John Kweli - Author
@johnkweli.com
Survivor of sixteen coups, six civil wars, two genocides, and many other things best forgotten.
Author of African Hustle. More at: johnkweli.com.
Author of African Hustle. More at: johnkweli.com.
This isn’t just a map—it’s a lifeline, a death trap & a power play. In AFRICAN HUSTLE, a single route through Sudan can change the balance of a Cold War, or bury a man alive. Smuggling isn’t about greed. It’s about survival in a rigged game.
Explore the terrain of truth and betrayal: johnkweli.com.
Explore the terrain of truth and betrayal: johnkweli.com.
September 11, 2025 at 12:01 AM
This isn’t just a map—it’s a lifeline, a death trap & a power play. In AFRICAN HUSTLE, a single route through Sudan can change the balance of a Cold War, or bury a man alive. Smuggling isn’t about greed. It’s about survival in a rigged game.
Explore the terrain of truth and betrayal: johnkweli.com.
Explore the terrain of truth and betrayal: johnkweli.com.
Africa’s diamonds don’t glitter—they bleed. In 1973, smuggling routes crossed borders, loyalties, and lives. A briefcase full of stones could topple governments—or buy one.
#BloodDiamonds #Africa1970s #DiamondSmuggling #ThrillerFiction #JohnKweli
#BloodDiamonds #Africa1970s #DiamondSmuggling #ThrillerFiction #JohnKweli
September 9, 2025 at 11:46 PM
Africa’s diamonds don’t glitter—they bleed. In 1973, smuggling routes crossed borders, loyalties, and lives. A briefcase full of stones could topple governments—or buy one.
#BloodDiamonds #Africa1970s #DiamondSmuggling #ThrillerFiction #JohnKweli
#BloodDiamonds #Africa1970s #DiamondSmuggling #ThrillerFiction #JohnKweli
Martin thought he could hustle Africa like he hustled Philly. But this place changes the rules—and the cost of losing is a bullet or a soul.
What’s your line? What would make you cross it?
#MoralDilemma #ThrillerFiction #JohnKweli #UgandanThriller #AfricanHustle
What’s your line? What would make you cross it?
#MoralDilemma #ThrillerFiction #JohnKweli #UgandanThriller #AfricanHustle
September 8, 2025 at 10:34 PM
Martin thought he could hustle Africa like he hustled Philly. But this place changes the rules—and the cost of losing is a bullet or a soul.
What’s your line? What would make you cross it?
#MoralDilemma #ThrillerFiction #JohnKweli #UgandanThriller #AfricanHustle
What’s your line? What would make you cross it?
#MoralDilemma #ThrillerFiction #JohnKweli #UgandanThriller #AfricanHustle
Major Ian Smythe plays chess with countries. An MI6 man in linen suits and soft-spoken threats. He doesn’t pull triggers—he moves pieces.
#IanSmythe #SpyThriller #CharacterSketch #MI6 #AfricanHustle
#IanSmythe #SpyThriller #CharacterSketch #MI6 #AfricanHustle
September 7, 2025 at 1:50 PM
Major Ian Smythe plays chess with countries. An MI6 man in linen suits and soft-spoken threats. He doesn’t pull triggers—he moves pieces.
#IanSmythe #SpyThriller #CharacterSketch #MI6 #AfricanHustle
#IanSmythe #SpyThriller #CharacterSketch #MI6 #AfricanHustle
Kampala after dark was a different city. Smoke from matoke fires, headlights sweeping empty roads, and whispers from bars where spies and hustlers drank side by side.
#KampalaNights #Uganda1973 #SpyFiction #AtmosphericWriting #JohnKweli
#KampalaNights #Uganda1973 #SpyFiction #AtmosphericWriting #JohnKweli
September 6, 2025 at 5:17 PM
Kampala after dark was a different city. Smoke from matoke fires, headlights sweeping empty roads, and whispers from bars where spies and hustlers drank side by side.
#KampalaNights #Uganda1973 #SpyFiction #AtmosphericWriting #JohnKweli
#KampalaNights #Uganda1973 #SpyFiction #AtmosphericWriting #JohnKweli
By mid-1973, Uganda’s Indian population—80,000 strong—had been expelled. Idi Amin blamed them for everything. They lost businesses, homes, lives. And Uganda lost its middle class.
#IdiAmin #Expulsion1972 #UgandanHistory #PostColonialAfrica #JohnKweli
#IdiAmin #Expulsion1972 #UgandanHistory #PostColonialAfrica #JohnKweli
September 5, 2025 at 7:01 PM
By mid-1973, Uganda’s Indian population—80,000 strong—had been expelled. Idi Amin blamed them for everything. They lost businesses, homes, lives. And Uganda lost its middle class.
#IdiAmin #Expulsion1972 #UgandanHistory #PostColonialAfrica #JohnKweli
#IdiAmin #Expulsion1972 #UgandanHistory #PostColonialAfrica #JohnKweli
I’ve seen men shot for speaking the wrong language at a checkpoint. I’ve drunk tea with warlords. AFRICAN HUSTLE isn’t imagined—it’s remembered.
#JohnKweli #BasedOnTruth #WarStories #AfricanConflict #HistoricalThriller
#JohnKweli #BasedOnTruth #WarStories #AfricanConflict #HistoricalThriller
September 5, 2025 at 12:51 AM
I’ve seen men shot for speaking the wrong language at a checkpoint. I’ve drunk tea with warlords. AFRICAN HUSTLE isn’t imagined—it’s remembered.
#JohnKweli #BasedOnTruth #WarStories #AfricanConflict #HistoricalThriller
#JohnKweli #BasedOnTruth #WarStories #AfricanConflict #HistoricalThriller
Esther Mapende fled Sudan with nothing but a bag of sugar, a rosary, and a fire in her eyes.
In AFRICAN HUSTLE, she’s more than a love interest—she’s the conscience Martin Fine never asked for.
#SudaneseRefugees #AfricanFiction #EstherMapende #WomenInWar #JohnKweli
In AFRICAN HUSTLE, she’s more than a love interest—she’s the conscience Martin Fine never asked for.
#SudaneseRefugees #AfricanFiction #EstherMapende #WomenInWar #JohnKweli
September 3, 2025 at 9:00 PM
Esther Mapende fled Sudan with nothing but a bag of sugar, a rosary, and a fire in her eyes.
In AFRICAN HUSTLE, she’s more than a love interest—she’s the conscience Martin Fine never asked for.
#SudaneseRefugees #AfricanFiction #EstherMapende #WomenInWar #JohnKweli
In AFRICAN HUSTLE, she’s more than a love interest—she’s the conscience Martin Fine never asked for.
#SudaneseRefugees #AfricanFiction #EstherMapende #WomenInWar #JohnKweli
I’ve seen men shot for speaking the wrong language at a checkpoint. I’ve drunk tea with warlords. AFRICAN HUSTLE isn’t imagined—it’s remembered.
#JohnKweli #BasedOnTruth #WarStories #AfricanConflict #HistoricalThriller
#JohnKweli #BasedOnTruth #WarStories #AfricanConflict #HistoricalThriller
September 2, 2025 at 11:46 PM
I’ve seen men shot for speaking the wrong language at a checkpoint. I’ve drunk tea with warlords. AFRICAN HUSTLE isn’t imagined—it’s remembered.
#JohnKweli #BasedOnTruth #WarStories #AfricanConflict #HistoricalThriller
#JohnKweli #BasedOnTruth #WarStories #AfricanConflict #HistoricalThriller
Esther Mapende fled Sudan with nothing but a bag of sugar, a rosary, and a fire in her eyes.
In my new novel, AFRICAN HUSTLE, she’s more than a love interest—she’s the conscience Martin Fine never asked for.
#SudaneseRefugees #AfricanFiction #EstherMapende #WomenInWar #JohnKweli
In my new novel, AFRICAN HUSTLE, she’s more than a love interest—she’s the conscience Martin Fine never asked for.
#SudaneseRefugees #AfricanFiction #EstherMapende #WomenInWar #JohnKweli
September 1, 2025 at 10:34 PM
Esther Mapende fled Sudan with nothing but a bag of sugar, a rosary, and a fire in her eyes.
In my new novel, AFRICAN HUSTLE, she’s more than a love interest—she’s the conscience Martin Fine never asked for.
#SudaneseRefugees #AfricanFiction #EstherMapende #WomenInWar #JohnKweli
In my new novel, AFRICAN HUSTLE, she’s more than a love interest—she’s the conscience Martin Fine never asked for.
#SudaneseRefugees #AfricanFiction #EstherMapende #WomenInWar #JohnKweli
If you stumbled on $6 million in diamonds—while the country burned—would you try to run, or try to help?
Let’s be honest. I want to hear your answer.
#ReaderQuestion #MoralDilemma #ThrillerFiction #AfricanHustle #JohnKweli
Let’s be honest. I want to hear your answer.
#ReaderQuestion #MoralDilemma #ThrillerFiction #AfricanHustle #JohnKweli
August 31, 2025 at 1:50 PM
If you stumbled on $6 million in diamonds—while the country burned—would you try to run, or try to help?
Let’s be honest. I want to hear your answer.
#ReaderQuestion #MoralDilemma #ThrillerFiction #AfricanHustle #JohnKweli
Let’s be honest. I want to hear your answer.
#ReaderQuestion #MoralDilemma #ThrillerFiction #AfricanHustle #JohnKweli
"Martin's leg felt damp… a scarlet-tinged, gray-green piece of brain was dangling from his sock."
Welcome to Entebbe. This isn’t the Africa of safari brochures.
Get the book: www.johnkweli.com
#BookExcerpt #AfricanHustle #HistoricalThriller #Uganda1973 #JohnKweli
Welcome to Entebbe. This isn’t the Africa of safari brochures.
Get the book: www.johnkweli.com
#BookExcerpt #AfricanHustle #HistoricalThriller #Uganda1973 #JohnKweli
African Hustle
African Hustle: A new novel by John Kweli.
www.johnkweli.com
August 30, 2025 at 5:17 PM
"Martin's leg felt damp… a scarlet-tinged, gray-green piece of brain was dangling from his sock."
Welcome to Entebbe. This isn’t the Africa of safari brochures.
Get the book: www.johnkweli.com
#BookExcerpt #AfricanHustle #HistoricalThriller #Uganda1973 #JohnKweli
Welcome to Entebbe. This isn’t the Africa of safari brochures.
Get the book: www.johnkweli.com
#BookExcerpt #AfricanHustle #HistoricalThriller #Uganda1973 #JohnKweli
1973: MI6 armed rebels in Sudan. CIA backed Idi Amin. In Africa, the Cold War didn’t freeze—it burned. Every diamond was a bullet. Every bribe, a proxy war.
#ColdWarAfrica #MI6 #CIA #IdiAmin #AfricanHustle
#ColdWarAfrica #MI6 #CIA #IdiAmin #AfricanHustle
August 29, 2025 at 10:01 PM
1973: MI6 armed rebels in Sudan. CIA backed Idi Amin. In Africa, the Cold War didn’t freeze—it burned. Every diamond was a bullet. Every bribe, a proxy war.
#ColdWarAfrica #MI6 #CIA #IdiAmin #AfricanHustle
#ColdWarAfrica #MI6 #CIA #IdiAmin #AfricanHustle
If you have to pay off a border guard to save a refugee, is it corruption—or survival? In Amin’s Uganda, the line between criminal and hero was drawn in blood and blurred by fear.
#MoralDilemmas #Uganda1973 #RefugeeCrisis #AfricanHustle #JohnKweli
#MoralDilemmas #Uganda1973 #RefugeeCrisis #AfricanHustle #JohnKweli
August 29, 2025 at 12:51 AM
If you have to pay off a border guard to save a refugee, is it corruption—or survival? In Amin’s Uganda, the line between criminal and hero was drawn in blood and blurred by fear.
#MoralDilemmas #Uganda1973 #RefugeeCrisis #AfricanHustle #JohnKweli
#MoralDilemmas #Uganda1973 #RefugeeCrisis #AfricanHustle #JohnKweli
Martin Fine came to Africa chasing diamonds. What he found was blood, betrayal—and a girl who made him question everything. If you’ve ever tried to outrun your past, you’ll know him.
#MartinFine #CharacterStudy #NoirFiction #ColdWarThriller #JohnKweli
#MartinFine #CharacterStudy #NoirFiction #ColdWarThriller #JohnKweli
August 28, 2025 at 12:00 AM
Martin Fine came to Africa chasing diamonds. What he found was blood, betrayal—and a girl who made him question everything. If you’ve ever tried to outrun your past, you’ll know him.
#MartinFine #CharacterStudy #NoirFiction #ColdWarThriller #JohnKweli
#MartinFine #CharacterStudy #NoirFiction #ColdWarThriller #JohnKweli
Kampala, 1973. Dust in the air, Nile beer sweating in the heat, radio static from Congo drifting through market stalls. You could buy a Rolex watch, a girl, or a British degree—if you knew where to look.
#KampalaVibes #HistoricalFiction #AfricanHustle #1970sAfrica #JohnKweli
#KampalaVibes #HistoricalFiction #AfricanHustle #1970sAfrica #JohnKweli
August 26, 2025 at 11:46 PM
Kampala, 1973. Dust in the air, Nile beer sweating in the heat, radio static from Congo drifting through market stalls. You could buy a Rolex watch, a girl, or a British degree—if you knew where to look.
#KampalaVibes #HistoricalFiction #AfricanHustle #1970sAfrica #JohnKweli
#KampalaVibes #HistoricalFiction #AfricanHustle #1970sAfrica #JohnKweli
1973 Uganda: smoke, sweat, fear. Idi Amin ruled with charm and a gun—sometimes both. Thousands vanished, markets bustled, life went on.
In AFRICAN HUSTLE, Martin Fine breathes that tension between ordinary & unspeakable.
Read ch.1 → www.johnkweli.com/start-reading
In AFRICAN HUSTLE, Martin Fine breathes that tension between ordinary & unspeakable.
Read ch.1 → www.johnkweli.com/start-reading
August 26, 2025 at 6:18 PM
1973 Uganda: smoke, sweat, fear. Idi Amin ruled with charm and a gun—sometimes both. Thousands vanished, markets bustled, life went on.
In AFRICAN HUSTLE, Martin Fine breathes that tension between ordinary & unspeakable.
Read ch.1 → www.johnkweli.com/start-reading
In AFRICAN HUSTLE, Martin Fine breathes that tension between ordinary & unspeakable.
Read ch.1 → www.johnkweli.com/start-reading
Idi Amin seized power in Uganda in 1971 with Britain’s blessing—and by 1973, he’d murdered tens of thousands. Power doesn’t always roar in—it smiles, shakes hands, and cleans house.
#IdiAmin #UgandanHistory #AfricanHustle #PostColonialAfrica #JohnKweli
#IdiAmin #UgandanHistory #AfricanHustle #PostColonialAfrica #JohnKweli
August 25, 2025 at 10:34 PM
Idi Amin seized power in Uganda in 1971 with Britain’s blessing—and by 1973, he’d murdered tens of thousands. Power doesn’t always roar in—it smiles, shakes hands, and cleans house.
#IdiAmin #UgandanHistory #AfricanHustle #PostColonialAfrica #JohnKweli
#IdiAmin #UgandanHistory #AfricanHustle #PostColonialAfrica #JohnKweli
The first Martin Fine novel is coming soon ...
August 25, 2025 at 4:12 PM
The first Martin Fine novel is coming soon ...