Salou Book Talk with Author, Morenike McFaal

About the book:

Just a few pages into this international, multicultural, romantic thriller, Salou Kassai can't remember her own name- or anything else for that matter. After a tragic accident that took away her memory and much of her mobility, she wakes up in a Parisian hospital confused and scared. As she relearns how to use her mind and body, she finds herself torn between a past she hopes to recover and a future she's struggling to build.

Promising resident neurosurgeon Benjamin Gardé de Soos is having trouble keeping his mind off his newest patient. Placed on Salou's case, he finds himself drawn to her, returning to her bedside again and again no matter how hard he tries to stay away. He knows doctors should not form relationships with their patients, but his feelings for Salou are quickly gaining the upper hand.

As Salou and Benjamin grow closer, civil unrest looms in her homeland of Conakry, Guinea. There, a group of rebels secretly prepares to overthrow the government. When a leader of the insurgency meets Salou in a chance encounter, it becomes clear that he wants more than just political power.

Packed with suspense and romance, this genre-defying tale spans continents, cultures, and time periods to interlace a compelling set of characters as their world threatens to unravel in the midst of unforeseen circumstances.

About the author:

Morenike McFaal was born in Benin, a small country nestled on the West Coast of Africa. As a result of her father’s career as a physician with the World Health Organization (WHO), she grew up living all over the world, from Africa, to Europe, and to the Americas. She has worked for years as a Simultaneous Conference Interpreter for United Nations agencies before embracing a new passion as a novelist. She is currently completing her Doctorate in Medicine, to become a neonatologist.  In addition to managing her dual careers, Morenike juggles multiple activities across three continents -- writing, watching movies, designing fashion, listening to music, traveling, and spending time with her family.  The story of Salou started many years back when Morenike was still a young girl living with her parents stationed in Yaoundé, Cameroon. Crouched behind the large curtains fencing the bedroom quarters from the living room, she would listen with all the attention of an 8-year-old, to the love story of a young doctor, a colleague of her father, who flew from France to his fiancée’s country in Africa, to ask her hand in marriage.  Five years ago, when she decided to write her first novel, images of this episode of her childhood resurfaced and enticed her to put down on paper this story that captivated her so much. This is how Salou and Benjamin, the main protagonists came to be, and the rest is history.  Morenike holds a Master's in Bioethics from Columbia University, as well as a Master’s in Fine Arts (M.F.A) in Fiction Writing from Wilkes University.

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