This novel begins in the 1800s in Dunmore, a town in Canada founded by Black people escaping slavery in the American South. Lensinda Martin works for the local newspaper and is tasked with interviewing an old woman who shot dead a slave hunter. A Black person killing a white man — however justified — is a worrying occurrence because of the potential for retaliation. The town is on tenterhooks as the old woman is arrested and jailed.

From there, the novel is an intricate braid of stories — the old woman’s, Lensinda’s, and what happens in Dunmore after the shooting.

Many readers will find this unconventional approach refreshing. I tend to prefer more traditionally structured novels and this structure sometimes left me a little confused and disoriented. I also felt it limited my attachment to the characters. I never really felt like I was getting to know them better, despite the fact that more information is gradually revealed about them.

Relatedly, I sometimes found the characters’ psychology mysterious. I didn’t always understand their motivations or responses to events. Other readers will no doubt enjoy this inscrutability, but it wasn’t my cup of tea.

My favourite aspect of the book was the insight into the interwoven North American history of Black people (both born free and born into slavery), Indigenous people (of multiple tribes), and white people. I am inspired to read some more history, especially about the Black-founded towns in Canada and about the War of 1812.

This is an impressive, ambitious debut novel and even though I didn’t love every aspect of it, I liked it enough that I look forward to reading whatever Kai Thomas writes next.

In the Upper Country will be published on 10th January, 2023. Many thanks to NetGalley and Penguin Random House for an advance copy.