TBLNG Press has announced the release of bestselling author Damilare Kuku’s third book, ‘Women Rent Men and Secrets Here ‘— a story where secrets are currency and everyone is trading — coming in October of 2025.
The book publisher in a press release seen by eelive.ng described the book as “a bold, darkly witty commentary on survival, sexuality, and the cost of silence in modern Nigeria.”
The woman at the center of Nigeria’s most sensational murder case, Juicy Mbelu, is telling her side of the story in a controversial new book written by Damilare Kuku, author of the bestselling Nearly All the Men in Lagos Are Mad, and one of Nigeria’s most daring literary voices.
‘Women Rent Men and Secrets Here’ is inspired by the real-life events surrounding Chidinma Ojukwu, the Nigerian university undergraduate who is the alleged prime suspect in the murder of Super TV CEO Michael Usifo Ataga.
“No one wakes up and decides to be a sugar baby. No one commits murder out of the blues. I hope that I get an opportunity to eventually speak with her. But for now, I’ll let my imagination satisfy my curiosity about her case,” Kuku wrote in a statement released with the book.
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Set in an upscale Lagos estate, the novel follows Ara Ikoyi, a writer who becomes obsessed with documenting the chaos unleashed after her neighbor, Juicy, is accused of murder.
“Juicy agrees to share her side of the story but only under one condition,” Kuku explains in the press release. “Ara must write the story exactly as Juicy tells it. No edits. No embellishments. Just her raw, complicated truth.”
The author, although through fiction, casts a spotlight on women in modern-day Nigeria getting into relationships for financial gains and the dangers women face in these compensatory relationships.
Kuku also scrutinises the shortcomings of Nigeria’s justice system, especially in a situation where the court of public opinion has already found the offender guilty.
Speaking on her new book, Damilare Kuku said: “With WRMASH, I experimented with a genre and writing style that excites me. Juicy is a symbolic character to me. Writing about her is me wishing that more young women like me would fnd friendships that nurture them.”
About the AUTHOR
Damilare Kuku has worked as a radio presenter, scriptwriter, film producer, actor, and director. Her debut collection of stories, Nearly All the Men in Lagos Are Mad, was a runaway bestseller in her native Nigeria and topped the 2022 Rovingheights Bestseller List: Presented with Open Country Mag. Her first novel, Only Big Bumbum Matters Tomorrow, another number one bestselling fiction book in 2024, was published by Ouida Books (Nigeria), Picador (South Africa), Simon & Schuster (UK), and HarperCollins (US).
About the Publisher
TBLNG Press is a disruptive intervention in African publishing, serving great books for your reading pleasure. With a focus on fresh, contemporary voices, we champion stories that are authentic, thought-provoking, and emotionally resonant — offering bold perspectives that reflect the richness and complexities of the African experience.
For Orders and Enquiries, Contact:
Email: tblngpress@gmail.com
Website https://tblng.press
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