The highly anticipated second novel from the author of the Booker-longlisted THE SWEETNESS OF WATER

'Amity is deeply adventurous and astonishingly beautiful' Robert Jones, Jr., author of The Prophets
'A writer of great lyricism and power' i paper
'Harris will win over the hearts of many readers' Financial Times
'Masterful' Oprah Winfrey

Louisiana, 1869. The Civil War might be over, but former slaves Coleman and June have yet to find the freedom they've been promised. Two years ago, the siblings were separated when their old master, Mr Harper, took June away on a hair-brained scheme to Mexico, to escape the new reality of the post-war South. Coleman stayed behind to serve the Harper family, clinging to the hope that Mr Harper would one day bring June back to him.

When an unexpected letter from Mr Harper arrives, summoning Coleman and the Harper family to Mexico, Coleman believes his prayers have been answered. But what he cannot know is the tangled truth of June's tribulations and Mr Harper's true intentions. As Coleman and June separately navigate a perilous, parched landscape to find their way back to each other, they learn quickly that freedom isn't always given - sometimes, it must be taken by force.

THE SWEETNESS OF WATER:
A NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER, OPRAH BOOK CLUB PICK, AN OBAMA SUMMER READING SELECTION, SHORTLISTED FOR THE DYLAN THOMAS PRIZE, LONGLISTED FOR THE BOOKER PRIZE

"Harris deploys a rich, supple prose as he explores differing notions of freedom and love in a highly accomplished novel" - Sunday Times

"Smart, sensitive and very assured... Harris's perceptive writing of the fraught relationships between Amity's central characters is outstanding. A warm-hearted and worthy contribution to the American literature of emancipation" - AK Blackmore, Guardian

"A powerful meditation on loss, loyalty and the price of survival" - i-paper

"Harris expertly sets his various storylines rolling in this fast-moving tale, by turns piquant and poignant . . . terrifically entertaining" - Daily Mail

"Beautifully lyrical book " - Adele Parks, Platinum

"Harris writes with a sparseness and beauty that mirror the landscape of Mexico" - Monocle Magazine

"Written in beautiful prose that alternates between the first and third person, Amity is a hugely compelling read" - Hot Press Magazine

"Harris returns with another transporting historical novel...[A] glorious Western-style melodrama" - Oprah Daily

"Coleman, an empathetic soul, is the heart of Harris's character-driven western, giving this harrowing tale sweetness, while June manifests the fortitude to survive as a recently emancipated Black woman in the nascent American Southwest" - Washington Post