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Grasping at straws
Lwezi is hell-bent on leaving Matombo and every part of it behind, but the ancestors have other plans for her. After relentlessly ignoring the signs and warnings, she eventually gives in to the inevitable. She heeds her ancestral calling, accepts the gift, harnesses the power of her totem animal, the lion, and graduates to be a spirit medium. With the acceptance of her spirituality, she finds liberation and it spills over to those around her. Her new journey speaks of forgiveness, piety, ancestral wakes and the role of women in Traditional African Religion. Lwezi tries to find a balance between her modern lifestyle and her traditional beliefs.
- GenresRomance
Unknown Binding
First published August 1, 2020
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185 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 14 of 14 reviews
March 7, 2024
I thoroughly enjoyed this series particularly Book 1
October 22, 2020
The cultural exposure, traditions and the love in this series i loved it....
August 30, 2021
Lwezi is a young girl from a small village, Matombo in Zimbabwe. Even though she was uneducated, girl was very intelligent in her own way. She had dreams, big dreams that were beyond the life every girl was subjected to in their village. Some of them was to marry the prince. And by God's grace she got him. Coming next was the moving of the story of how the couple tried to overcome nightmares that threaten to drive them apart. But how much love alone can bear?
She used to question everything, in her mind ofcourse. Even though some challenges she faced tried to dim her light and rob her of her shine, She triumphed through it all and ended up with the crown on her head.
Their love story; I didn't expect much from Lwezi and Ngqabutho's love story. I expected it to be the cliché story of "good girl finds a bad boy and other people scheme to separate them". But Yvonne suprised me with the plotline development of this book.
Instead of focusing on writing a fairytale love story, Yvonne addressed issues that still affect most women in this day and age, patriarchal system, teenage pregnancy, rape, forced marriage.
I must also applaud the book's character development. Lwezi started as the naive young girl who was used to everyone shutting her out to this fearless vocal girl who burnt patriarchy to the ground! The tremendous growth I witnessed left me thoroughly impressed.
The author didn't leave other characters, which added more depth to the story. I knew that Lwezi and Ngqabutho were the stars of the show, but I liked other characters, including The chief, Cass and The Sangoma.
The author's writing style was also commendable.
I rate this book 4 out of 4 stars. If you like reading about women growing and becoming strong, you will definitely enjoy Grasping at Straws!
She used to question everything, in her mind ofcourse. Even though some challenges she faced tried to dim her light and rob her of her shine, She triumphed through it all and ended up with the crown on her head.
Their love story; I didn't expect much from Lwezi and Ngqabutho's love story. I expected it to be the cliché story of "good girl finds a bad boy and other people scheme to separate them". But Yvonne suprised me with the plotline development of this book.
Instead of focusing on writing a fairytale love story, Yvonne addressed issues that still affect most women in this day and age, patriarchal system, teenage pregnancy, rape, forced marriage.
I must also applaud the book's character development. Lwezi started as the naive young girl who was used to everyone shutting her out to this fearless vocal girl who burnt patriarchy to the ground! The tremendous growth I witnessed left me thoroughly impressed.
The author didn't leave other characters, which added more depth to the story. I knew that Lwezi and Ngqabutho were the stars of the show, but I liked other characters, including The chief, Cass and The Sangoma.
The author's writing style was also commendable.
I rate this book 4 out of 4 stars. If you like reading about women growing and becoming strong, you will definitely enjoy Grasping at Straws!
July 5, 2021
“But love yourself first so much so that with or without him your heart will still beat.”
If I made it despite the odds was a person then it would definitely be Lwezi. A young girl who had bigger dreams than what society has taught ends up with a crown on the head. Her unapologetic decision of wanting the prince became a door that has opened other paths.
I adore her for speaking her mind because it has made her to be true to herself. She has been so invested in love that she has never seen leaving as an option. She has triumphed in all the challenges that she has faced. Like any other human she has made mistakes but we see her bouncing back.
It can only be Nqa who can say that the ancestors must be high on something very strong. The stubborn young man who has been raised to led until we see change of events. Too much is placed on his shoulders and no one excepts him to make mistakes.
“Whoever said the graveyard was the richest place probably wasn’t only talking about the wisdom and knowledge buried but also about the money poured into funerals and grave accessories.”
Castiel’s mother- we see a lot of change from her in this book. She has seen Lwezi through the tough times and has her best interest at heart.
“He does. He loves you the way you’ve taught him to love you.”
“Look at you defying the odds! Keep rising, my girl.”
January 21, 2021
I enjoyed book 2 so much very interesting, also I learned a lot about a different tradition aswell. Loved it 🥂
December 25, 2021
I can't get over yvonne Maphosa's work she makes you live and picture the characters as if they are real...I love her work
June 2, 2022
This is my favourite book of the two. This book is full of so much wisdom, I even took some of the advices given to Lwezi for myself. Yvonne outdid herself with this book. If you are open minded, you will definitely enjoy this book. I hope one day we get book 3, there’s still so much to be said about Lwezi and her journey.
Lwezi
My dearly beloved. I loved this lil girl so much, and she has grown so much in book 2. I always thought her love for Nqabutho was going to lead her astray, but I guess I was wrong, they were destined to be together. I loved that she continued with her studies. I was happy when she said she was reading a novel, because we take such things for granted yet it meant the world to her. Lwezi’s dream for Matombo was to always change how women are treated, and I’m glad my dear Queen got the chance to do that. Lwezi’s life was never easy, the secrets she kept, the hurt she suffered from her brothers to her lover but yet that didn’t deter her. Her journey to being seer was the most interesting topic for me, I got to learn so much from her experience and I’m happy she embraced every min of it.
Nqabutho
A young man who just couldn’t control his tantrums. I felt in the beginning he took advantage of Lwezi’s love for him. For so many times I wanted to split because he didn’t deserve her. I always forgot that Nqa is also a child who was born with huge responsibilities. Although father allowed him to he a child, his responsibilities always weighed over him. I love the way he loves his brother Cass, the bromance between them was remarkable. His support for Lwezi was amazing, he always knew what to do to make her feel loved and appreciated even when he didn’t understand her gift. I hope he grows up to be a father to Nunuza the way the Chief was a great father to him.
Chief Nqobizitha Nxumalo
This man was always a father first before he was a chief. The father and son relationship he had with his Nqa was just beautiful to read about. He allowed his son to be a child while still grooming him for the throne. The misfortunes he suffered because the secrets the two women he kept was not fair, he didn’t deserve any of it especially he knew about the 2 boys. His grace and soft spot for Lwezi is something I will always admire about him. He never treated her like a commoner, he embraced her because his son loved her.
Sangoma
Lwezi lost her mother, but in the sangoma she gained her mother and a mentor. I’m sad that we never got to know her name. The secrets this woman was carrying, she was right by saying if she spilled peoples secrets there would be a war in the village. She nurtured Lwezi because she saw her young self in her.
This book was the longest of the two, and I loved it every min of it. We got to hear most of the characters narrate their own journeys and that was refreshing. From chapter 1 up to the last chapter, every detail in the book was important. I appreciated the character development of all the characters from book 1 to book 2. I highly recommend this book.
Lwezi
My dearly beloved. I loved this lil girl so much, and she has grown so much in book 2. I always thought her love for Nqabutho was going to lead her astray, but I guess I was wrong, they were destined to be together. I loved that she continued with her studies. I was happy when she said she was reading a novel, because we take such things for granted yet it meant the world to her. Lwezi’s dream for Matombo was to always change how women are treated, and I’m glad my dear Queen got the chance to do that. Lwezi’s life was never easy, the secrets she kept, the hurt she suffered from her brothers to her lover but yet that didn’t deter her. Her journey to being seer was the most interesting topic for me, I got to learn so much from her experience and I’m happy she embraced every min of it.
Nqabutho
A young man who just couldn’t control his tantrums. I felt in the beginning he took advantage of Lwezi’s love for him. For so many times I wanted to split because he didn’t deserve her. I always forgot that Nqa is also a child who was born with huge responsibilities. Although father allowed him to he a child, his responsibilities always weighed over him. I love the way he loves his brother Cass, the bromance between them was remarkable. His support for Lwezi was amazing, he always knew what to do to make her feel loved and appreciated even when he didn’t understand her gift. I hope he grows up to be a father to Nunuza the way the Chief was a great father to him.
Chief Nqobizitha Nxumalo
This man was always a father first before he was a chief. The father and son relationship he had with his Nqa was just beautiful to read about. He allowed his son to be a child while still grooming him for the throne. The misfortunes he suffered because the secrets the two women he kept was not fair, he didn’t deserve any of it especially he knew about the 2 boys. His grace and soft spot for Lwezi is something I will always admire about him. He never treated her like a commoner, he embraced her because his son loved her.
Sangoma
Lwezi lost her mother, but in the sangoma she gained her mother and a mentor. I’m sad that we never got to know her name. The secrets this woman was carrying, she was right by saying if she spilled peoples secrets there would be a war in the village. She nurtured Lwezi because she saw her young self in her.
This book was the longest of the two, and I loved it every min of it. We got to hear most of the characters narrate their own journeys and that was refreshing. From chapter 1 up to the last chapter, every detail in the book was important. I appreciated the character development of all the characters from book 1 to book 2. I highly recommend this book.
August 1, 2021
It was an excellent book for the most part however I feel it was unnecessary long and overly detailed kind of like forced. Compared to book 1 which I thoroughly enjoyed and read 3 times this one was mentally exhausting, i am a hard core Christian so I felt like my faith was looked down upon while the ancestors put on a higher level I didn't like that. Try to exhalt your beliefs without putting others down or making a joke about them. The Bible is such a sacred book to us and having read some of its stories portrayed in a humorous manner really set me off. But overall I think you are a great writer and I enjoyed learning about Zimbabwe, Zimbabweans, their beliefs and culture. this book helped me to understand and empathise with their situation and now that I know about them I love them even more . Thank you sis for putting it out there. It was very informative
January 12, 2021
"when the grandmother speaks, the earth will be healed"
This was such a great read!!!
We are taken back to the land of Matombo where we follow Lwezi on the journey to her destiny.
From a naive girl (Book 1)who didn't even know how to use a cellphone to this powerful seer who will bring patriarchy down to its knees , give women freedom and allow them whatever opportunities they will wish to explore.
I LOVED the cultural exposure, love how characters have grown from the first book. The sacrifices Lwezi willed to endure for her loved ones to a point she was willing to give up her life so they can live pushed her to her full potential.
She became a game changer the ancestors bow down to her not the other way around.
🥂 To the Queen of the land!!!
This was such a great read!!!
We are taken back to the land of Matombo where we follow Lwezi on the journey to her destiny.
From a naive girl (Book 1)who didn't even know how to use a cellphone to this powerful seer who will bring patriarchy down to its knees , give women freedom and allow them whatever opportunities they will wish to explore.
I LOVED the cultural exposure, love how characters have grown from the first book. The sacrifices Lwezi willed to endure for her loved ones to a point she was willing to give up her life so they can live pushed her to her full potential.
She became a game changer the ancestors bow down to her not the other way around.
🥂 To the Queen of the land!!!
October 10, 2021
Wow
I think I fell in love with Lwezi from book 1 am glad how the writer mixed a love story with some deep culture and I could relate with a lot as I read through. Her journey to be a seer was remarkable. I would recommend this book to anyone who has an open mind, someone who enjoys the simple things in life. Am trying hard not to write a lot because would definitely be a spoiler. YV Really outdid herself here. Hope she gets the chance to do more great works like this in future.
I think I fell in love with Lwezi from book 1 am glad how the writer mixed a love story with some deep culture and I could relate with a lot as I read through. Her journey to be a seer was remarkable. I would recommend this book to anyone who has an open mind, someone who enjoys the simple things in life. Am trying hard not to write a lot because would definitely be a spoiler. YV Really outdid herself here. Hope she gets the chance to do more great works like this in future.
December 11, 2022
I'm totally in love with Lwezi, she has thought me so much about out African culture that I new nothing of. She so fierce and a true Queen. I also love, the genuine love Nqambutho has for her, one can only pray for that kind of love.
June 8, 2022
Capivating
Enjoy how the author writes.the detailed descriptions make you a part of the story. Looking forward to more books from this author
Enjoy how the author writes.the detailed descriptions make you a part of the story. Looking forward to more books from this author
October 15, 2022
very captivating
There should definitely be book 3 because Lwezi & Ngqa need to get married, move back to the village, rebuild & take the throne.
There should definitely be book 3 because Lwezi & Ngqa need to get married, move back to the village, rebuild & take the throne.
Displaying 1 - 14 of 14 reviews