Namina Forna

Namina Forna, born on January 9, 1987, in Freetown, Sierra Leone, is a celebrated fantasy author. She hails from a family with deep political roots. Her father is a prominent politician, and her mother is an Ambassador and former Deputy Foreign Minister. Following her parents’ divorce, Namina and her mother relocated to Atlanta, Georgia, due to the political instability in Sierra Leone.

Despite the challenges, Namina found solace in stories of strong women like Mami Wata and the Amazons of Dahomey. These tales, along with the books she read, became her refuge from the horrors of the civil war. In Atlanta, she attended Spelman College, where she met the writer Nawal El Saadawi, who inspired her to write her first novel.

After earning her undergraduate degree, Namina moved to Los Angeles to continue her education at the University of Southern California’s School of Cinematic Arts, where she obtained an MFA in Film and Television Production.

In 2021, Namina released her debut novel, The Gilded Ones, the first in the “Goldborn” series. The story follows Deka, a girl with golden blood and rare gifts, who discovers that no one is what they seem. The novel quickly captured readers’ hearts, becoming a New York Times bestseller and being translated into 25 languages. With this novel, Namina introduced a black heroine to Western literature, making her the first Sierra Leonean American to sign a book deal with a major publisher for a young adult fantasy novel.

Namina Forna currently resides in London with her family and continues to write. Following the success of The Gilded Ones, she published The Merciless Ones in 2022 and The Eternal Ones in 2024, further expanding the world of her series.

The “Deathless” Series:

The Gilded Ones (2021)

The Merciless Ones (2022)

The Eternal Ones (2024)