Description
Caeli-Amur: an ancient city harbouring hidden mysteries, ruled by three warring Houses. Once, the gods used magic - or thaumaturgy - to create reality. Now, under the oppression of the controlling classes, that magic seems like a dream.
But things are changing in Caeli-Amur. Ancient minotaurs arrive for the traditional Festival of the Sun and New-Men bring wondrous technology from their homeland. Hideously disfigured Wastelanders stream into the city and strikes break out in the factory district.
Three very different people may hold the key to the city's survival but only if they can put aside their own personal vendettas.
The philosopher-assassin Kata has debts that need settling and will do anything to ensure they're met - but can she put a price on the ultimate betrayal? Meanwhile the ambitious bureaucrat Boris Autec rises through the ranks, turning his back on everything he once believed, and soon his private life turns to ashes. Elsewhere, the idealistic seditionist Maximilian resolves to overturn the tyranny dominating the city, and hatches a mad plot to unlock the secrets of the Great Library of Caeli Enas, drowned in the fabled city at the bottom of the sea.
In a novel of startling originality and riveting suspense, these three individuals risk everything for a future they can only create by throwing off the shackles of tradition and superstition. As their destinies collide, the destruction will either transform the ancient city . . . or ruin it.
A new voice in the genre - and a completely compelling vision of a society on the verge of collapse...
About the Author
Rjurik Davidson is a winner of the Ditmar Award as Best New Talent and the Aurealis Award for his short fiction. His first book was a collection, The Library of Forgotten Books. A columnist, and a literary and film critic, he lives in Melbourne, Australia.
Reviews
A lyrical and evocative novel of ancient magic, minotaurs and myth; of dreams and nightmares, sacrifice and redemption. Highly recommended. * GARTH NIX *
Rjurik has a brilliant, fecund imagination, and I absolutely love the setting and the sense of place in the book. Caeli-Amur is one of the more memorable cities in recent fantasy. * HANNU RAJANIEMI *
Rjurik Davidson works the sharp edges where epic fantasy, uncanny science fiction, and the New Weird collide. An amazing debut. * SCOTT WESTERFELD *
A dark, strange invitation for lovers, losers and lunatics. * BEN PEEK *
Impressively imagined. * KIRKUS *
A brooding tale of civil unrest and personal destinies * PUBLISHERS WEEKLY *
Unwrapped Sky would be hard to imagine in a world before China Mieville. However, this debut novel from Australian author Rjurik Davidson can go toe-to-toe with Perdido Street Station and Iron Council as an imaginative, immersive read with a point to make. * SCIFINOW *
Unwrapped Sky will thrill fans of rich mythologies . . . It simultaneously delivers something new, while feeling engagingly comfortable. * MANIA.COM *
Davidson immerses readers in his blend of fantasy and science fiction via striking characters who rush headlong into chaotic and dangerous situations from which they belatedly realize they're unable to extricate themselves. * SEATTLE TIMES *
One of the best and most original fantasy novels I've read to date. It's an impressive achievement, because it's a refreshingly different kind of a fantasy novel. Its wonderfully new weirdish atmosphere will leave readers holding their breath and wanting more. With this novel Rjurik Davidson proves that he is the new master of new weirdish fantasy that sparkles with creativity and originality. Very highly recommended! * RISINGSHADOW.NET *
Unwrapped Sky is an ambitions fantasy novel with a breathtakingly vast world tangled in a web of deceit, betrayal, and revolution . . . I highly recommend it to anyone interested in an engrossing fantasy that will whisk you off to faraway places. * EMPYREANEDGE.COM *
An original story that sets 19th century political struggles in a fascinating fantasy world. Davidson's characters are flawed and compelling. This is an ambitious debut from a very promising writer. * POPMYTHOLOGY.COM *
This book is a journey, and that's the kind of book I like the most. It's one of those novels that I had to savor and read slowly, and I just know I will catch something different every time I read it. What a gift. * BOOKWORMBLUES.NET *
Book Information
ISBN 9781447252382
Author Rjurik Davidson
Format Paperback
Page Count 432
Imprint Tor
Publisher Pan Macmillan
Series Caeli-Amur
Weight(grams) 472g
Dimensions(mm) 203mm * 127mm * 25mm
Details
Series: |
Caeli-Amur |
Imprint: |
Tor |
