Your word will find you, whether you can handle it or not.
Your word is loyal; it does not give up on you. It will stay with you until the end of your life. No one can take it from you — unless …
Each door at The Plex is painted a different colour. As Rafi Paterson soon realises, this is no ordinary suburban complex. Residents are urged to meditate, body corporate meetings take place in a dark warehouse, and the martial arts trainer from the end cottage offers to attack her to improve her self-defence skills.
What the hell?
Then the godsisters arrive for a two-week reunion in Cape Town: Elvi, the impeccable younger sister, and Bruna, the glamorous Italian who once lived with the Paterson family as an exchange student. When an art academic disappears after a party at The Plex, the godsisters turn to the sex diary found under Rafi’s bed for answers.
If you had the ability to avert a global disaster, would you step in — even if it meant never finding your way back?
Infused with subtle magic and sensual realism, The Which Word is a novel about selfhood, women’s bonds, and the dangerous power of language.
The Which Word | Catriona Ross
Catriona Ross is a writer from Cape Town. Author of The Which Word (Mirari Press, 2026) and a growing list of other fiction and nonfiction titles, she holds a Bachelor of Science in Zoology and a Master of Arts in Creative Writing. When not writing, she can be found dancing tango, walking in forests and plotting ways to raise human consciousness. Find out more at www.catrionaross.com. Follow her on Instagram @catrionawriter and on Facebook at Catriona Ross Author.
THE WHICH WORD is an exceptionally good read! The plot is exactly as the back of the book blurb describes. This is a story about sisterhood and self-discovery, about channeling your energy into a greater purpose. Catriona Ross has a wonderfully easy-going writing style that is a dream to sink into. She knows Cape Town intimately. The narrative uses the city's good and bad sides to good effect.
This is a modern tale of witchiness: don't expect to find any broomsticks. It hits all the right notes of community and magical awakening, though, to satisfy even the most stalwart traditionalist.
If anyone is reading the reviews because they're hesitant about the sexual content: Yes, there is a lot of explicit description but it never feels smutty (not that there's anything wrong with that!) THE WHICH WORD swings between clinical and lyrical as the character in question tries to understand her own body and catalogue her own physical reactions. It's an affirming discussion not just of sexuality but of how we talk about (or don't talk about) sex.
I requested and received a copy of THE WHICH WORD for review from Mirari Press.
I'm not sure where I stand with this book. It is indeed sexy, as promised. It somehow feels like it could be a season of the American Horror Story if there was any space for hope in that show.
The one thing that kept throwing me off was how in specific parts the narrative switches to second person. I have to assume that the words were addressing the reader as much as Rafi, the main character, in those instances. I struggled with that a bit.