Colombian Roulette

A first novel by Toby Green, set in an unnamed Latin American country in the late twentieth century. The story interweaves the lives of Elvis Jaramillo, a poor young man from a shantytown; Julián Restrepo, a rich taxi driver dreaming of becoming a rock star; and Pamela Oswald, an NGO worker from London. When Oswald arrives in the capital to work at a rehabilitation centre for self-harming children, she is drawn into a circle including a Chilean poet who introduces her to a deadly new game: Colombian Roulette, played without the safety of empty chambers. In a country where the present implodes under the weight of an unexcavated violent past, the characters embark on a dangerous quest for truth. Green teaches the history and culture of Portuguese-speaking Africa at King’s College London. Internationally distributed by African Books Collective.