawling and richly detailed saga, The Wreckers is an intricately plotted tale of vengeance.” * Flora Carr, author of The Tower *