Review: Futility by Nuzo Onoh

Rating: 10/10

Betrayed by the men in their lives, two women seethe with rage and bitterness. When a trickster spirit offers them the gift of revenge, they cannot resist.

Chia runs one of the best restaurants in Abuja, Nigeria, and is renowned among the male clientele for her captivating beauty and delicious hot pepper soup. But her hot pepper soup has a secret ingredient, and her beauty is not what it seems.

Claire is a 50 year-old British woman living in Abuja with her young Nigerian boyfriend and his beautiful cousin, Shadé. Consumed by jealousy and resentment, Claire’s carefully organised life spirals into chaos after a night out at Chia’s infamous restaurant.

“Futility,” by Nuzo Onoh is a novel that feels almost illicit. A guilty pleasure in which the most grotesque, graphic and cruel miseries are inflicted- and yet it’s nothing short of… fun. A bloody, soup-soaked story of revenge, karma and demons, that burns going down, Onoh’s latest is (from the admittedly small amount I’ve sampled from her) my personal favourite so far. As rich with folklore and mythology as the rest of her body of work, “Futility,” also hums with rage and (increased) wit- it has a level of cheekiness to it that, as I said, however nasty, makes it a compulsive reading experience. It is hot and hearty and sour- insert soup joke here. Out October 14th from Titan Books, “Futility,” is sure to turn the stomachs and prick the conscience of its readers.

We follow two rather unlikeable women in Abuja, Nigeria. Claire is a 50 year old British diplomat and former police officer who bankrolls her much younger boyfriend and his excruciatingly gorgeous cousin. Chia runs a successful restaurant, famous for its soup and the radiance of its owner. The two are connected, unknowingly at first, by something far older and far hungrier than chance, a horrifying celestial force, one that demands sacrifice in return for good fortune and good looks- and when Claire and Chia do eventually cross paths, things turn deadly.

There feels no better place to begin than with our title- “Futility.” Not to get too deep on a Sunday afternoon… but what is the meaning of life? By proxy what is the meaning of material success? Wealth? Beauty? I don’t want to give you the wrong impression however, because this is not a nihilistic novel. The logic present is that life is pretty meaningless, so we ought to live it surrounded by people we love, doing things we enjoy- and in fact, when we stray from that, and we become driven by the glittering illusions of wealth and fortune- things turn dangerous. Our two protagonists are a wonderful case in point, and, despite what they bargain hard for, good looks, status, wealth, revenge, both are entirely dissatisfied. There is not any part of the novel where I considered either of them to be happy, and really, it is only then that life truly does become futile. 

I think what makes this novel feel so naughty however, is the swift delivery of sweet, sweet karma. Claire and Chia, as morally dubious as they are, are not the only ones who test the reader’s palate. A conflict lies here in that (particularly) Chia’s pursuit of vengeance, is rancid and morally bankrupt, and yet when she does kill in chasing her retribution- something twisted in us sees the harsh justice in it, and enjoys the grim satisfaction. As much as she is a challenge to our moral compass, there is context- and it’s that context that demonstrates despite the supernatural presence involved, as with almost everything, it’s we who are to blame. This novel is truly marinated, well-seasoned with pain and misery that is inflicted on our cast, and when you scrape the bowl clean and reflect, you find that the bulk of that harm was inflicted at the hands of one another.

Perhaps oxymoronically (but do indulge me) Onoh’s latest is a witty, vervy, nervy little tragedy that, like its cover tells you in a much more concise way than I have, is indeed full of “Murder. Revenge. Soup.” I said something about this book in a reel the other day, where I’m forced to keep my rambling to a minimum, so self-indulgently I’ll quote myself and leave you with this sentiment: “If you’re a little bit strange in the same way I am, this is definitely fun.”