One Leg on Earth
Longlisted for the Aspen Words Literary Prize 2027
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*LONGLISTED FOR THE ASPEN WORDS LITERARY PRIZE 2027*
*ESQUIRE, BEST BOOKS OF 2026*
A powerful, lyrical and haunting literary horror. A coming-of-age novel set in modern Lagos, for readers of Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie and Julia Armfield.
'POWERFUL, DAZZLING, IRRESISTIBLY STRANGE'
New York Times
'A SINGULARLY NAIL-BITING EXPERIENCE'
Guardian
'HAUNTING, SEDUCTIVE, UNPUTDOWNABLE'
Stylist
* * * * * *
Newly arrived in Lagos, Yosoye has the world at her feet. Her work at an architectural company is exciting, and the firm's new housing development, Omi City, encapsulates all the shiny potential of the future. But beneath the city's glittering surface, something is very wrong . . .
Why will no-one answer her questions about Omi City? Why are pregnant women walking into the lagoons, never to return?
And why is she suddenly so ravenous?
* * * * * *
PRAISE FOR ONE LEG ON EARTH . . .
'A powerfully eerie portrait of Lagos ... a virtuoso of dread and suspense, Aguda splices eco-horror, cosmic distress and ideas of the monstrous feminine into a singularly nail-biting experience ' Guardian
'Powerful, vividly written ... a superb parable of loneliness, greed and desire, full of creeping dread' Marie Claire
'Intricately layered, striking, powerful, dazzling, irresistibly strange' New York Times
'Haunting, seductive, unputdownable . . . pulls you in and keeps you entirely submerged until the final page' Stylist
'Marvelous ... a clear-eyed exploration of daughterhood, community, and the human costs of urban development, powered by an immersive portrait of a woman wrestling with the question of whom and what she's willing to sacrifice for the life she wants. This is unforgettable' Publishers Weekly
'Lyrical and lovely' People Magazine
'A stunning and lyrical literary horror novel set in the city of Lagos, Nigeria' Esquire, the 18 Best Books of 2026
'A stunning achievement. Pemi Aguda writes with luminous prose that feels both mystical and human. Brief and powerful, this conceptually daring novel haunted me long after I turned the last page' Abi Daré, author of The Girl with the Louding Voice
'One Leg on Earth gripped me from the first page' Ramona Ausubel, author of The Last Animal
'Breathtaking! The deliciously suspenseful and immensely human One Leg on Earth caught me in its wave. I adored every word in this book' Gerardo Sámano Córdova, author of Monstrilio
'A fearless work of fiction in the lineage of Toni Morrison's Sula' Megan Giddings, author of The Women Could Fly
'Sharp, funny, bold, nuanced, utterly absorbing debut' Nicole Dennis-Benn, author of Here Comes the Sun
'One Leg on Earth is an enchantment' Shannon Sanders, author of Company
'A haunting, beautiful novel, written with exquisite care. 'Pemi Aguda writes like she knows magic and, based on this book, I believe it' Victor LaValle, author of Lone Women
'One Leg On Earth is a dizzying tale of the gluttony of industry, the intrigue of newness, and the maddening, frightening and ever-growing desire for belonging. Aguda is a brilliant storyteller, her prose rich with complicated beauty' Rochelle Dowden-Lord, author of Lush
'Dark fantasy meets workplace drama in this immersive debut novel and delightfully fresh take on the pregnancy-as-horror-story trope... ' Oprah Daily
*ESQUIRE, BEST BOOKS OF 2026*
A powerful, lyrical and haunting literary horror. A coming-of-age novel set in modern Lagos, for readers of Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie and Julia Armfield.
'POWERFUL, DAZZLING, IRRESISTIBLY STRANGE'
New York Times
'A SINGULARLY NAIL-BITING EXPERIENCE'
Guardian
'HAUNTING, SEDUCTIVE, UNPUTDOWNABLE'
Stylist
* * * * * *
Newly arrived in Lagos, Yosoye has the world at her feet. Her work at an architectural company is exciting, and the firm's new housing development, Omi City, encapsulates all the shiny potential of the future. But beneath the city's glittering surface, something is very wrong . . .
Why will no-one answer her questions about Omi City? Why are pregnant women walking into the lagoons, never to return?
And why is she suddenly so ravenous?
* * * * * *
PRAISE FOR ONE LEG ON EARTH . . .
'A powerfully eerie portrait of Lagos ... a virtuoso of dread and suspense, Aguda splices eco-horror, cosmic distress and ideas of the monstrous feminine into a singularly nail-biting experience ' Guardian
'Powerful, vividly written ... a superb parable of loneliness, greed and desire, full of creeping dread' Marie Claire
'Intricately layered, striking, powerful, dazzling, irresistibly strange' New York Times
'Haunting, seductive, unputdownable . . . pulls you in and keeps you entirely submerged until the final page' Stylist
'Marvelous ... a clear-eyed exploration of daughterhood, community, and the human costs of urban development, powered by an immersive portrait of a woman wrestling with the question of whom and what she's willing to sacrifice for the life she wants. This is unforgettable' Publishers Weekly
'Lyrical and lovely' People Magazine
'A stunning and lyrical literary horror novel set in the city of Lagos, Nigeria' Esquire, the 18 Best Books of 2026
'A stunning achievement. Pemi Aguda writes with luminous prose that feels both mystical and human. Brief and powerful, this conceptually daring novel haunted me long after I turned the last page' Abi Daré, author of The Girl with the Louding Voice
'One Leg on Earth gripped me from the first page' Ramona Ausubel, author of The Last Animal
'Breathtaking! The deliciously suspenseful and immensely human One Leg on Earth caught me in its wave. I adored every word in this book' Gerardo Sámano Córdova, author of Monstrilio
'A fearless work of fiction in the lineage of Toni Morrison's Sula' Megan Giddings, author of The Women Could Fly
'Sharp, funny, bold, nuanced, utterly absorbing debut' Nicole Dennis-Benn, author of Here Comes the Sun
'One Leg on Earth is an enchantment' Shannon Sanders, author of Company
'A haunting, beautiful novel, written with exquisite care. 'Pemi Aguda writes like she knows magic and, based on this book, I believe it' Victor LaValle, author of Lone Women
'One Leg On Earth is a dizzying tale of the gluttony of industry, the intrigue of newness, and the maddening, frightening and ever-growing desire for belonging. Aguda is a brilliant storyteller, her prose rich with complicated beauty' Rochelle Dowden-Lord, author of Lush
'Dark fantasy meets workplace drama in this immersive debut novel and delightfully fresh take on the pregnancy-as-horror-story trope... ' Oprah Daily
- Published: May 06 2027
- ISBN: 9780349018294
Press Reviews
Ramona Ausubel, author of The Last Animal
A portrait of a woman, a city, and a shared moment in time, and a story about how it feels when the changes in a life are intertwined with bigger, scarier changes in the world outside. One Leg on Earth gripped me from the first page
Gerardo Sámano Córdova, author of Monstrilio
Breathtaking! And to borrow a phrase from the book: heart wilding! Written with 'Pemi Aguda's characteristically sharp, thoughtful and gorgeous prose, the deliciously suspenseful and immensely human One Leg on Earth caught me in its wave and I happily, greedily, tumbled along. I adored every word in this book
Megan Giddings, author of The Women Could Fly
A fearless work of fiction in the lineage of Toni Morrison's Sula. Aguda writes beautifully about the ways realities can break and why sometimes they should be shattered
Nicole Dennis-Benn, author of Here Comes the Sun
'Pemi Aguda is a brilliantly daring writer like none other with a voice that is unique and powerful. One Leg on Earth is a sharp, funny, bold, nuanced, utterly absorbing debut I did not know I needed. I will read anything 'Pemi Aguda writes!
Shannon Sanders, author of Company
Through her intricate and sumptuous prose, 'Pemi Aguda introduces us to a Lagos we have never known before, skilfully rendering its colours and peering into its shadowed corners. Every carefully chosen word draws the reader further into an intrigue that is all at once political, personal, and otherworldly. One Leg on Earth is an enchantment
Victor LaValle, author of Lone Women
One Leg on Earth is a haunting, beautiful novel, written with exquisite care. A kind of horror story about the cost of 'progress' for a city, a culture, for a human soul. That horror is balanced by the potency of motherhood, its blessings and its trials. 'Pemi Aguda writes like she knows magic and, based on this book, I believe it
Rochelle Dowden-Lord, author of Lush
One Leg On Earth is a dizzying tale of the gluttony of industry, the intrigue of newness, and the maddening, frightening and ever-growing desire for belonging; set in a Lagos which is as captivating as it is incomprehensible. Aguda is a brilliant storyteller, her prose rich with complicated beauty. One Leg on Earth is a gorgeous debut
Abi Daré, author of The Girl with the Louding Voice
A stunning achievement. 'Pemi Aguda writes with luminous prose that feels both mystical and human. Brief and powerful, this conceptually daring novel haunted me long after I turned the last page
- Publishers Weekly
Marvelous ... a clear-eyed exploration of daughterhood, community, and the human costs of urban development, powered by an immersive portrait of a woman wrestling with the question of whom and what she's willing to sacrifice for the life she wants. This is unforgettable
Guardian
A powerfully eerie portrait of Lagos ... a virtuoso of dread and suspense, Aguda splices eco-horror, cosmic distress and ideas of the monstrous feminine into a singularly nail-biting experience
- Esquire, the 18 Best Books of 2026
A stunning and lyrical literary horror novel set in the city of Lagos, Nigeria
- New York Times
Intricately layered, striking, powerful, dazzling, irresistibly strange
- Oprah Daily
Dark fantasy meets workplace drama in this immersive debut novel and delightfully fresh take on the pregnancy-as-horror-story trope... Aguda's depiction of the culture, language, and ambience of the Nigerian city is so vivid that every dip into its pages is wholly transporting
- People Magazine
Lyrical and lovely
- Marie Claire
Powerful, vividly written ... a superb parable of loneliness, greed and desire, full of creeping dread
- Stylist
Haunting, seductive, unputdownable . . . pulls you in and keeps you entirely submerged until the final page