The Saint of Bright Doors

Hardcover, 368 pages

English language

Published July 11, 2023 by Doherty Associates, LLC, Tom.

ISBN:
9781250847386

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5 stars (1 review)

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 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.

2 editions

An Asian urban fantasy

5 stars

I'm not surprised that this won the Nebula Award for Best Novel of 2023 and was nominated for the 2024 Hugo (Except that they're in different years).

I particularly enjoyed seeing how a Sri Lankan has imagined a world that is different from ours.

I see that Chandrasekera's second novel, Rakesfall, is out and it's not a sequel to this one, but I won't be surprised if there is a followup to The Saint of Bright Doors and I'll be eager to read it.