Promises are like tilapia from Lake Victoria-glittering, evasive … slippery.

From warm Kampala to gloomy London, Goretti Kyomuhendo’s novel charts the joys and tribulations of Ajuna and her fiancé, Kagaba. Young, highly skilled, and ambitious, both are caught up in financial hardship in their native Uganda. When Kagaba leaves for the UK as an economic immigrant, Ajuna’s happy, fulfilling relationship is under threat. And in the indifferent UK, Kagaba must battle the cold, and the cold shoulder of London.

Promises exposes the shadow world of illegal immigrants, and the creativity with which people in the legal margins rise to meet an inhumane system. But for both Kagaba and Ajuna, a glimmer of hope comes from unexpected quarters.

Populated with an expansive array of vibrant characters, Goretti Kyomuhendo’s novel examines the promises we keep and those we break when relationships are profoundly tested by circumstance and twists of fate. It is a vivid tapestry of Ugandan family life, and catches the universal emotions of love, death, and betrayal.

“With her signature flair for raw, bold, honest fiction, Kyomuhendo lays bare machinations in Kampala, the heartlessness of London, the resilience of Ugandans, and the ingenuity of desperate people. In Promises, Goretti Kyomuhendo reaffirms herself as a major voice out of Africa.” -Jennifer Nansubuga Makumbi, author of A Girl Is a Body of Water/The First Woman