LAUREN FRANCIS-SHARMA
LAUREN FRANCIS-SHARMA is the author of two novels, including Book of the Little Axe (Grove, 2020), selected as the 2020 ALA “Libraries Transform Book Pick” and as Booklist’s “Editor’s Choice” for 2020, and ‘Til the Well Runs Dry (Holt, 2014), awarded the Honor Fiction Prize by the Black Caucus of the ALA and short-listed for the William Saroyan International Prize for Writing. Lauren holds a bachelor’s degree in English literature with a minor in African-American Studies from the University of Pennsylvania and a J.D. from the University of Michigan Law School, as well as an MFA from the Warren Wilson College MFA Program for Writers. Lauren is a book reviewer for The San Francisco Chronicle, a MacDowell Fellow and the Assistant Director of Bread Loaf Writers’ Conference at Middlebury College. She also serves on the board of the PEN/Faulkner Foundation. The 2025 edition of Cry, The Beloved Country by Alan Paton, will feature a Foreword by Lauren.
CASUALTIES OF TRUTH
Atlantic Monthly Press - February 11, 2025
From the author of Book of the Little Axe, nominated for the Hurston/Wright Legacy Award, a riveting literary novel with the sharp edges of a thriller about the abuses of history and the costs of revenge, set between Washington, DC, and Johannesburg, South Africa
Prudence Wright seems to have it all: a loving husband, Davis; a spacious home in Washington, DC; and the past glories of a successful career at McKinsey, which now enables her to dedicate her days to her autistic son Roland. When she and Davis head out for dinner with one of Davis’s new colleagues on a stormy summer evening filled with startling and unwelcome interruptions, Prudence has little reason to think that certain details of her history might arise sometime between cocktails and the appetizer course.
Yet when Davis’s colleague turns out to be Matshediso, a man from Prudence’s past, she is transported back to the formative months she spent as a law student in South Africa in 1996. As an intern at a Johannesburg law firm, Prudence attended sessions of the Truth and Reconciliation hearings, which uncovered the many horrors and human rights abuses of the Apartheid state, and which fundamentally shaped her sense of righteousness and justice. Prudence experienced personal horrors in South Africa as well, long hidden and now at risk of coming to light. When Matshediso finally reveals the real reason behind his sudden reappearance, he will force Prudence to examine her most deeply held beliefs and to excavate inner reserves of resilience and strength.
Lauren Francis-Sharma’s previous two novels have established her as a deft chronicler of history and its intersections with flawed humans struggling to find peace in unjust circumstances. With keen insight and gripping tension, Casualties of Truth explosively mines questions of whether we are ever truly able to remove the stains of our past and how we may attempt to reconcile with unquestionable wrongs.
praise for Casualties of Truth
Named One of Electric Literature’s “48 Books by Women of Color to Read in 2025”
“A gripping tale of restitution and lingering trauma.”—People, “Book of the Week”
“Tense, timely . . . A brutal history lesson in the guise of a thriller. The novel is taut and deftly plotted . . . The potential for violence lurks beneath even the most innocuous surfaces, keeping Prudence (and the reader) perpetually on edge . . . A tale of dual reckonings, of a woman and a country both forced to face their histories and the harrowing violence that has shaped them.”—Violet Kupersmith, New York Times Book Review
“Thrillingly perceptive, Casualties of Truth is a reminder that no matter how much time passes, we can’t escape actions of our own or our country’s past.”—Booklist (starred review)
“Thrilling . . . Moving forward from gross human rights violations is easier said than done when it’s personal. Prudence now stands on a taut line of suspense to shield her husband from the truth about her past, protect her son, and heal her own inner turmoil.”—WBUR
“Clever, provocative, and deeply felt. Casualities of Truth takes a clear and unflinching look at a complex system of oppression and delivers a vividly told and unforgettable story.”—NYT and #1 International Bestselling author, Karin Slaughter
“Riveting . . . A gripping story which is difficult to put down and brings forgotten histories vividly to life.”—Syma Mohammed, San Francisco Chronicle
"Casualties of Truth is an astonishing novel that simmers with the hot heat of decades of death, injustice, and vengeance. Lauren Francis-Sharma's characters are pitch perfect in their depth and her story is an unflinching study of the horrors of the South African Apartheid state. Brava!"—Wanda M. Morris, award-winning author of All Her Little Secrets, Anywhere You Run, and What You Leave Behind
“Like the jacaranda’s fragrance and beauty, Casualties of Truth lures you in with exquisite writing and the delicate construction of fascinating characters. And then, like El Tunche, it devours you with truths about and insights into all the shades of humanity. Sheer brilliance.”—Deon Meyer, internationally bestselling author of The Dark Flood
“Casualties of Truth is a page-turner so engrossing that you never get distracted by the exceptional grace of its storytelling. Tense yet character-driven, Lauren Francis-Sharma has created a brilliant rumination on how we use the malleable clay of memory to sculpt our understanding of ourselves and the world.”—Mat Johnson, author of Pym and Invisible Things
“I could not put this down! Once again, Francis-Sharma’s phenomenal prose delivers; here, with exquisite suspense in a revenge story chocked full of thorny characters. This is an unforgiving tale of cat-and-mouse begging us to confront just how far we’d go to take control in a society hell-bent on minimizing our pain. These pages set loose the raging, wicked what-ifs we keep deeply and shamefully hidden inside our basements.”—Xochitl Gonzalez, author of Olga Dies Dreaming, Anita de Monte Laughs Last
“At once riveting, ferocious, and deeply unsettling, Casualties of Truth is a necessary read. Lauren Francis-Sharma is a magician of a writer who masterfully blends a page-turning murder mystery-thriller with a powerful exploration of the liminal space between resilience and violence, memory and history, and vengeance and justice. I loved this book.”—Angie Kim, New York Times-bestselling author of Happiness Falls and Miracle Creek
“With laser-sharp prose and a keen eye for psychology, Casualties of Truth gives us a story of vengeance, justice, and the mutations of memory … This is a world in which no one is perfect, no one is at peace, and nothing can truly be forgotten. As riveting as it is important.”—Rebecca Makkai, author of I Have Some Questions for You
BOOK OF THE LITTLE AXE
Grove Atlantic - May 12, 2020
In 1796 Trinidad, young Rosa Rendón quietly but purposefully rebels against the life others expect her to lead. Bright, competitive, and opinionated, Rosa sees no reason she should learn to cook and keep house, for it is obvious her talents lie in running the farm she, alone, views as her birthright. But when her homeland changes from Spanish to British rule, it becomes increasingly unclear whether its free black property owners―Rosa’s family among them―will be allowed to keep their assets, their land, and ultimately, their freedom.
By 1830, Rosa is living among the Crow Nation in Bighorn, Montana with her children and her husband, Edward Rose, a Crow chief. Her son Victor is of the age where he must seek his vision and become a man. But his path forward is blocked by secrets Rosa has kept from him. So Rosa must take him to where his story began and, in turn, retrace her own roots, acknowledging along the way, the painful events that forced her from the middle of an ocean to the rugged terrain of a far-away land.
praise for book of the little axe
One of The Millions Most Anticipated Books in the First Half of 2020
One of Electric Lit’s “Books by Women and Nonbinary Writers of Color to Read in 2020”
“Book of the Little Axe is an epic novel that recreates the hybrid history of Native and African peoples during the era of American exploration and expansion. Lauren Francis-Sharma’s care for her characters and skill with her subject shine through every page.”—Laila Lalami, author of The Other Americans
"Lauren Francis-Sharma has written one of those thrilling novels—so valuable and welcome—that adds (or better say restores) another strand to our national narrative. We’re all the richer for Book of the Little Axe.”—Peter Ho Davies, author of The Fortunes
"From her gripping first sentence, Lauren Francis-Sharma draws her reader into her intoxicating tale of intrigue, love, conflict, and power struggle at a pivotal time in the histories of Trinidad and the western United States. Her research is meticulous, her prose seductive, her characters mesmerizing. Book of the Little Axe shines a bright light on the little-known connections between the Caribbean and the United States. Readers will find it almost impossible to put this book down.”—Elizabeth Nunez, author of Prospero’s Daughter and Even in Paradise
“Book of the Little Axe is epic in ambition and scope, a sweeping tale that illuminates pivotal historical periods in Trinidad and North America, and the links between them. This is also the story of a young man’s coming of age and a mother’s secrets and a family’s love in the face of violence. Lauren Francis-Sharma brings her characters and their tangled histories to life with tremendous precision and sensitivity. This is the work of a major voice, a brilliant talent.”―Laura van den Berg, award winning author of The Third Hotel
“They say the past is a foreign country but forget to mention that it's also wild. Book of the Little Axe reminds us. Ranging from Trinidad to the mountainous West, Lauren Francis-Sharma has woven an emotional, immediate, ambitious story of love and belonging. Rather than retell a story of first contact between native people and newcomers to the new world, Francis-Sharma has produced a deeply moving novel about the ways in which all of us have always been connected.”―David Treuer, author of The Heartbeat of Wounded Knee
“From the farms of Trinidad to the forests of the American West, the tale of Rosa Rendón is hard yet engrossing… The various strands of the story come together to illuminate how power and race can warp a life… A sad, compelling novel about a woman of color who fights against society’s expectation .”―Library Journal
“In this masterly epic, the pleasure lies in piecing everything together.”―Publishers Weekly
“Francis-Sharma . . . offers fascinating characters across the broad sweep of the American continent at a time of great tumult, warring colonial powers, the spread of slavery, and expansion West. This is a compelling saga of family bonds, ambitions, and desires, all subject to the vagaries of powerful historical forces.”―Booklist, starred review
“If you appreciate historical fiction, you will love this epic family saga.”―Ms. Magazine
'TIL THE WELL RUNS DRY
Henry Holt & Co. – April 15, 2014
A glorious and moving multi-generational, multicultural saga that begins in the 1940s and sweeps through the 1960’s in Trinidad and the United States.
Lauren Francis-Sharma’s ‘Til the Well Runs Dry opens in a seaside village in the north of Trinidad where young Marcia Garcia, a gifted and smart-mouthed 16-year-old seamstress, lives alone, raising two small boys and guarding a family secret. When she meets Farouk Karam, an ambitious young policeman (so taken with Marcia that he elicits the help of a tea-brewing obeah woman to guarantee her ardor), the risks and rewards in Marcia’s life amplify forever.
On an island rich with laughter, Calypso, Carnival, cricket, beaches and salty air, sweet fruits and spicy stews, the novel follows Marcia and Farouk from their amusing and passionate courtship through personal and historical events that threaten Marcia’s secret, entangle the couple and their children in a scandal, and endanger the future for all of them.
‘Til the Well Runs Dry tells the twinned stories of a spirited woman’s love for one man and her bottomless devotion to her children. For readers who cherish the previously untold stories of women’s lives, here is a story of grit and imperfection and love that has not been told before.
Praise for ‘TIL THE WELL RUNS DRY
Shortlisted for 2016 William Saroyan International Prize for Writing
“Marcia’s story, told lovingly in this, Francis-Sharma’s debut novel, is as universally touching as it is original.“—New York Times Book Review
“You’ll hear the calypso music in this vivid debut about a spirited seamstress and devoted mother with a family secret.“—People
“10 Titles to Pick Up Now“—O, The Oprah Magazine
“[A] remarkably accomplished first-time novelist. . . .Francis-Sharma’s spellbinding, intimately detailed, psychologically lush, and suspenseful tale of racial and sexual trauma, hard work, love, and family devotion makes personal the injustice people endured in the years leading up to the civil rights movement in both multicultural Trinidad and segregated America.“—Booklist, starred review
“A saga ripe with heartbreak and joy . . . Francis-Sharma delivers a rich and satisfying debut on the ties of family, love, and culture.“—Kirkus Reviews
“Lauren Francis-Sharma’s debut novel, ‘Til the Well Runs Dry, illuminates a complex and beautiful Trinidad… [And] at the heart of ‘Til the Well Runs Dry is Marcia Garcia’s delightful, eccentric story of several decades, several children, much resilience, many secrets, romance, and harrowing immigration. In ‘Til the Well Runs Dry, Lauren Francis-Sharma has gone looking for her own personal history and has written as well an important narrative celebrating the African and South Asian people who created Caribbean culture.“—Breena Clarke, bestselling author of River, Cross My Heart and Angels Make Their Hope Here
“’Til The Well Runs Dry is unforgettable. Like the best poetry, it has all the high notes: a beautiful girl, a spell that leads to love and death, and a terrible secret—in language pierced with the cries and colors of the West Indies. But this is not just a story; it’s the author’s retelling of her own origins. Sweet, brutal, and unsparing, this is Lauren Francis-Sharma’s first book, yet she commands the page.“—Jacquelyn Mitchard, author of the #1 New York Times bestseller The Deep End of the Ocean
“An evocative and emotionally resonant family saga with one of the most compelling heroines I’ve met in a long time. A story of love, loss, and triumph set in a world of secret and moral consequence. Like the Obeah woman in her story, Lauren Francis-Sharma has cast a spell that refuses to release me. I won’t forget this story or the voice of this wonderful new writer any time soon.“—Brunonia Barry, New York Times bestselling author of The Lace Reader
“‘Alone, I sat on the sand and took in the beauty of my grandmother’s land’ was the reason Lauren Francis-Sharma gave for writing her remarkable debut ‘Til The Well Runs Dry. I was swept away by this thunderous, witty, and deeply soulful novel about family, Trinidad, secrets, porch sitters, dirt roads and passion. And so satisfying, like the first time I read my aunt’s novel, Their Eyes Were Watching God.“—Lucy Anne Hurston, author of Speak, So You Can Speak Again
“A first novel, yes. But balanced with experiences, imagery, and characters that linger on the flesh. Eyes. In the heart. And as I read the last paragraph and closed the book, I knew that I had experienced an amazing journey of light. Thank you my dear sister for this wonderful book.“—Sonia Sanchez, poet and writer
“With an intense voice, Lauren Francis-Sharma draws us into old Trinidad, weaving a classic immigrant’s tale, punctuated with the heady scents and rhythms of a bygone time, carrying us to the new world.“—Cheryl Lu-Lien Tan, author of A Tiger in the Kitchen
“I devoured ‘Til the Well Runs Dry in three short nights. I couldn’t wait to get back to the stories and the characters who I almost didn’t want to be fiction, because I cared so much about their ever-after. I found Lauren Francis-Sharma’s world, so familiar to me, a place with hidden corners hiding deep secrets I couldn’t wait to unravel and then to have my breath pause as they revealed themselves in ways I couldn’t imagine. Her story might be about a girl from Blanchisseuse, but above that it is an extraordinary story about a misunderstood girl who knows how to stand her ground.“—Victoria Brown, author of Minding Ben
“Lauren Francis-Sharma is a true story-teller. ‘Til the Well Runs Dry burns through its telling like the best gossip, but has the controlled mystery of a fairytale. This narrative is surprising, winding and always gratifying.”—Tiphanie Yanique, author of How to Escape from a Leper Colony and Land of Love and Drowning
“In her debut novel, Lauren Francis-Sharma takes us to the island of Trinidad, the ‘Land of the Humming Bird,’ in a story that feels more like a song, with a chorus of voices across generations revealing a culture as vibrant and enriching as it is overlooked by those on the mainland.“—Henry Louis Gates, Jr., Alphonse Fletcher University Professor, Harvard University
“Lauren Francis Sharma’s talent shines!”—USA Today
“…a sweeping, old-fashioned love story, a saga of terrible secrets and passionate ties. Readers will stay up all night with this book to find out what happens. You could think of this debut as The Secret Life of Bees meets The Help, set mostly in Trinidad.”—Barbara Jones, Executive Editor at Holt