The Saint of Bright Doors
Fetter, raised from childhood to kill a holy leader, flees to a city of strange doors and tries to choose a life of his own. The novel layers religion, bureaucracy, and revolution while making fantasy and modern social life feel equally present.
Work Information
Beyond the doors is not another world, but a city layered with institutions and memory.
Published by Tor Books, this novel layers cults, politics, and the supernatural into a single urban setting. Through Fetter's escape and reinvention, it explores the difference between obeying fate and taking responsibility for a life of one's own.
Book Information
- Publisher
- St Martin's Press
- Published
- 2023-07-11
- Pages
- 368 pages
- Language
- 英語
- Size
- 14.48 x 2.92 x 21.59 cm
- ISBN-13
- 9781250847386
- ISBN-10
- 1250847389
- Price
- 8482 JPY
- Category
- 洋書/Science Fiction & Fantasy/Fantasy/Epic
The Saint of Bright Doors sets the high drama of divine revolutionaries and transcendent cults against the mundane struggles of modern life, resulting in a novel that is revelatory and resonant. Fetter was raised to kill, honed as a knife to cut down his sainted father. This gave him plenty to talk about in therapy. He walked among invisible powers: devils and anti-gods that mock the mortal form. He learned a lethal catechism, lost his shadow, and gained a habit for secrecy. After a blood-soaked childhood, Fetter escaped his rural hometown for the big city, and fell into a broader world where divine destinies are a dime a dozen. Everything in Luriat is more than it seems. Group therapy is recruitment for a revolutionary cadre. Junk email hints at the arrival of a god. Every door is laden with potential, and once closed may never open again. The city is scattered with Bright Doors, looming portals through which a cold wind blows. In this unknowable metropolis, Fetter will discover what kind of man he is, and his discovery will rewrite the world.
Vajra Chandrasekera (he/him or they/them) is from Colombo, Sri Lanka. He has published over fifty short stories in magazines and anthologies including Analog, Black Static, and Clarkesworld, among others, and his short fiction has been nominated for the Theodore Sturgeon Memorial Award. He blogs at vajra.me and is @_vajra on Twitter.
Reviews
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A pleasant surprise
I saw this book recommended in New Scientist Magazine. I found it captivating and imaginative. A weird mix of China Miéville and NK Jemisin. I hope to books written by Vajra Chandrasekera.
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nice setting, but the plot is a bit weak
The setting is nice, quite different from the usual western urban or medieval setting of most fantasy novels. However, it's hard to even see a plot, it is like random things just happen
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Really enjoyable
This was a really enjoyable read. I loved the exotic location and story. The twist was great!
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Excelent
A wonderful book
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Absolutely grandiose
Awesome book. Detailed world, authentic characters, intricate story. I loved it immensely. So different and yet so terribly universal.
Related Literary Awards
- Nebula Award Edition 59 (2024) ・Winner