Lightseekers

Femi Kayode

Average Rating 7/10 (1 Review)

When three young students are brutally murdered in a Nigerian university town, their killings - and their killers - are caught on social media. The world knows who murdered them; what no one knows is why.

As the legal trial begins, investigative psychologist Philip Taiwo is contacted by the father of one of the boys, desperate for some answers to his son's murder. But Philip is an expert in crowd behaviour and violence, not a detective, and after travelling to the sleepy town that bore witness to the horror, he soon feels dramatically out of his depth.

Will he finally be able to uncover the truth of what happened to the Okriki Three?

Winner of the 2019 UEA Crime Writing Prize, Lightseekers is the start of a major new crime series introducing investigative psychologist Dr Philip Taiwo.

'Kayode's expertise brings an extra layer to an already absorbing narrative ... Nigeria is vividly drawn.'

'A brilliantly drawn thriller set against the backdrop of Nigerian culture and politics.'

Review by Ben Macnair (010825) Rating (7/10)

Review by Ben Macnair
Book Source: Not Known
Rating 7/10
The writer Femi Kayode’s background in television writing is apparent right from the beginning of his debut novel, Lightseekers.

The book focuses on the very public murder of the Okiri Three, their deaths all recorded, with crowds of witnesses. Everyone knows who was responsible for the heinous, unnecessary deaths.

The characters are all well-drawn, backgrounds and surroundings are vividly described. The action goes along at a cracking pace, and the plot of the story is incredibly timely, looking at the part that social media played in the murder of three young boys.

Philip Taiwo, an investigative psychologist with an academic interest in crowd behaviour, is asked to investigate the events, by one of the dead boy’s fathers. Still, as he reaches the town from his life in America, he finds a wall of silence building around him. Add in drama at home, and suspicions about his wives’ fidelity, Philip has more on his mind as the investigation draws on all of his skills.

The strange, unfamiliar customs of the town’s people means that he is facing opposition and boundaries around his work at every turn. As one thing leads to another, the clues lead to increasing levels of danger.

The denouement, when it happens, is not really what was expected, but it is fitting with the story and makes sense. Philip Taiwo is a flawed man, he is an academic well out of his comfort zone helping the Police, but he makes for an interesting character. The novel clocks in at more than 400 pages, but the pacing, and the tension of the book feels just right. The characters are vividly drawn, with much made of the differences, culturally between them.

For fans of Crime Fiction, and quality literary fiction with a new surprise and development on every page, this is worth a few hours of your time.
Ben Macnair (1st August 2025)