Makumbi creates an epic multigenerational saga, which revolves around a curse in the Kintu clan. The characters are complex, and we get to learn different sides of them little by little. More than once, my opinion about a character shifted 180 degrees as the story progressed. Makumbi is a master at character building.

The book, which is set between the 1700s and 2004, also unravels Uganda's history as the backdrop. As I did not know much about the country's history, and Kintu was my first read from Uganda, I appreciated learning so much.