KARURA

A novel about a young woman grappling with her future and her Chinese heritage, working as a driver for a mysterious man hiding a secret that is as valuable as it is dangerous.

Labeled a Dartmouth dropout, just two terms shy of graduation, Mei begins working as a chauffeur for sex workers. Her new career is inspired by her spirited grandfather, who has also convinced Mei to go “karura,” allowing her customers to pay under the table.

Mei's latest client, Henry, is as handsome as he is mysterious. And when she notices the enormous black suitcase he's been toting everywhere start to wiggle, Mei can no longer carry out her role as the unassuming driver. What Henry reveals next is as valuable as it is dangerous and will change the course of their trip as they proceed across the country.

Soma Mei Sheng Frazier has been published in Glimmer Train, ZYZZYVA, the Mississippi Review, and Hyphen, amongst others. A professor of creative writing, Soma has taught at Cogswell University, the University of San Francisco, Holy Names University, and Gavilan College. She relocated from California, where she was the San Francisco Library Laureate, to New York, for a professorship in creative writing and digital storytelling at SUNY Oswego. Karura is Soma's debut novel.