Fiction
'Shocking… violence, motherhood and death in the jungle' Mariana Enríquez, author of The Dangers of Smoking in Bed Benedicta has given birth, over and over. But she will never be a mother.
Benedicta lives with her mother, her sister and her many children on a hacienda surrounded by dense rainforest.
The jungle is a hungry god: it allows them to live safely away from a ruthless world of guerrillas and drug traffickers, but at a terrible price. Its voracity is never-ending, and those who live under its control must offer up their children in a sacrificial cycle powered by blood and madness.
One day Romina, a pregnant sex worker from the nearest town, emerges from the rainforest. Will she be the one to break the cycle?
Brutal, powerful and deeply unsettling, this Caribbean gothic fable about motherhood and the female body is a truly unique and unforgettable novel, from a writer at the peak of her powers.
© 2026 The Borough Press (Audiobook): 9780008727178
Translators: Kevin Gerry Dunn
Release date
Audiobook: 24 September 2026
Over 950 000 titles
Kids Mode (child safe environment)
Download books for offline access
Cancel anytime
For those who want to listen and read without limits.
S$12.98 /month
Unlimited listening
Cancel anytime
For those who want to listen and read without limits.
S$69 /6 months
Unlimited listening
Cancel anytime
For those who want to listen and read without limits.
S$119 /year
Unlimited listening
Cancel anytime
For those who want to share stories with family and friends.
Starting at S$14.90 /month
Unlimited listening
Cancel anytime
S$14.90 /month