| Summary Note |
This is a spellbinding novel that blends history, mythology, and a timeless love story. A lush modern fairytale in which our world has been plunged into an age of unreason, this novel is a breath-taking achievement and an enduring testament to the power of storytelling. Inspired by 2000 years of storytelling yet rooted in the concerns of our present moment, both very funny and terrifying. It is narrated by our descendants 1000 years hence, looking back on 'The War of the Worlds' that began with 'the time of the strangenesses': a simple gardener begins to levitate; a baby is born with the ability to detect corruption in people; the ghosts of two long-dead philosophers begin arguing once more; and storms pummel New York so hard that a crack appears in the universe, letting in the destructive jinns of myth. Nothing less than the survival of our world is at stake. Only one, a jinn princess who centuries before had learnt to love humankind, resolves to help us: in the face of dynastic intrigue, she raises an army composed of her semimagical great-great-grandchildren - a small motley crew of endearing characters who come together to save the world in a battle waged for 1001 nights or, to be precise, two years, eight months, and 28 nights. |
