A man’s quest to resolve an inherited family trauma leads him to an enigmatic priory in a war-ravaged region, from which he’s not sure he will be able to flee.
HOPING TO MAKE SENSE OF HIS GRANDFATHER’S UNSPOKEN TRAUMA, Malachi journeys to return a family heirloom to the land of its origin. He finds himself in a seaside town surrounded by rumors of war. He visits the priory, a place of welcome that quickly draws him in—and also a place of duty that refuses to let him go.
The priory, its people, and its resident Angel have their own purpose in a far larger history of trauma and conflict. Malachi learns of ancient and modern atrocities and his grandfather’s helplessness in the face of both. Past echoes become present concerns as a new battle approaches. Malachi repeatedly tries and fails to leave the escalating danger.
This is not his land, nor is it his war. He did not inherit his grandfather’s vocation, nor take his grandfather’s vows. None of this is his fault, nor even his responsibility. And yet the Angel will not let him go until Their last judgment is complete.
Genre: Fantasy
HOPING TO MAKE SENSE OF HIS GRANDFATHER’S UNSPOKEN TRAUMA, Malachi journeys to return a family heirloom to the land of its origin. He finds himself in a seaside town surrounded by rumors of war. He visits the priory, a place of welcome that quickly draws him in—and also a place of duty that refuses to let him go.
The priory, its people, and its resident Angel have their own purpose in a far larger history of trauma and conflict. Malachi learns of ancient and modern atrocities and his grandfather’s helplessness in the face of both. Past echoes become present concerns as a new battle approaches. Malachi repeatedly tries and fails to leave the escalating danger.
This is not his land, nor is it his war. He did not inherit his grandfather’s vocation, nor take his grandfather’s vows. None of this is his fault, nor even his responsibility. And yet the Angel will not let him go until Their last judgment is complete.
Genre: Fantasy
Praise for this book
"An illuminating, precise story about duty, consequence, and the cost of belonging. As always, Karen Lord balances the wise, the kind, the strange, and the sharp." - Samit Basu
"An intricate and harrowing tale of a future that might have been - of duty, religion, war, and the weight of sins and history. I read it in one gulp." - Aliette de Bodard
"Karen Lord packs a huge amount into this powerful novel about war and the weight of the past, written with her trademark warmth, elegance, and insight. At once intimate and expansive, The Angel at the Gates asks the enduring question of whether humanity can ever transcend its instinct for violence, or if we are forever bound to repeat history." - Zen Cho
"Karen Lord's brilliant novel of how war, and the past, can overtake us before we know it is a masterpiece of concision: powerful, tragic, compassionate, and wise." - Kate Elliott
"An intricate and harrowing tale of a future that might have been - of duty, religion, war, and the weight of sins and history. I read it in one gulp." - Aliette de Bodard
"Karen Lord packs a huge amount into this powerful novel about war and the weight of the past, written with her trademark warmth, elegance, and insight. At once intimate and expansive, The Angel at the Gates asks the enduring question of whether humanity can ever transcend its instinct for violence, or if we are forever bound to repeat history." - Zen Cho
"Karen Lord's brilliant novel of how war, and the past, can overtake us before we know it is a masterpiece of concision: powerful, tragic, compassionate, and wise." - Kate Elliott
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