Every Story Is A Love Story
Imbolo Mbue
Available as Paperback
14 January 2027
A tender, sweeping novel about the nature of mercy and the astonishing ways that love can bloom among ruins - from the New York Times bestselling author of Behold the Dreamers
FROM THE NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLING AUTHOR AND PEN/FAULKNER AWARD WINNER
A NEW YORK TIMES PICK FOR 2026
‘A book of heartwrenching what ifs that will keep you guessing and thinking about loss, forgiveness, family and, yes, love’ CHARMAINE WILKERSON
‘Exquisite’ MARCIA HUTCHINSON
‘Heart-stopping’ JACQUELINE WOODSON
‘Captivating’ ANDREW SOLOMON
‘A formidable storyteller’ JONATHAN FRANZEN
‘The envelope remained on the table, a bomb fashioned to go off in the ruins of his life…’
Wolo’s universe ended in an instant when his pregnant wife Yoma was killed in a tragic car accident. Now, three years later, he has received a letter from Victoria, the woman who was behind the wheel.
His mother insists he destroy it. Their family pastor says it is the work of the devil. But Victoria is asking to meet. Her heart is broken, too.
Mind-expanding, life-affirming and full of hope, Every Story is a Love Story is about the nature of mercy, morality and the inexplicable mysteries of the human heart.
“A poignant exploration of grief and love amidst diasporic displacement. The writing is simple yet exquisite … A beautifully written novel takes you on an emotionally wrought journey which is as consequential as the destination”
Marcia Hutchinson, Author Of The Mercy Step
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“A book of heartwrenching what ifs that will keep you guessing and thinking about loss, forgiveness, family and, yes, love”
Charmaine Wilkerson, Author Of Black Cake
“This story of a man and his family dealing with love and loss is, page by page, sentence by sentence, intimate, nuanced and deeply beautiful. Few books handle grief’s persistence so honestly, nor love’s complexity so thoughtfully. Wonderful”
Karen Joy Fowler
“Mbue understands better than any writer I know how people can hurt, fear, find and help to heal each other across cultures, races and genders. This novel is so intimately smart and tender, emotionally-wrenching, charming, funny, romantic, jaw-dropping, elating. I feel so grateful to have read it”
Francisco Goldman
“A deeply moving, beautifully told novel about grief, regret, anger, forgiveness and the insistent resilience of the human heart. Imbolo Mbue’s generosity on the page is breathtaking”
Patrick Ryan
Imbolo Mbue
Imbolo Mbue is the author of the New York Times bestseller Behold the Dreamers, which won the PEN/Faulkner Award for Fiction and was an Oprah’s Book Club selection. The novel has been translated into eleven languages, adapted into an opera and a stage play, and has been optioned for film. Her sophomore novel How Beautiful We Were was picked as a Best Book of the Year by the New York Times and Good Housekeeping, one to watch by Cosmopolitan, Marie Claire and the Irish Independent and a most anticipated read by TIME, Goodreads and Bustle. Her short story ‘A Reversal’ was included in the 2019 anthology New Daughters of Africa edited by Margaret Busby. A native of Limbe, Cameroon and a graduate of Rutgers and Columbia universities, Imbolo Mbue lives in New York City.
imbolombue.com