Book Summary and Reviews of Goldenborn by Ama Ofosua Lieb

Goldenborn by Ama Ofosua Lieb

Goldenborn

by Ama Ofosua Lieb

  • Critics' Consensus (3):
  • Published:
  • Jun 2026, 416 pages
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About this book

Book Summary

A girl with a mission. A god with a deal. A story that could change everything.

When 17-year-old Akoma Addo stumbles into a world of ancient gods and modern magic, she'll have to choose between saving her father… or staying true to everything she's ever believed.

Akoma Addo has one rule: don't get too close to the supernatural.

Ever since a blazing orb of light left her father in a coma, she's buried herself in her secret job investigating magical crimes in San Francisco's AfricaTown -- just enough to keep her grief at bay. But when a body turns up in a pool of molten gold and ash, Akoma's pulled into something much bigger -- and far more dangerous. At the center of it all is Anansi, the trickster god of stories, who makes her an impossible offer: help him catch a killer and awaken the ancestral magic buried deep in her blood... and in return, he'll give her a chance to bring her father back. To take the deal, Akoma will have to lie to everyone she loves and embrace the very power she's spent years trying to deny. And as her connection grows with Xander, the new guy in town with secrets of his own, Akoma must decide who she can trust -- especially when she's no longer sure she can even trust herself. Rooted in Ghanaian mythology and packed with mystery, danger, and slow-burning romance, Goldenborn is a gripping fantasy about legacy, lies, and what it really means to rewrite your story.

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Reviews

Media Reviews

"This story center[s] on Black characters and excels in its robust worldbuidling... Magic and mystery collide in this gripping Afro-futuristic debut." ―Kirkus Reviews (starred review)

"A brilliant blend of dystopian and contemporary fantasy that will leave readers in complete awe by the end." ―School Library Journal (starred review)

"Crisp third-person narration follows Akoma and Grandma Esi's alternating POVs, which are punctuated by intriguing classified transcripts relating to Akoma's investigative work that slowly unveil the history of this alternate San Francisco and its magical residents." —Publishers Weekly

This information about Goldenborn was first featured in "The BookBrowse Review" - BookBrowse's membership magazine, and in our weekly "Publishing This Week" newsletter. Publication information is for the USA, and (unless stated otherwise) represents the first print edition. The reviews are necessarily limited to those that were available to us ahead of publication. If you are the publisher or author and feel that they do not properly reflect the range of media opinion now available, send us a message with the mainstream reviews that you would like to see added.

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Author Information

Ama Ofosua Lieb

Ama Ofosua Lieb was born in Ghana, and has lived in Canada, the Bahamas, Puerto Rico, Nigeria, and South Africa. She now resides in the San Francisco Bay Area with her husband and their two young children. She holds an MA in Sociology and a BA in Economics, both from Stanford University. Goldenborn is her debut novel.

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