The Dancing Face
Kindle Edition
Melville House · Ebook · August 12, 2025
"This book is brutal, deep, cunning and unbearably beautiful"- The Independent A blistering, original thriller that examines the powerful link between identity, sacrifice, and possession, as a Black university professor plans a burglary to “liberate” an African sculpture from a London museum . . .
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- Who it’s for
- A tense crime story weighs identity, sacrifice, and the cost of righteous reparation.
- Genres
- Crime Fiction, Black Fiction, Black Mystery
- Published
- Melville House, August 12, 2025
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For younger readers: Everyone's Thinking It, What I Want You to See, Keep Your Friends Close
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"This book is brutal, deep, cunning and unbearably beautiful"- The Independent A blistering, original thriller that examines the powerful link between identity, sacrifice, and possession, as a Black university professor plans a burglary to “liberate” an African sculpture from a London museum . . . University lecturer Gus knows that stealing the priceless Benin mask, the Dancing Face, from a museum at the heart of the British establishment will gain an avalanche of attention.
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Which is exactly what he wants. But such a risky theft will also inevitably capture the attention of characters with more money, more power, and fewer morals. Naively entangling his loved ones in his increasingly dangerous pursuit of righteous reparation, is Gus prepared for what it will cost him?
Risk and Reparation
A tense crime story weighs identity, sacrifice, and the cost of righteous reparation.
Come here for
- A museum theft tangled with questions of ownership and power
- A thriller where attention brings dangerous company
Expect
- Moral urgency alongside escalating risk
- Loved ones drawn into a costly pursuit
Where it sits
| Black Fiction | 49% |
|---|---|
| Crime Fiction | 47% |
| Black Mystery | 33% |
Percentages are BookFrontier’s reading of the book.
Publisher categories
- Crime Fiction
- Political Thrillers
- Black Mystery
- Authors
- Mike Phillips
- Publisher
- Melville House
- Published
- August 12, 2025
- Format
- Ebook
- Reading lane
- Crime Fiction