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Rakesfall
Rakesfall is a groundbreaking, standalone science fiction epic about two souls bound together from here until the ends of time, from the author of The Saint of Bright Doors
Some stories take more than one lifetime to tell. There are wrongs that echo through the ages, friendships that outpace the claws of death, loves that leave their mark on civilization, and promises that nothing can break. This is one such story.
Annelid and Leveret met after the war, but before the peace. They found each other in a torn-up nation, peering through propaganda to grasp a deeper truth. And in a demon-haunted wood, another act of violence linked them and propelled their souls on a journey throughout the ages. No world can hold them, no life can bind them, and they'll never leave each other behind. But their journey will not be easy. In every lifetime, oppressors narrow the walls of possibility, shaping reality to fit their own needs. And behind the walls of history, the witches of the red web swear that every throne will fall.
Tracing two souls through endless lifetimes, Rakesfall is a virtuosic exploration of what stories can be. As Annelid and Leveret reincarnate ever deeper into the future, they will chase the edge of human possibility, in a dark science fiction epic unlike anything you've read before.
Some stories take more than one lifetime to tell. There are wrongs that echo through the ages, friendships that outpace the claws of death, loves that leave their mark on civilization, and promises that nothing can break. This is one such story.
Annelid and Leveret met after the war, but before the peace. They found each other in a torn-up nation, peering through propaganda to grasp a deeper truth. And in a demon-haunted wood, another act of violence linked them and propelled their souls on a journey throughout the ages. No world can hold them, no life can bind them, and they'll never leave each other behind. But their journey will not be easy. In every lifetime, oppressors narrow the walls of possibility, shaping reality to fit their own needs. And behind the walls of history, the witches of the red web swear that every throne will fall.
Tracing two souls through endless lifetimes, Rakesfall is a virtuosic exploration of what stories can be. As Annelid and Leveret reincarnate ever deeper into the future, they will chase the edge of human possibility, in a dark science fiction epic unlike anything you've read before.
304 pages, Hardcover
First published June 18, 2024
About the author
Vajra Chandrasekera
58 books248 followersVajra Chandrasekera is from Colombo, Sri Lanka and is online at https://vajra.me. His debut novel The Saint of Bright Doors won the Nebula and Crawford awards, and was a New York Times Notable Book of 2023. His second novel Rakesfall is out in 2024.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 93 reviews
January 27, 2024
Surreal, lyrical, beautiful, haunting – featuring a heady mélange of narrative forms and storytelling styles – Rakesfall is an evocative epic poem of a novel.
It’s impossible to distill Vajra Chandrasekera’s sprawling opus into any short plot synopsis (so kudos to whoever wrote the publisher’s summary), but readers will need to recalibrate their expectations if they go in looking for the everlasting romance said summary implies. Rakesfall defies any easy genre categorization. It’s closer to New Weird or “slipstream” than anything else. Oftentimes difficult to parse, but very hard to put down. The emphasis on atmosphere (read: “vibes”) over plot was a refreshing change of pace over most mainstream genre fare, as well.
This will surely be polarizing among readers as nothing is spoonfed and it challenges you at every turn. But with two incredible books (see The Saint of Bright Doors ) releasing within the last year, Chandrasekera has cemented himself as a must-read author and a bold new voice in speculative fiction.
My thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an advanced reader copy in exchange for an honest review.
See this review and others at The Speculative Shelf and follow @specshelf on Twitter and @thespeculativeshelf on Instagram.
It’s impossible to distill Vajra Chandrasekera’s sprawling opus into any short plot synopsis (so kudos to whoever wrote the publisher’s summary), but readers will need to recalibrate their expectations if they go in looking for the everlasting romance said summary implies. Rakesfall defies any easy genre categorization. It’s closer to New Weird or “slipstream” than anything else. Oftentimes difficult to parse, but very hard to put down. The emphasis on atmosphere (read: “vibes”) over plot was a refreshing change of pace over most mainstream genre fare, as well.
This will surely be polarizing among readers as nothing is spoonfed and it challenges you at every turn. But with two incredible books (see The Saint of Bright Doors ) releasing within the last year, Chandrasekera has cemented himself as a must-read author and a bold new voice in speculative fiction.
My thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an advanced reader copy in exchange for an honest review.
See this review and others at The Speculative Shelf and follow @specshelf on Twitter and @thespeculativeshelf on Instagram.
May 21, 2024
2.5 stars
How do I even rate this book? I think it set out to do something really interesting but accomplished almost nothing. I really have to sit with my thoughts on this one.
Full review to come
How do I even rate this book? I think it set out to do something really interesting but accomplished almost nothing. I really have to sit with my thoughts on this one.
Full review to come
Read
May 16, 2024RTC - I’m disappointed because it could have been great. Big swing, big miss. Not sure what to rate it, I need to think about it. Stay tuned for thoughts.
June 18, 2024
Thank you Tordotcom, NetGalley, and Dreamscape Media for an ARC and an advanced listening copy in exchange for an honest review!
Man oh man I love Vajra Chandrasekera’s work so, so much, and Rakesfall was such a treat. I mostly read this on audio, which was very well done and I definitely recommend—Shiromi Arserio did a wonderful job narrating. I did go into this sort of forgetting what the synopsis was, and ultimately just went “well, The Saint of Bright Doors rules, so it’s fine,” and I think that benefitted me. It does get weird narratively and at times a bit hard to follow, but I really enjoyed it and I think it’s the kind of book that will be a joy to reread. It’s a brainier book than I typically review for, and I probably would’ve felt I absorbed more had I read this primarily physically, but I definitely plan on rereading. I admire Chandrasekera’s craft and ambition, and this was such a delight for me to read.
Rakesfall asked a lot more from me and my little brian than my usual reads, but it was so worthwhile and it worked quite well for me. I do think this is worth a shot, but maybe give it a couple of pages before you commit.
Man oh man I love Vajra Chandrasekera’s work so, so much, and Rakesfall was such a treat. I mostly read this on audio, which was very well done and I definitely recommend—Shiromi Arserio did a wonderful job narrating. I did go into this sort of forgetting what the synopsis was, and ultimately just went “well, The Saint of Bright Doors rules, so it’s fine,” and I think that benefitted me. It does get weird narratively and at times a bit hard to follow, but I really enjoyed it and I think it’s the kind of book that will be a joy to reread. It’s a brainier book than I typically review for, and I probably would’ve felt I absorbed more had I read this primarily physically, but I definitely plan on rereading. I admire Chandrasekera’s craft and ambition, and this was such a delight for me to read.
Rakesfall asked a lot more from me and my little brian than my usual reads, but it was so worthwhile and it worked quite well for me. I do think this is worth a shot, but maybe give it a couple of pages before you commit.
Currently reading
July 5, 2024A “dark science fiction epic” dealing with “the connectedness of all struggle against oppression” from Vajra Chandrasekera? Sign me the hell up. If the publisher is doing ARCs, I hope I am the first consideration.
June 5, 2024
I saw the cover and buckled in because Rakesfall is a trip. A brilliant, imaginative trip that weaves together two souls that haunt each other through hundreds of lifetimes.
This book follows two souls who a bound together by a past that haunts them through time. Even as they inhabit different identities, they're connected and one. It's a testament to loss, friendships, and life.
***THE PLOT***
I've never read anything like this in my life. In the beginning, I was a tad confused and had to do some research of Akashic records, which is what this book heavily pulls from. Once my theories were confirmed, I just turned my brain off and enjoyed the ride.
One thing that really helped me through this book was annotating. There are so many beautiful phrases and moments within that I wanted to remember. But marking the plot also helped me follow along with it from section to section. I respected the dizzying aspect of it because Chandrasekera did the impossible- he wrote about two souls merging together to represent different people throughout lifetimes.
The author created futures and worlds unlike anything I've ever heard of. You're beginning in the 1970's, but you travel all the way to the end of the earth. It's incredible the way he illustrates the rise and fall of humanity. There are hints of magic and hints of the paranormal. There's a future in there were AI has pretty much taken over.
To conclude, this novel is beautiful, and you're not going to be able to read something like this anywhere else.
This book follows two souls who a bound together by a past that haunts them through time. Even as they inhabit different identities, they're connected and one. It's a testament to loss, friendships, and life.
***THE PLOT***
I've never read anything like this in my life. In the beginning, I was a tad confused and had to do some research of Akashic records, which is what this book heavily pulls from. Once my theories were confirmed, I just turned my brain off and enjoyed the ride.
One thing that really helped me through this book was annotating. There are so many beautiful phrases and moments within that I wanted to remember. But marking the plot also helped me follow along with it from section to section. I respected the dizzying aspect of it because Chandrasekera did the impossible- he wrote about two souls merging together to represent different people throughout lifetimes.
The author created futures and worlds unlike anything I've ever heard of. You're beginning in the 1970's, but you travel all the way to the end of the earth. It's incredible the way he illustrates the rise and fall of humanity. There are hints of magic and hints of the paranormal. There's a future in there were AI has pretty much taken over.
To conclude, this novel is beautiful, and you're not going to be able to read something like this anywhere else.
June 17, 2024
I think this book will do great, it's a very interesting book with great characters but it is confusing. There are so many different things and plot lines going on at once that it did get almost impossible for me to keep everything straight. I agree with the other reviews I've seen for this book, the synopsis doesn't exactly match what the book is actually about which did make a book a little disappointing. The audiobook narrator was great. I'm interested to see more from this author.
Thank you Netgalley and the publishers for the audiobook in exchange for an honest review!
Thank you Netgalley and the publishers for the audiobook in exchange for an honest review!
June 18, 2024
Thank you so much to Tor for sending me an ARC in exchange for an honest review.
Written in several vaguely connected, uniquely formatted short stories, two souls keep meeting and being torn apart throughout time in a world where the ghosts of the dead live their undead lives among the living.
I was so excited when I read the synopsis of this - but it turns out that this book was nothing like what I thought it would be. I was anticipating that this would be similar to This is How You Lose the Time War, with a love story surrounded by an esoteric plot, but this was not a love story and more esoteric than any book that I've ever read - and while I love weird books, this didn't work for me. I loved the first story - about a cult TV show where people believe the characters will transcend the show - but was expecting to get some sort of answers at the end of the story if not the book as a whole, and we never did. The story about a girl who moved in with an older woman haunted by her husband was probably the second best to me, probably because I fully understood what was going on. There were a couple very short ones up front that were heavily about political divides and nationalism and etc tearing up personal relationships, which I liked the themes of. But the further we went, the more incomprehensible the book became. The connections between the stories felt tenuous enough that I wouldn't have known that the characters were all the same were it not in the synopsis. Maybe that's because several of these stories were published in other places first, and maybe were shoved in rather than written for this collection - I don't know. I just couldn't understand what was happening even while I was reading it.
Overall, this book completely lost me. I couldn't tell you what happened in it. I got some of the themes, but a lot of this went over my head.
Written in several vaguely connected, uniquely formatted short stories, two souls keep meeting and being torn apart throughout time in a world where the ghosts of the dead live their undead lives among the living.
I was so excited when I read the synopsis of this - but it turns out that this book was nothing like what I thought it would be. I was anticipating that this would be similar to This is How You Lose the Time War, with a love story surrounded by an esoteric plot, but this was not a love story and more esoteric than any book that I've ever read - and while I love weird books, this didn't work for me. I loved the first story - about a cult TV show where people believe the characters will transcend the show - but was expecting to get some sort of answers at the end of the story if not the book as a whole, and we never did. The story about a girl who moved in with an older woman haunted by her husband was probably the second best to me, probably because I fully understood what was going on. There were a couple very short ones up front that were heavily about political divides and nationalism and etc tearing up personal relationships, which I liked the themes of. But the further we went, the more incomprehensible the book became. The connections between the stories felt tenuous enough that I wouldn't have known that the characters were all the same were it not in the synopsis. Maybe that's because several of these stories were published in other places first, and maybe were shoved in rather than written for this collection - I don't know. I just couldn't understand what was happening even while I was reading it.
Overall, this book completely lost me. I couldn't tell you what happened in it. I got some of the themes, but a lot of this went over my head.
June 1, 2024
Big thanks to @tordotcom for this arc and physical copy received for a honest review. Oof this one was a doozy Some pages had to constantly be reread and required full attention, but the payoff. The last 40% came together in this beautiful web of centuries and lifetimes. The book on a whole was original and unique. So beautifully written I feel like I made it to the golden city. 5⭐️
June 14, 2024
CHANDRASEKERA KINDLY STOP BLOWING MY MIND TO GLITTERY SMITHEREENS, SIR!
(Never stop ever.)
Rtc!
*I received this book for free from the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.*
HIGHLIGHTS
~a handful of minutes
~hunt treasure, find demons
~time ain’t what it oughtta be
~the things one will do to get a son-in-law
~grandparents made of abnormal atoms
I’ll be honest: I don’t think I understood most of what was going on in Rakesfall.
But I loved every second of it.
In the simplest possible terms, it is, as the blurb claims, the…story…of two (at least two) souls as they reincarnate again and again. But describing it that way doesn’t even BEGIN to give you an idea of what Rakesfall is, or is like.
Part of it seems to take place in the past of our world, and some in our present or near-present – but the vast majority of it, all the stories that are really one story, are taking part in a world that isn’t ours, and then in a future that could be, but could just as easily be the future of this world that isn’t ours. (Readers familiar with Chandrasekera’s debut, The Saint of Bright Doors, will recognise the city of Luriat, which we visit again this book – albeit relatively briefly.
Does that make Rakesfall the/a sequel to The Saint of Bright Doors? I don’t think so, but some of the terms used in TSoBD come up again in Rakesfall, so it is helpful to have read TSoBD first. Very not-mandatory, though.)
Possibly this is the meaning of the title – The Rakesfall, if I understood it correctly, was an event that…‘broke’ isn’t the right term…changed the timeline, and thus the world, into…not what it ‘shouldn’t’ be, but what it wasn’t before. So I think the setting(s are) meant to be…a world our world could have been, or might have been, or would be, if time hadn’t gone the way it did. And/or will be, re the future parts, if we don’t hurry up and eat the rich already.
I’M TRYING MY BEST, OKAY?
There is wordplay and mindplay and a rapid cycling through perspectives, sometimes several perspectives of the same event or events. We jump from the colonialisation of Indonesia to the far-future when humanity has left Earth behind entirely, and a whole bunch of places – some real, some meant-to-be-real, some meant-to-not-be – in-between (and before, and after). I don’t think it’s accurate to say that there is one clear, linear story being played out over all these lifetimes and timelines (if there is, I missed it) but it would be equally untrue to claim that Rakesfall has no plot; each section of the book – most of which cover one lifetime or time-period – covers a series of events that I was very invested in, even when I knew I was missing some nuance or only comprehending a piece of the whole. There is a murder-mystery; there are many attempts to ‘regreen’ the Earth after climate collapse; there is identity-theft with souls; there are quests, kind of; there is subtle and unsubtle resistance to political oppression; there are ghosts being taken to court to stop their hauntings. There is a LOT.
Read the rest at Every Book a Doorway!
(Never stop ever.)
Rtc!
*I received this book for free from the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.*
HIGHLIGHTS
~a handful of minutes
~hunt treasure, find demons
~time ain’t what it oughtta be
~the things one will do to get a son-in-law
~grandparents made of abnormal atoms
I’ll be honest: I don’t think I understood most of what was going on in Rakesfall.
But I loved every second of it.
In the simplest possible terms, it is, as the blurb claims, the…story…of two (at least two) souls as they reincarnate again and again. But describing it that way doesn’t even BEGIN to give you an idea of what Rakesfall is, or is like.
enormity cannot truly, fully be spoken of without recourse to fable. There is a dread scale at which only myth works; only nightmare has the technology. Worlds must be broken to convey that attempts to depict a multidimensionally unspeakable reality in fiction, including this one, are but contemptible in the final reading.
Part of it seems to take place in the past of our world, and some in our present or near-present – but the vast majority of it, all the stories that are really one story, are taking part in a world that isn’t ours, and then in a future that could be, but could just as easily be the future of this world that isn’t ours. (Readers familiar with Chandrasekera’s debut, The Saint of Bright Doors, will recognise the city of Luriat, which we visit again this book – albeit relatively briefly.
Does that make Rakesfall the/a sequel to The Saint of Bright Doors? I don’t think so, but some of the terms used in TSoBD come up again in Rakesfall, so it is helpful to have read TSoBD first. Very not-mandatory, though.)
Possibly this is the meaning of the title – The Rakesfall, if I understood it correctly, was an event that…‘broke’ isn’t the right term…changed the timeline, and thus the world, into…not what it ‘shouldn’t’ be, but what it wasn’t before. So I think the setting(s are) meant to be…a world our world could have been, or might have been, or would be, if time hadn’t gone the way it did. And/or will be, re the future parts, if we don’t hurry up and eat the rich already.
I’M TRYING MY BEST, OKAY?
Georges does not ask himself why the Christian devil has hooves and horns, which is of course that they are satyrical.
There is wordplay and mindplay and a rapid cycling through perspectives, sometimes several perspectives of the same event or events. We jump from the colonialisation of Indonesia to the far-future when humanity has left Earth behind entirely, and a whole bunch of places – some real, some meant-to-be-real, some meant-to-not-be – in-between (and before, and after). I don’t think it’s accurate to say that there is one clear, linear story being played out over all these lifetimes and timelines (if there is, I missed it) but it would be equally untrue to claim that Rakesfall has no plot; each section of the book – most of which cover one lifetime or time-period – covers a series of events that I was very invested in, even when I knew I was missing some nuance or only comprehending a piece of the whole. There is a murder-mystery; there are many attempts to ‘regreen’ the Earth after climate collapse; there is identity-theft with souls; there are quests, kind of; there is subtle and unsubtle resistance to political oppression; there are ghosts being taken to court to stop their hauntings. There is a LOT.
Read the rest at Every Book a Doorway!
June 27, 2024
I received this book on audiobook from Netgalley in exchange for a fair review.
A non-linear story following two people connected over lifetimes, Rakesfall is a lyrical, poetic experience that requires a lot of attention while reading.
It takes a while to understand what is going on in terms of plot trajectory and even the characters. We’re initially set back from the story in a way that suggests the idea that stories, as a medium of connectedness, are the focus, not the people themselves. Because while the two characters are reincarnated throughout different timelines, their personalities are not exactly the same, so it’s hard to really care for them as people.
This was the hardest part of the novel for me. I had trouble connecting with the characters because they kept morphing and changing and sometimes the settings were very realistic and sometimes super surreal or almost fantastical.
Once I interpreted what I thought the novel was doing, it made more sense, but it’s also not something I’m particularly interested in. Now, I could be wrong, but I believe the novel is about
Anthroposophy posits there is a spiritual world accessible to human consciousness through inner development and that this spiritual world can provide insights into the nature of existence. More specifically, it mentions the Akashic records, which are a compendium of all human events, thoughts, words, emotions, and intent ever to have occurred in the past, present, or future. They contain, apparently, the entire history and future of every soul throughout its existence that can be accessed through spiritual means.
Now, I believe the point of this book is to show this - that humans, our essences or souls, or whatever, are all connected. I think it did accomplish this, if that was indeed the point.
Unfortunately, while I think the book did what it was trying to do, this "doing" didn’t do anything for me. I’m about as spiritual as a broken cardboard box, so this sort of “we’re all connected stuff” bores me, and I found it a bit repetitive. The different lives of Annalid and Leverit were interesting on their own, but at times, the novel felt liek a collection of short stories tenuously tied together.
Yet, the book is beautifully written - the language flows wonderfully and it’s full of beautiful metaphors and descriptions. It’s not hard to visualize what’s going on - it’s just difficult some times to understand why it was going on.
I think if you’re someone who really loves literary fiction sci-fi, loves a book that is at its core somewhat spiritual, and one that feels more episodic than continuous, you will really enjoy this. I thought it was well-done, but I didn't love it.
A non-linear story following two people connected over lifetimes, Rakesfall is a lyrical, poetic experience that requires a lot of attention while reading.
It takes a while to understand what is going on in terms of plot trajectory and even the characters. We’re initially set back from the story in a way that suggests the idea that stories, as a medium of connectedness, are the focus, not the people themselves. Because while the two characters are reincarnated throughout different timelines, their personalities are not exactly the same, so it’s hard to really care for them as people.
This was the hardest part of the novel for me. I had trouble connecting with the characters because they kept morphing and changing and sometimes the settings were very realistic and sometimes super surreal or almost fantastical.
Once I interpreted what I thought the novel was doing, it made more sense, but it’s also not something I’m particularly interested in. Now, I could be wrong, but I believe the novel is about
Anthroposophy posits there is a spiritual world accessible to human consciousness through inner development and that this spiritual world can provide insights into the nature of existence. More specifically, it mentions the Akashic records, which are a compendium of all human events, thoughts, words, emotions, and intent ever to have occurred in the past, present, or future. They contain, apparently, the entire history and future of every soul throughout its existence that can be accessed through spiritual means.
Now, I believe the point of this book is to show this - that humans, our essences or souls, or whatever, are all connected. I think it did accomplish this, if that was indeed the point.
Unfortunately, while I think the book did what it was trying to do, this "doing" didn’t do anything for me. I’m about as spiritual as a broken cardboard box, so this sort of “we’re all connected stuff” bores me, and I found it a bit repetitive. The different lives of Annalid and Leverit were interesting on their own, but at times, the novel felt liek a collection of short stories tenuously tied together.
Yet, the book is beautifully written - the language flows wonderfully and it’s full of beautiful metaphors and descriptions. It’s not hard to visualize what’s going on - it’s just difficult some times to understand why it was going on.
I think if you’re someone who really loves literary fiction sci-fi, loves a book that is at its core somewhat spiritual, and one that feels more episodic than continuous, you will really enjoy this. I thought it was well-done, but I didn't love it.
June 19, 2024
I failed to understand what the book was trying to communicate. While the elements individually lured me into reading this book, it was not the prominent theme (unlike the spicy lines) that kept popping up every few paragraphs. I only wish there was a disclaimer about it and all this could have been avoided. If you like spicy fantasy books only then pick this up. It's not my cup of tea.
July 1, 2024
My full review of "Rakesfall"
Even though a lot of readers aren't gonna see it that way, for me, Rakesfall is an improvement over the author's debut, The Saint of Bright Doors. It's a novel that is told with utmost confidence and self-indulgence, not really caring about whether readers will actually understand it. If you're looking for a mainstream sci-fi/fantasy story where things are explained in ways that always make sense, then this is not for you, but if you're a reader looking for something that experiments not only with the structure of the story, but with prose itself, then this is something you should consider reading. It's not an easy read at all, you might be trying to figure out who the narrator is for most of the book and it'll almost certainly make you slow down, but it's worth it.
Even though a lot of readers aren't gonna see it that way, for me, Rakesfall is an improvement over the author's debut, The Saint of Bright Doors. It's a novel that is told with utmost confidence and self-indulgence, not really caring about whether readers will actually understand it. If you're looking for a mainstream sci-fi/fantasy story where things are explained in ways that always make sense, then this is not for you, but if you're a reader looking for something that experiments not only with the structure of the story, but with prose itself, then this is something you should consider reading. It's not an easy read at all, you might be trying to figure out who the narrator is for most of the book and it'll almost certainly make you slow down, but it's worth it.
June 24, 2024
I don't know what I just listened to, to be quite honest. I may be too stupid for this novel, because even after listening to the entire thing, I didn't understand a lick of it.
I can't even give you a brief synopsis about what everything is about beyond the initial blurb says. I know that at least one character keeps getting reincarnated and we see her (them?) through many different stages of reincarnated lives, but that's about as much as I got from this. Maybe if you are smarter than I, you may like this book. There was definitely humor, and maybe if you like poetry more than I do, there might be more too it.
Overall, I did not love this BUT the cover was gorgeous and I can see other people maybe liking this one.
Thank you to NetGalley for an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.
I can't even give you a brief synopsis about what everything is about beyond the initial blurb says. I know that at least one character keeps getting reincarnated and we see her (them?) through many different stages of reincarnated lives, but that's about as much as I got from this. Maybe if you are smarter than I, you may like this book. There was definitely humor, and maybe if you like poetry more than I do, there might be more too it.
Overall, I did not love this BUT the cover was gorgeous and I can see other people maybe liking this one.
Thank you to NetGalley for an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.
January 28, 2024
This was stunning and complex. A portrait of death (and dead things walking) and incarnations and reincarnations, of gods playing games and being caught in the same cycle. I think it would help the reader to have some knowledge of South Asian religions (it helped me certainly) to have a deeper connection to the landscape at play. Chandrasekera's prose is lyrical and inventive. This book is bolder than Saint of Bright Doors in style. Despite magic and zombies-of-a-sort this feels more comfortably science fiction than fantasy or horror.
Genre: speculative fiction/science fiction
Sri Lanka, through many ages
A portrait of death (and dead things walking) and incarnations and reincarnations, of gods playing games and being caught in the same cycle, woven seamlessly with South Asian religion and lore. The story spins out over millennia and lifetimes, reaching into the distant past and stretching into the future to the ends of the earth.
I find Vajra Chandrasekera difficult to review. His prose is lyrical and inventive and his style intensely complex in an intellectually stimulating way. Knowing his style, I fully intended to take my time reading Rakesfall, and yet at halfway through I was so invested in the spiral of reincarnation and destruction that I read the entire book in an evening. Having some knowledge of the South Asian religious landscape - the Vedas and Upanishads and Sri Lankan Buddhism helped me connect to the text more deeply. Chandrasekera is playing with traditional themes of reincarnation and mixing with his own interpretation.
This book is bolder than Saint of Bright Doors in style. Despite magic and zombies-of-a-sort this fits more comfortably in the science fiction genre than fantasy or horror. At times it reminded me of a more personal or a slice-of-life version of The Years of Rice and Salt by Kim Stanley Robinson, with the winding epic quality of iterations of life after life. At other times, it reminded me of This is How You Lose the Time War, with entities altering the fabric of the world.
Rakesfall is stunning and complex. The pacing is slow and the book is wordy - I’ve never been more thankful for having wikipedia and a dictionary connected to my kindle - but utterly beautiful. Lush worldbuilding through myth and a variety of styles is a similar technique to Bright Doors, and yet gives us an entirely different and purely wild setting.
Thank you to @tordotcompub for an eARC for review. Rakesfall is out 6/18/24.
Genre: speculative fiction/science fiction
Sri Lanka, through many ages
A portrait of death (and dead things walking) and incarnations and reincarnations, of gods playing games and being caught in the same cycle, woven seamlessly with South Asian religion and lore. The story spins out over millennia and lifetimes, reaching into the distant past and stretching into the future to the ends of the earth.
I find Vajra Chandrasekera difficult to review. His prose is lyrical and inventive and his style intensely complex in an intellectually stimulating way. Knowing his style, I fully intended to take my time reading Rakesfall, and yet at halfway through I was so invested in the spiral of reincarnation and destruction that I read the entire book in an evening. Having some knowledge of the South Asian religious landscape - the Vedas and Upanishads and Sri Lankan Buddhism helped me connect to the text more deeply. Chandrasekera is playing with traditional themes of reincarnation and mixing with his own interpretation.
This book is bolder than Saint of Bright Doors in style. Despite magic and zombies-of-a-sort this fits more comfortably in the science fiction genre than fantasy or horror. At times it reminded me of a more personal or a slice-of-life version of The Years of Rice and Salt by Kim Stanley Robinson, with the winding epic quality of iterations of life after life. At other times, it reminded me of This is How You Lose the Time War, with entities altering the fabric of the world.
Rakesfall is stunning and complex. The pacing is slow and the book is wordy - I’ve never been more thankful for having wikipedia and a dictionary connected to my kindle - but utterly beautiful. Lush worldbuilding through myth and a variety of styles is a similar technique to Bright Doors, and yet gives us an entirely different and purely wild setting.
Thank you to @tordotcompub for an eARC for review. Rakesfall is out 6/18/24.
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April 25, 2024This novel is as exciting as Chandrasekra’s debut, the brilliant (and now multiple award nominated) The Saint of Bright Doors. But where The Saint of Bright Doors is an experimental novel hiding in conventional genre sheep clothing, Rakesfall is just balls-to-the-wall experimentation. It’s the sort of novel that mixes the deep thinking of M. John Harrison or Nina Allan with the wild speculative magic of Lavie Tidhar and Adam Roberts. It’s a thrill ride. But one without guard rails.
The plot? The back cover blurb does its best at describing the novel by focusing on the two entwined souls (we first know them as Annelid and Leveret) who are reincarnated hundreds of thousands of times, travelling across endless time and the multiverse (including a visit to Luriat). But even that doesn’t get to the heart of the novel, which is about identity — the blurred lines between body, mind and self — the legacy of colonialism, and the devastation and death left by the powerful and wealthy.
It’s a patchwork novel stitched together with stories and fables (some of which have been published separately in genre magazines) and a bold reimagining of Hindu mythology. Perspectives and settings shift on a dime. That lack of narrative stability is what makes it so damn exciting. Is it science fiction? Is it fantasy? Is it horror? Is it historical fiction? It’s all of these things and more. And it’s profound and meaningful and visceral in a way that’s unexpected and provocative.
This may not get the same love as The Saint of Bright Doors, but it should.
Rakesfall is out in June.
The plot? The back cover blurb does its best at describing the novel by focusing on the two entwined souls (we first know them as Annelid and Leveret) who are reincarnated hundreds of thousands of times, travelling across endless time and the multiverse (including a visit to Luriat). But even that doesn’t get to the heart of the novel, which is about identity — the blurred lines between body, mind and self — the legacy of colonialism, and the devastation and death left by the powerful and wealthy.
It’s a patchwork novel stitched together with stories and fables (some of which have been published separately in genre magazines) and a bold reimagining of Hindu mythology. Perspectives and settings shift on a dime. That lack of narrative stability is what makes it so damn exciting. Is it science fiction? Is it fantasy? Is it horror? Is it historical fiction? It’s all of these things and more. And it’s profound and meaningful and visceral in a way that’s unexpected and provocative.
This may not get the same love as The Saint of Bright Doors, but it should.
Rakesfall is out in June.
June 19, 2024
3.5 - The only way I can describe this book is trippy, weird, inquiring, and philosophical. I LOVED the philosophy and the themes of oppression, life and death, the afterlife, and soulmates in this book. It was a science fiction unlike any I have read before, and I found myself out of my comfort zone, but really enjoying the writing and the story once I sat with it.
Rakesfall follows two characters that are bound together throughout every lifetime. They meet in every timeline, after every major world event and war, in the most mundane moments. They make their mark on civilization, tear apart relationships and communities, and really symbolize the ever changing ways of life and the possibilities of immorality. I loved the reincarnation of them in every timeline, seeing the love they had for each other, and yet how they tore each other apart. The stories were short stories in a way, but all bound together by their souls. This was a dark science fiction, but the themes and the writing and the way that the author tied together such timely and philosophical themes into the overarching story and the character's journeys was great to read. This made me want to get back into sci-fi again!!
Thank you to Tor Books for providing me with this advanced reader's copy in exchange for my honest review!!
Rakesfall follows two characters that are bound together throughout every lifetime. They meet in every timeline, after every major world event and war, in the most mundane moments. They make their mark on civilization, tear apart relationships and communities, and really symbolize the ever changing ways of life and the possibilities of immorality. I loved the reincarnation of them in every timeline, seeing the love they had for each other, and yet how they tore each other apart. The stories were short stories in a way, but all bound together by their souls. This was a dark science fiction, but the themes and the writing and the way that the author tied together such timely and philosophical themes into the overarching story and the character's journeys was great to read. This made me want to get back into sci-fi again!!
Thank you to Tor Books for providing me with this advanced reader's copy in exchange for my honest review!!
June 21, 2024
I don't think I've ever read a more incomprehensible book. The blurb is like a translation key for what's supposed to be happening, but even then it's like reading an allegory written in another language and then poorly translated. Maybe you could chip through to some kind of understanding with a deep dissection of each page but honestly it wouldn't be worth the effort.
June 26, 2024
This was such a fun and interesting journey! It’s been quite a few years since I had to read anything quite as carefully as this book necessitates. I spent the first 100 pages confused, frustrated, but intrigued. Then, with a sudden rush of endorphins, it all clicked! I thankfully had annotated my way through my confusion, so I was easily able to scroll back and test all of my theories. About 10 pages later, one of my conflicting theories that I was sad to abandon turned out to be simultaneously true and false! The book never stops teasing as the scope of truth and reality as well as the impact of the narrative continue to expand.
Now that I’ve finished it, I can see that I would have still enjoyed it, had I read less carefully and understood less. It’s worth your time for the prose and humor alone.
I also appreciated that the author’s other book, The Saint of Bright Doors—which I also highly recommend—was referenced in such a way that you could interpret this book to be a sequel, prequel, or spin-off.
Now that I’ve finished it, I can see that I would have still enjoyed it, had I read less carefully and understood less. It’s worth your time for the prose and humor alone.
I also appreciated that the author’s other book, The Saint of Bright Doors—which I also highly recommend—was referenced in such a way that you could interpret this book to be a sequel, prequel, or spin-off.
June 24, 2024
I'm not going to lie this is a tough book to try and rate by traditional standards. The writing was absolutely beautiful, with almost a lyrical quality at times. I loved that the book was broken down into sections because if it had been straight through there would have been some serious confusion as it is already such a complex book. Honestly the best way that I can describe this book is that it is a VIBE. There are so many layers to each section and so many underlying messages and things to reflect on. The characters are memorable, the settings are interesting and intricate. Can I for sure tell you what happens in each part of this story? No not exactly, it's complicated. But I can tell you that I have no doubts that this will be a book that I read multiple times and that I will get something new out of it every time.
June 27, 2024
I was incredibly intrigued by this book, because in the first few pages Chandrasekera posts all the various stories that are part of this that he'd already published, and I had no idea how that would all fit together. Don't worry if you aren't entirely sure what's going on at times when you read it. Just let it unfold in front of you, and see how it comes together as an achingly gorgeously written story of lovers across various lives and how they end up relating to each other throughout them. Sincerely hope he wins All the Awards for this, this is astonishing, in the best kind of way.
July 2, 2024
Those who love poetry will appreciate this author's style. It's not a book to binge, but a human essay with strong Sri Lankan cultural influences. I believe that it is a book to slowly enjoy and that it is worth it. If you enjoy books from Simon Jimenez then you'll appreciate the style and complexity of this one. Great to gift to that friend who thinks sci-fi and fantasy can be basic and overrated. Here is something unique for those who are always looking for something challenging.
I listened to the audiobook and it was easier to keep me company.
I listened to the audiobook and it was easier to keep me company.
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June 8, 2024what
June 11, 2024
I received a gifted eARC copy of RAKESFALL by Vajra Chandrasekera from Tor and a gifted audiobook from Dreamscape Media!
RAKESFALL is a book that takes place over many generations and many years from history to the far distant future. Annelid and Leveret first met as children against the backdrop of the Sri Lankan civil war. In the demon-haunted woods there is more violence and this sets off a cycle wherein their souls continue forward across the ages, finding the pair continually reincarnated into the future to the point where nothing is recognizable any longer.
I started reading this back in April and I quickly realized at that time that I wasn't in the right headspace for this book. This is a true lesson about picking up the right book at the right time because when I restarted this, I really enjoyed it. This is the type of book where you have to be okay going into it to have things a bit vague and unexplained at times. There are places where the author seems to be focused more on the play of language in a really beautiful way, but it sometimes felt like it was leaving the rest of the narrative behind.
I especially enjoyed seeing the author's ideas of the future and the way things change beyond the bounds of our human concepts of the world. I would definitely be interested to read from this author more in the future!
RAKESFALL is a book that takes place over many generations and many years from history to the far distant future. Annelid and Leveret first met as children against the backdrop of the Sri Lankan civil war. In the demon-haunted woods there is more violence and this sets off a cycle wherein their souls continue forward across the ages, finding the pair continually reincarnated into the future to the point where nothing is recognizable any longer.
I started reading this back in April and I quickly realized at that time that I wasn't in the right headspace for this book. This is a true lesson about picking up the right book at the right time because when I restarted this, I really enjoyed it. This is the type of book where you have to be okay going into it to have things a bit vague and unexplained at times. There are places where the author seems to be focused more on the play of language in a really beautiful way, but it sometimes felt like it was leaving the rest of the narrative behind.
I especially enjoyed seeing the author's ideas of the future and the way things change beyond the bounds of our human concepts of the world. I would definitely be interested to read from this author more in the future!
April 28, 2024
Less cohesive than Saint of Bright Doors, almost like a fever dream when reading this. Chandrasekera is one of the most interesting and innovative writers I've had the pleasure to explore in the past few years. It takes some time to get the full picture and figure out how the various stories fit together. I may have to come back to it because it wasn't quite working for me... but maybe at a calmer time in my life it will be a better read.
eARC provided by publisher via Edelweiss.
eARC provided by publisher via Edelweiss.
March 27, 2024
If you enjoyed The Saint of Bright Doors, I believe this one will also be your jam. Twisty, turvy, upside down, and backwards, Chandrasekera takes you on a time-bending journey like no other. You'll get lost in the prose--and that's a good thing.
April 30, 2024
What a journey! There were definitely parts where I was thinking "What the heck am I reading??" But the overarching story is amazing, and I love the way it all comes together in the end! This book really is like nothing I have ever read before!!
July 1, 2024
WOW this book made me work for it.
A dense, complex, and demanding story, where the blurb is woefully inadequate -- this is not a science fiction romance, along the lines of This is How You Lose the Time War (which a lot of readers seem to go in expecting, and are disappointed when the blurb doesn't turn out to define the work at all), but more of a weird fiction epic, stitched together from many stories that feature (maybe) versions of the two main characters.
And that's fine! That's GREAT. I'm resistant to the idea that a book needs to be easily digestible to be good or worth your time, and while I was frustrated at times with my inability to follow where Chandrasekera was leading (I would give my actual TEETH to how he organized the POVs here), it was fun to challenge myself. Do I wish I'd understood more? Did I need to, to appreciate the scope and the technical ambition of this story? Nope!
I went to a signing for this book right after it was released, and Chandrasekera talked about how while the book is deeply rooted in Sri Lankan mythology, politics, and history, you didn't exactly need to have a background in all of that to read the story. It's true, to a point -- if I was more aware, I think I would have had a much deeper experience with the book -- but now I am very, very curious about those things, and will explore them on my own.
The writing, of course, is wonderful -- so many banger lines, so much clever wordplay -- and there's a great section in which we get to (somewhat briefly) revisit Luriat, the city in which most of The Saint of Bright Doors takes place. I definitely think the second half of the book fits together more organically than the rest, and I do love stories about what happens after the end, and what happens as people try to heal the world (look, Horizon Zero Dawn is one of my favorite video games for a reason!).
It's a heady experience, and I definitely came out of it feeling like I'd overestimated my intelligence; sometimes I feel like the individual sections, especially at the beginning, didn't cohere from their separate stories as well as I would have liked, and some of the meme-y language fell flat for me (I understand why it was used, but I always feel like that dates a work unnecessarily -- totally a matter of preference!). And it was frustrating at times, when I just wanted a clear demonstration of who was who, or a concrete ending with some of my questions answered...but it wasn't about that, in the end. And understanding that this is more of an experience, a complicated web (heh) of histories laid out like jewels on a tray, rather than a linear narrative, makes reading this far more enjoyable.
I respect Chandrasekera for writing this vivid, tricky, ambitious book -- it's a hell of a second act, and I can't wait to see what he devastates us with next.
A dense, complex, and demanding story, where the blurb is woefully inadequate -- this is not a science fiction romance, along the lines of This is How You Lose the Time War (which a lot of readers seem to go in expecting, and are disappointed when the blurb doesn't turn out to define the work at all), but more of a weird fiction epic, stitched together from many stories that feature (maybe) versions of the two main characters.
And that's fine! That's GREAT. I'm resistant to the idea that a book needs to be easily digestible to be good or worth your time, and while I was frustrated at times with my inability to follow where Chandrasekera was leading (I would give my actual TEETH to how he organized the POVs here), it was fun to challenge myself. Do I wish I'd understood more? Did I need to, to appreciate the scope and the technical ambition of this story? Nope!
I went to a signing for this book right after it was released, and Chandrasekera talked about how while the book is deeply rooted in Sri Lankan mythology, politics, and history, you didn't exactly need to have a background in all of that to read the story. It's true, to a point -- if I was more aware, I think I would have had a much deeper experience with the book -- but now I am very, very curious about those things, and will explore them on my own.
The writing, of course, is wonderful -- so many banger lines, so much clever wordplay -- and there's a great section in which we get to (somewhat briefly) revisit Luriat, the city in which most of The Saint of Bright Doors takes place. I definitely think the second half of the book fits together more organically than the rest, and I do love stories about what happens after the end, and what happens as people try to heal the world (look, Horizon Zero Dawn is one of my favorite video games for a reason!).
It's a heady experience, and I definitely came out of it feeling like I'd overestimated my intelligence; sometimes I feel like the individual sections, especially at the beginning, didn't cohere from their separate stories as well as I would have liked, and some of the meme-y language fell flat for me (I understand why it was used, but I always feel like that dates a work unnecessarily -- totally a matter of preference!). And it was frustrating at times, when I just wanted a clear demonstration of who was who, or a concrete ending with some of my questions answered...but it wasn't about that, in the end. And understanding that this is more of an experience, a complicated web (heh) of histories laid out like jewels on a tray, rather than a linear narrative, makes reading this far more enjoyable.
I respect Chandrasekera for writing this vivid, tricky, ambitious book -- it's a hell of a second act, and I can't wait to see what he devastates us with next.
June 28, 2024
How do you write a book with no main characters, no plot, no story? I don’t know and neither does Chandrasekera.
This book was god awful. If you are here wondering if you should continue on and persevere, don’t. There is nothing in its summary/synopsis that exists in the book. It is not sci-fi by any means. There are new characters every page so not enough time to build connections or interests.
This book feels like someone who really wants to be mysterious and deep but instead is just vague and boring. I don’t think the author knew what they were writing. It appears that they took some independent short stories and tried to mash them together but this “novel” should really be sold as 10 short stories about nothing!
I’m assuming after the success of his first book they wanted to get a second book out so they collected these stories and half assed a release and “connection” between them.
My only suggestion to read this would be if you are trying to slow time because I would read this book for four hours but in reality only 10 minutes had passed.
Wandering, unimpressive prose. I wish I never read this book, I hated every minute of it. Would rate 0/5 if possible.
This book was god awful. If you are here wondering if you should continue on and persevere, don’t. There is nothing in its summary/synopsis that exists in the book. It is not sci-fi by any means. There are new characters every page so not enough time to build connections or interests.
This book feels like someone who really wants to be mysterious and deep but instead is just vague and boring. I don’t think the author knew what they were writing. It appears that they took some independent short stories and tried to mash them together but this “novel” should really be sold as 10 short stories about nothing!
I’m assuming after the success of his first book they wanted to get a second book out so they collected these stories and half assed a release and “connection” between them.
My only suggestion to read this would be if you are trying to slow time because I would read this book for four hours but in reality only 10 minutes had passed.
Wandering, unimpressive prose. I wish I never read this book, I hated every minute of it. Would rate 0/5 if possible.
June 19, 2024
Vajra Chandrasekera has gone and done it again. Just like in his last book (the now Nebula-winning Saint of Bright Doors), Rakesfall was dizzyingly innovative and a thrilling ride, at the end of which you may not have been entirely sure what happened, but KNOW something has irrevocably changed in how you view storytelling. This is a narrative about narratives, complete with nested folklore, history, and a play, and yet it is a tale of living, dying, merging, splitting, and rebirth, as unendingly vast as the Mahayana itself. With Rakesfall, Vajra Chandrasekera has solidified his status as a genre-defying iconoclast in the world of SF&F. In many ways, Rakesfall is kinder to the reader in its pacing and narrative storm, with more obvious signposts in terms of historical, geographical, political, and spiritual references. That said, every time you think you've figured out the ground beneath your feet, you are swept off into the churn of life, death and rebirth in worlds that are at once familiar yet borne of realities shattered by violence that reverberate through time and space in every direction. I cannot recommend this enough, and I also cannot be wary enough with my recommendation because this is not your typical epic fantasy, and you have to be prepared to be humbled by it.
Two books in, I have decided that Vajra Chandrasekera's works reminds me of the works and bonkers world-building of David Mitchell, back when I was still a Cloud Atlas fangirl. Both of their works are wildly experimental in order to relay big spiritual narratives that span worlds and realities and multiple books. However, where Chandrasekera's voice is excoriatingly anti-colonial and abidingly spiritual in the very lived-in Buddhist traditions of the author's Sri Lankan heritage, Mitchell's attempts beyond Cloud Atlas always remained firmly in the realm of pretentious and condescending, at worst, and White Girl Yoga spiritualism, at best. Rakesfall does not condescend but engages you in a shared grief and purpose, and invites you to revisit forgotten corners of memory and histories that have been told too many times by different victors, and will be told again again till the end of human spirit.
I HIGHLY recommend reading this in audiobook format. Shiromi Arserio's narration leaves you in awe of how gorgeously written this is, and ever so masterfully empowers the heart of this stunning work. It may also be all you have to hold on to when you inevitably realize that you are perhaps way out of your depth in this ambitious work of reclamation of everything that the was lost to the violence of colonialism over minds, bodies and spirits.
Two books in, I have decided that Vajra Chandrasekera's works reminds me of the works and bonkers world-building of David Mitchell, back when I was still a Cloud Atlas fangirl. Both of their works are wildly experimental in order to relay big spiritual narratives that span worlds and realities and multiple books. However, where Chandrasekera's voice is excoriatingly anti-colonial and abidingly spiritual in the very lived-in Buddhist traditions of the author's Sri Lankan heritage, Mitchell's attempts beyond Cloud Atlas always remained firmly in the realm of pretentious and condescending, at worst, and White Girl Yoga spiritualism, at best. Rakesfall does not condescend but engages you in a shared grief and purpose, and invites you to revisit forgotten corners of memory and histories that have been told too many times by different victors, and will be told again again till the end of human spirit.
I HIGHLY recommend reading this in audiobook format. Shiromi Arserio's narration leaves you in awe of how gorgeously written this is, and ever so masterfully empowers the heart of this stunning work. It may also be all you have to hold on to when you inevitably realize that you are perhaps way out of your depth in this ambitious work of reclamation of everything that the was lost to the violence of colonialism over minds, bodies and spirits.
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