I DNFed this at 34%. The universe Tsamaase created was fascinating. But the story itself took forever to start. By the time the plot seemed to pick up, I wasn't interested anymore.

Thank you NetGalley for the audiobook ARC in exchange for a fair review.

3.5 ⭐️

Womb City is an important, lyrical story that examines many social justices issues - race, capitalism and sexism most prominently - through the lens of a sci-fi horror story.

Set against the backdrop of futuristic Botswana, Womb City follows Nelah, a wealthy black woman whose life seems perfect until closer examination where you discover she is constantly surveilled as a byproduct of the technological advancements that solve the aging crisis, controlled by her husband, and dictated at by a racist, mysogonistic society. As Nelah is grappling for control over some element of her life, she is involved in a car accident that dreails everything she was working towards, and results in her being haunted. But this is only the tip of the iceberg for Nelah who may not survive the realities of society that crumble around her.

This book was fascinating, lyrical and ambitious. Although I deeply enjoyed the setting and prose, I think this was simply too ambitious in everything it was trying to be to achieve the perfection it might have otherwise accomplished. Tsammase’s writing was often stunning but fell victim to the world building, becoming a bit tedious at times and I definitely felt it could have been 50 pages shorter. I think combining so many genres was also a little too ambitious as the sci-fi elements often felt at odds with the supernatural. I understand the story and the importance of all the elements it explored but there was so much to digest in a relatively short time.

I will absolutely be reading more from this author ✍️ n the future and I can see myself re-reading this book again one day (hoping that by knowing what happens I’ll be less taken off guard by the twists and turns and be better able to enjoy the story).

I would have to rate this one 2 to 2.5 Stars. I didn't dislike it but it could have used a major haircut. I think it would have worked better at about half the length. The story itself was good and well thought out, but it was just to much and dragged horribly in parts.

The world this book is set in is really interesting and I wish it was highlighted a little more in this book. It has strong messaging about motherhood, fertility issues, inequalities for women, and social inequalities more generally. Where I found the world and the story really conducive for exploring these themes, I also felt that it could be extremely heavy handed. This was particularly true at the beginning and it took a while for the story to really get going. I enjoyed it and appreciated the tools being used to make the point even clearer, but I know that is not everyone's cup of tea. Things really pick up towards the middle of the book and it was a pretty fun ride to the end. It makes me want to rate this higher but, if I'm honest, I might have put it down before then if I had not been listening to it instead of reading. Overall, a great read with some pacing issues and a little too much exposition at the beginning.

I was provided an audiobook by the publisher (Erewhon and RB Media) via NetGalley for honest feedback. Christel Mutombo was the perfect choice for narrator for _Womb City_ by Tlotlo Tsamaase. Her narration made the audiobook an immersive experience, and she treated the material with respect.

I am giving this book 5/5 Stars because this marriage of dystopian cyberpunk, African mythological horror, and thriller exceeded my expectations. The author takes the bodily horror undercurrent present in "Altered Carbon" and amplifies it to examine the frameworks of power surrounding sex, gender, sexuality, race, age, nationality, criminality, infertility, and disability as especially manifested in the female body. Without spoilers, the novel's title of _Womb City_ highlights several different elements of the story, and thus the title is something to reflect upon throughout the evolution of the story.

The novel is primarily an examination of the commodification of human bodies, especially how such a commodification would affect female bodies of color. The first quarter of the novel sets the scene of a dystopian, cyberpunk society in a future Botswana. People are able to download their consciousness into new bodies under certain terms/conditions, and certain bodies (primarily female) are microchipped for observation. The need for perfection to remain free from scrutiny is a refrain the main character (Nelah) mentions throughout the novel. The author subverts the original meaning in the story's conclusion. Eventually, the story takes a sharp veer into horror after an accident that has Nelah scrambling to save her loved ones by solving conspiracies within the government and highest levels of society.

I understand why the reviews are mixed for this novel. It has a niche potential audience between the marriage of cyperpunk and horror elements. Moreover, the story has elements of violence, infidelity, and child loss that make the story difficult for some populations to find fulfillment in. I personally thought the story was a magnificent examination of a cross section of oppressive frameworks. I also thoroughly enjoyed the author's use of language, and I found that use of language to be as gripping as both the plot/story and the examined frameworks. There is a lot to digest throughout the story, and so that makes for a slower read (I listened to some sections more than once to really get the subtext). Slower read or not, I found myself spellbound by this story (enjoy not quite being the right word for this reading experience). I love a book that forces me to think.

Thanks to NetGalley for the advanced reviewer copy of Womb City in exchange for my honest review.

I picked Womb City by Tlotlo Tsamaase since it falls in the sci-fi, mystery, horror, and dystopia genres. I was excited to see it described as 'an African futurist horror novel that blends The Handmaid’s Tale with Get Out'.

The tone of the story is very dark and serious. It makes the book a very difficult and intense read. The story starts quite slowly, and it takes about 30% of the book for the plot to really get going. And even then, I felt there was a lethargy to the story, though the events happening were high energy urgent situations.

The overall plot was decent and the genre switching aspects of the story was quite interesting. I like the use of different elements of sci-fi, horror, and mysticism in the story. However, it may have been too much since I also think there were many plot lines that were made to connect in the end.

As for the characters, unfortunately, I did not like anyone. I do not have a problem with reading about unlikeable characters, but it made it difficult for me to care about what happens next or why it is happening to them when I could not care less about them. They were all quite deplorable, irrespective of a certain plot point in the story. In many instances, the characters displayed behavior entirely inconsistent with their established traits which was odd.

Regarding the writing, I believe there was too much exposition by the characters, especially when they are in the thick of things. Some of the writing also felt repetitive.

In conclusion, either I missed the point of the book or maybe I was not its intended audience. I had a difficult time enjoying it. I might suggest this book to someone who wants to read a revenge story that is very angry and corrosive.

Death has been conquered. Capitalism…has not.

Nelah’s current body has come with many downsides. A birth family who is all-but estranged. Infertility which has resisted all treatments, forcing Nelah and her husband to hire a financially ruinous artificial womb. And a criminal history, and the government mandate of constant surveillance, in case her body urges her to break more laws.

And then she does break a law. Vehicular manslaughter, while under the influence.

What follows in deepening danger and gore, as Nelah tries to avoid being found out and sent to an eternal digital hell.

I deeply loved this book, just as much as it disturbed me. But man, what a head trip! You might need to keep a notebook to track everyone, because it does get pretty complex. Since consciousnesses are saved and put into new bodies, making minds effectively immortal, prepare yourself for a knotty set of connections going back literal lifetimes.

Tsamaase took some DELIGHT in the gore. Xe lovingly crafted this whole book, but I’d bet xe spent twice the usual editing time on sections where people were in intense pain. Great job, but brrrrr!

I will say, if you’re looking for a pure scifi horror story, this book isn’t a good fit. It goes well into fantasy about halfway in. Still enjoyable, and it does ratchet up the horror to have this new, unpredictable element added. It doesn’t come out of left field or anything, but most of the reviews and promos I saw for this book didn’t really address the fantasy bits.

Christel Mutombo’s narration was full of masterful emotion! Nelah’s fear, love, betrayal, and horror was always spot-on, and kept me engrossed in the feel of each scene. I’d definitely go for more scifi or fantasy read by them!

Advanced audio copy provided by the publisher.

Womb City follows Nelah, a woman living in a dystopian future Botswana with her controlling, cop husband Eli. In this world, consciousness can be parted from the physical body, preserved, and moved from shell to shell. Criminals and others whom the government wants to control are monitored by microchips. Nelah is a body hopper, and her current shell's bionic arm, microchip, and past (including her presumed death) are a mystery-- a mystery her new family is unwilling to shed light on.

This book has a lot going on. I wouldn't necessarily say it's over-ambitious, but more that none of the elements ever get fully fleshed out before moving onto the next thing. Tsamaase tackles not only a whole lot of genre-bending story and world-building, but also a lot of social justice issues. Unfortunately, issues with pacing and world-building kept many of these elements from feel cohesive. For instance, there were several moments where whole world-building paragraphs were copied almost word for word in multiple places (the explanation of body hopping, lifespans, etc. and Nelah's history, for example) while other technologies or events were left barely touched on or explained. There were frequently pages upon pages where it felt as if I was being lectured to instead of getting a glimpse of Nelah's world. And sometimes little details didn't match up which seems like it should have been caught during editing. I read both the early print ARC and the published audiobook, and these issues were present in both editions.

The pacing was just off. The first chapters were some of the best, despite the heavy-handed world-building. I was looking forward to diving into this story, but things really fell off hard after about 25%-30%. Those huge segments of world-building fed to us through Nelah's internal voice and through dialogue were dense, and the encyclopedic knowledge vibes made the book feel longer than it was.

And listen, I'm primed to root for a FMC living under claustrophobic patriarchal rule. But frankly, Nelah quickly proves to be unlikable and unrelatable. Many of her beliefs and actions don't line up at all, and some of her choices are downright nonsensical. She also has some mighty strong plot armor. To be making the point that women and minorities have little autonomy, are persecuted, and that Nelah's world is hopelessly surveilled and controlled, she sure did get away with a lot. Her plot armor along with the ability to live many lives and her genuinely selfish and frustrating nature make it hard to even find the stakes.

Nelah's relationships are extremely tumultuous and honestly hard to bear until you get an explanation VERY late in the book. And the groan I groant at page 364 "we've murdered, but I can't murder our love." But Jan deserved better even after giving me the ick with that line.

And that's not totally fair; much of the prose is actually stunning if you like the purple-leaning stuff. Aside from the narration, the prose is probably the best thing Womb City has going for it. There were passages that made me catch my breath, and I thought the chapter titled "19:40 /// God, I'm So High" was a work of art. But for me it was overall pretty downhill from there and was just generally convoluted to the point that I almost gave up several times. Overall, this is a very creative and ambitious story that deals with a plethora of thought-provoking concepts, but it just wasn't for me. That said, I'll definitely be checking out more of this author's shorter work in search of more lovely prose.

I loved the world building, politics and societal issues discussed in this book, but, unfortunately, the story itself didn’t really sit well with me. While I liked the main character at the beginning of the book, her decisions throughout the story made it hard for me to sympathise with her. I know that this was done intentionally and meant to be a reflection of what the oppressive society the book is set in made her do to protect herself and her family, but it didn’t feel justifiable to me at all.
I genuinely loved the ideas the author came up with, but some of the things that happened in the book were way too graphic and shocking in my opinion.
Thanks to NetGalley and RB Media for an advanced audio copy in exchange for my honest review.

Overall, I think I would have enjoyed this book more if it was a little bit shorter. Towards the end it felt like I was dragging along trying to finish it. There was quite a bit of commentary about society/gender/racism, but at times it felt like the characters were just directly saying what the book was trying to address without weaving it into the story.

I loved the concept and the depth of the futuristic world. Learning about the Sunday sun and the process of going from one life to another was intriguing. At the end I was very confused about what was happening and how to visualize it. I felt like I needed to sit down and read that part rather than listen to it.

Content: 2.5 stars. I wanted to love this book so badly, but unfortunately I felt it was just doing too much. The book tried to cover a ton of ground and the writing itself seemed like an aside to the many, many different plots.

Audio: 4 stars. The various voices in this audiobook production are phenomenal. I so appreciate the detail and care!

Womb City is the debut novel by Tlotlo Tsamaase. It tells the story of Nelah, the wife of a local police official in a futuristic Botswana, where body swapping is the norm. In this futuristic setting death is not necessarily the end and people are able to have their souls transferred into a new body, subsequently extending their life by centuries.

When we start the story, we learn that not only is this a futuristic tale, but it is also a dystopian tale where women are subject to being monitored and they have to undergo daily reviews by their husbands about what they have up to, what they said etc. Not only that! If the body at some stage has committed a crime (whether it be the current owner of the body, or a previous owner), the body is then subject to further monitoring by having a microchip inserted into the back of their necks and have to be scrutinised on a yearly basis by the council.
Everything is going swimmingly for Nelah,and she seems to have it all, except for a few major points. She is stuck in a loveless marriage with a man that she has no feelings for, and on top of that she is unable to conceive a child. Things start going pear shaped when she takes a lover, Janith, and during one night of drug and alcohol fuelled hedonism they end up going out for a drive and ultimately killing a young girl whose ghost comes to exact revenge on Nelah and all those that she holds dear.

I have to say, I thought Womb City was an extraordinary book. It’s one of those books where initially I thought that I am not going to like this one at all, but then when I actually got into it, I couldn’t stop thinking about it.

Will this book be for everyone? Probably not! However, if you like afro – futuristic fiction, with some heavy dystopian and horror elements then this may well be up your street.

I have seen from a number of other people on Goodreads that they had difficulty getting into this book, primarily due to the heavy world building at the beginning and the fact that the book has a lot of elements that can seem to be overwhelming. However, I found that this book was really engrossing when it got going.

Nelah herself is a pretty unlikeable character in the first instance and quite a lot of times I found her decision making extremely flawed, which for me kind of endeared me to her. Yes, she is pretty selfish and she primarily deals with her own needs whilst regularly neglecting other parts of her life, which at times can be extremely frustrating, but when you get to the end you can see the reasons for her shattered psyche.

In addition to this, the side characters are not likeable either, particularly Nelah’s husband. Furthermore, I think that at times, he is a little bit of a typical villain and can appear to be quite stereotypical in his villainy, and I have to say that I thought her ‘side piece’ Jenith was a bit of a wet lettuce.

The writing itself is visceral and brutal at times. It will regularly go off in another direction or repeat something that has been said earlier. Initially, the plot is quite dense, and it is difficult to determine where it is going, thus making it appear a little directionless at times. However, when the story gets to its second act, the book becomes a lot more cohesive and driven, and when it finally gets into its third act things go absolutely ballistic.

Now, don’t get me wrong, this is not a perfect book, but I quite simply loved this book, and it is definitely a contender for one of my favourites of the year.

I listened to this book via audiobook, produced by Recorded Books and read by Christel Mutombo. This was an extremely well produced presentation by the ever reliable Recorded Books who I have listened to quite a few productions of theirs. Christel Motombo does a fine job of narrating the book as well. She manages to convey the story really well, including some cultural aspects of Botswanan speech such as kissing teeth as an insult. Her vocals and enunciation were spot on, as was the production of the audio. She was clear and at no point did I lose any of the story. In addition to that, she did a good job of doing alternate voices for the different characters and I was always able to tell when she had changed character. An exceptional listen throughout.

Tsamaase has something here with this futurisric, dystopic-touched novel. But what fatigued me with this one was the bloated plot tgat tackled too many societal themes without giving me the satisfactionof querying and exploring them fully to be affected. Throuh what feels like diary entries more than intercations and converstaions we are shown a society that has essentially imprisoned women in surveillance-heavy relationships or just by existing.

The onus of violece and criminal behaviour has solely been placed at their feet and they have to undergo invasive mind sweeps every day as well as being profiled after a certain period to ascertain their level of commiting a criminal act. Here we are looking at body autonomy, violence, intimate partner surveillance, patriarcyy, state surveillance and overreach; all in the name of protecting the women and by extension their families.

Along the way we drip into sexual abuse, trafficking, sexual exploitation, forced sex work through mind control, brief mention of ancestral beliefs, rape, reproductive shaming, economic and political corruption all wrapping their tentacles around this plot, this strangling my enjoyment.

I want to start off by saying that the synopsis of this novel, as well as the narrator were both big draws in for this audiobook!

Unfortunately, I couldn't get through it. I found the world building to be a bit overwhelming, trying to understand how the main character was in a donation body and how it related to the trust fund with the body's family? The characters were also very unlikeable - I am sure that is actually the point, however trying to get through the world building when everyone was intolerable was too much for me.

I have seen such mixed reviews from others as well that i am not sure i will try the print version.

Tlotlo Tsamaase, además de tener un nombre impronunciable para mí, tiene una grandiosa capacidad para mezclar ciencia ficción, fantasía, terror y denuncia social, algo que demuestra sobradamente en su novela Womb City.


El futurista mundo en que se desarrolla la novela, una Botswana donde los cambios de cuerpo están a la orden del día, le sirve a la autora para mostrarnos como las lacras de la sociedad se perpetúan en el tiempo a pesar de los avances tecnológicos.

La protagonista de la novela, Nelah, aparentemente lleva una vida envidiable. Dinero, fama como arquitecta, un marido con buena posición, un cuerpo joven en el que se ha reencarnado… Pero todo esto es solo el barniz que disimula una vida coartada por el microchip que lleva su cuerpo, constantemente supervisada por su marido y sin posibilidad de escapatoria. La demanda de cuerpos es cada vez mayor y esta es una de las incongruencias que le encuentro a la novela, que habla de reencarnaciones y de longitudes de vida determinadas, pero a mí al menos no me cuadra la cantidad de almas pendientes de reencarnar y la disponibilidad de cuerpos con los años de vida que se conceden a cada reencarnación. Es una de las pocas pegas que le he encontrado al libro, partiendo de la base de que a pesar de ser un escenario de ciencia ficción tiene trazas de folklore y mitología inextricables del propio desarrollo de la narración.

Sin querer entrar más en la trama de la novela por dejar que sea el futuro lector el que se encuentre lo que le presenta la autora, me gustaría hacer hincapié en las influencias, con una fortísima conexión con Ursula K. Leguin y su celebérrimo relato de Omelas. También me recuerda en algunos aspectos a Dientes rojos de Jesús Cañadas aunque no creo que sea un influencia directa, pero el uso de los mitos como modelo de reafirmación femenino e incluso de venganza conecta estas dos obras poderosamente.

La opresión de las mujeres simplemente por serlo es algo que empapa cada página del libro. Se las presupone culpables, son las que tienen en su gran mayoría los chips de control, son las víctimas propiciatorias que permiten la mejora de la sociedad… Tsamaase hace un relato tan descarnado como creíble de una sociedad tecnológicamente avanzada, pero lastrada por siglos de patriarcado y corrupción. Y, como pasa en algunas ocasiones, son casi peores las mujeres que han conseguido salir de esta situación que los propios opresores. El mensaje no necesita ser sutil, es contundente y directo al estómago.

La narración del audiolibro por parte de Christel Mutombo está muy bien pero hay un detalle que me enerva y son los chasquidos que hace con la boca, que no sé si son representaciones de las onomatopeyas del propio libro o una adición personal.

Recomiendo encarecidamente la lectura de Womb City, por el mensaje que lleva implícito, por la prosa que utiliza la autora y por ser una obra tan acongojante como recomendable.

In summary, this was a good concept, and it is well written, however, it was a lot, and some pieces to repetitive snagging space from exploration of said topics. I might give it another try sometime in the future.

Book Review | WOMB CITY by TLOTLO TSAMAASE

4 ⭐’s |  ARC Review | PUB DATE: 23 January 2024

Read if you're looking for:
- An afrofuturism & horror tale set in Botswana, by a Motswana author
- Themes of misogyny, colonialism, bodily autonomy, & wealth inequality
- Murderous ghosts
- Consciousness transfer between bodies
- A vengeful god
- A “good for her” ending

This is the debut novel from Tsamaase. It’s set in a near-future Botswana, where people can purchase a new body for their consciousness to be transferred into after their current lifetime runs its course. However, people do not retain the memories of their previous lifetimes. Additionally, some people, oftentimes criminals but also many women, have a microchip inserted into their nervous system that monitors them at all times and reports any possible crime or infraction they may commit. Our main character, Nelah, is chipped and being monitored by her police officer husband, all the while attempting to conceal an affair with a wealthy businessman. When Nelah and her lover commit an accidental crime, it sets off a dark series of events, uncovering corruption, nepotism, and nefarious plots, as well as setting a murderous ghost on their trail.

This book is very hard to define or describe without giving spoilers. It’s a genre mash-up that includes sci-fi, speculative & dystopian fiction, afrofuturism, fantasy, and horror. The writing really reminded me of Rosewater by Tade Thompson (which I loved), being eerie and unsettling, yet engrossing. Tsamaase is incredibly creative, bringing in so many new ideas and weaving them together with socio-political issues, including misogyny, colonialism, racism, surveillance by the government, bodily autonomy, & wealth inequality. This is where my main criticism comes in: there was so much going on that sometimes it was confusing or felt convoluted, particularly in the middle third of the book. However, Tsamaase pulled all the strings together by the end, with a satisfying ending. I also felt that the audiobook narrator, Christel Mutombo, did a great job. Although your mileage may vary, I had a great time with this book, and I would recommend it for readers who enjoy dystopian and speculative fiction, and other afrofuturistic stories, like those from Tade Thompson or Nnedi Okorafor.

CW: Misogyny, Body horror, Gore, Sexual assault, Trafficking, Miscarriage, Emotional abuse, Gun violence

NOTE: I received this audiobook for free from the publisher in exchange for an honest review.

This book was a wild ride and I absolutely enjoyed every single bit of it. It covers so many topics so please check the trigger warnings before starting. The narration was so good. Some audiobooks you can listen to while you do other things, this is not one of them. While I did listen to this while at the gym and while working, my job is very repetitive. If you have to fully focus on something else while you’re listening to this audiobook, I don’t think you’ll get the best experience. It’s a lot of information and you have to pay attention or you will be confused. I saw that this was classified as horror and I didn’t see it until I realized that what is happening in this book is not that far removed from reality and that’s scary. I love already ordered the physical so that I can annotate it. There were so many moments in this book that I know that I’ll want to look back on.
Thank you so much to NetGalley for the advanced audiobook of this book.

Interesting ideas in a sci-fi Botswana that simultaneously intrigue and confuse.

Womb City tackles a relationship-heavy science fiction with a touch of horror and crime. Basically, it's a lot! Sometimes that's a great thing, with distinctly captivating ideas keeping the reader hooked. Sometimes the choices are less successful and the cohesion and comprehension slip away.

The story sets out to speak on many topics, including personhood, parenthood, bodily autonomy, political corruption, privilege, and misogyny. While the intention is good, there's not much here that's both new and coherent. Some of the concepts - like the effects of past lives lingering in the physical body rather than the mind, or the murder mist (?) - are thought provoking but underdeveloped and unconvincing.

Though I think more revision would have been helpful, there's something about this book that snags my attention. The mix of genres and focus means the story takes unexpected turns that are fun when you're in the mood to follow wherever it goes. The sci-fi setup is genuinely intriguing and feels very much like a big budget movie I'd expect to see advertised as a summer blockbuster.

The narration by Christel Mutombo is well done and makes the audiobook a good choice for reading the book.

2/5 Stars

I really wanted to enjoy this book for what it was, which was a creative and daring dystopian story exploring women’s rights to their bodies. I ended up just finding it so hard to get into, the story really felt like it was dragging and the exploration of themes felt heavy-handed and not nuanced. Some parts of the book get really redeeming and unique, the setting was something completely new for my and the premise was pretty intriguing, but I found the execution a bit lacking.