Gaeton and Evariste have known each other since infancy. One is a Hutu, the other is a Tutsi, but their families live in harmony. Evariste is a dreamer: she sees life as a dance, a choreography of nature, tradition, and romance that blend to create joy. Gaeton’s past is marred by violence that beget life-altering loss: his father and brother were murdered in the Tutsi revolt when he was young and his life since has been one of survival. Except when he’s around Evariste. From the moment he first met her, she was his princess. A practical boy not given to dreams, he’s fascinated by Evariste’s ability to dream in a landscape of instability, and he looks for ways to safeguard her dreams. His first gifts: a rattle, a crown made of flowers, and his protection against unsavory characters, one night in the city to watch him dance in the Intore, the Heroes Dance. The Hutus and Tutsis are not meant to mingle, but these two know they are destined to be together. Nothing could shake their bond.

Or, could it?

For their home is a small village three hours south of Kilgali, Rwanda in 1994, and the assassination of President Habyarimana unleashes decades of resentment, discrimination, hatred and unspeakable evil so intense that over the span of one hundred days, at least eight hundred thousand Tutsis would be murdered by friends, neighbors, pastors, and even their own family members. When people are labeled as cockroaches and state sponsored rape squads are dispersed, what is love? For Gaeton and Evariste, one day out of the one hundred will destroy innocence, kill fairy tales, and leave a chasm that only a miracle could bridge. When Gaeton is faced with an impossible choice, his decision will have catastrophic consequences. 

Years later, one is released from jail; the other lives ostracized and in severe povetry; dreams are childish fancies. And yet an ember remains for one. With the end of gracaca trails coinciding with the celebration of Jubilee, an event where grievances are meant to be forgotten and wrongs set right, one sets out to prove that forgiveness is stronger than evil, and love is worth fighting for.

Anticipated release early 2025

Excerpts: 

Jubilee – an introduction to Evariste and life in Rwanda.

A Trip Across the River: an introduction to the relationship between Evariste and Gaeton