Books from Nigeria

Set in Nigeria during the 1980s and 1990s, Stay with Me tells the story of Yejide and Akin, a young couple whose passionate love is gradually tested by family expectations, infertility, and devastating secrets. Having met and fallen in love at university, Yejide and Akin agree that polygamy has no place in their marriage. But after four years together without a child, pressure from Akin’s family becomes unbearable. His relatives eventually arrange for him to take a second wife, believing that another woman might succeed where Yejide has not. Humiliated and desperate to save her marriage, Yejide becomes increasingly determined to conceive. As the couple struggle with fertility treatments, traditional remedies, and the demands of their families, their relationship begins to unravel. Decisions made out of fear and desperation lead to betrayal, grief, and consequences neither could have imagined. Meanwhile, political unrest and military upheaval provide a backdrop to their deeply personal struggles. Told through the alternating perspectives of Yejide and Akin, the novel explores the painful intersection of love, marriage, and cultural expectations. Adebayo examines how the pressure to become parents can shape a person’s identity, how secrets can destroy even the closest relationships, and how grief changes the meaning of family. Ultimately, Stay with Me is a moving story about the sacrifices people make for love and the complicated ways they attempt to protect one another from heartbreak.