In Black Leopard, Red Wolf—the first novel in Marlon James’s Dark Star trilogy—myth, fantasy, and history come together to explore what happens when a mercenary is hired to find a missing child.

Engaged to track down a mysterious boy who disappeared three years earlier, Tracker—known for his skills as a hunter—breaks his own rule of always working alone when he finds himself part of a group that comes together to search for the boy. The band is full of unusual characters with secrets of their own, including a shape-shifting man-animal known as Leopard.

As Tracker follows the boy’s scent from one ancient city to another, he and the band are set upon by creatures intent on destroying them. Tracker starts to wonder: Who, really, is this boy? Why has he been missing for so long? Who is telling the truth?

Drawing from African history and mythology, Black Leopard, Red Wolf explores the fundamentals of truth, the limits of power, and our need to understand them both.

Born in Jamaica, James won the 2015 Man Booker Prize for his novel, A Brief History of Seven Killings. He is also the author of The Book of Night Women and John Crow’s Devil. Book signing to follow.