Karma of the Sun - by Brandon Ying Kit Boey (Hardcover)

About the Book

Short Summary: A young Tibetan Sherpa hunts for his missing father in the ruined nuclear winterland of the Himalayas, racing against a final calamity that threatens to destroy what is left of all humanity, only to discover that his father's disappearance may be linked to a mystical mountain connected to the afterworld--and a possible way to save their doomed future.

Book Synopsis

2024 IPPY Award Bronze Medal Winner

2024 Maine Literary Award in Speculative Fiction

Foreword Indies Finalist for Book of the Year

"A thoughtful read perfect for this moody season." --Wall Street Journal

"Karma of the Sun is a not-to-miss debut from a ridiculously talented newcomer." --Locus Magazine

Six suns, six blasts in the sky; a seventh one, and the earth will die.

In the isolation of the Himalayas, the snows still fall, but they are tinged with the ash of a nuclear winter; the winds still blow, but they wail with the cries of ghosts. The seventh and final blast is near. As the world heaves its final breaths, the people of the Tibetan plateau--civilization's final survivors--are haunted by spirits and terrorized by warlords. Though the last of the seven prophesied cataclysms is at hand, young Karma searches for a father who disappeared ten years earlier, presumed dead.

Driven by a yearning to see his father again before the end, and called by an eerie horn unheard by anyone else, Karma forges into the Himalayas and discovers that his father's disappearance may be linked to a mystical mountain said to connect the physical world with the spirit lands--and a possible way to save their doomed future.

For readers who enjoy Station Eleven by Emily St. John Mandel, The Book of M by Peng Shepherd, The Fifth Season by N. K. Jemisin, The Buried Giant by Kazuo Ishiguro, and The Children of Men by P. D. James.

Review Quotes

"Boey's exploration of human values and philosophical conundrums--including the difficulty of finding hope and purpose in the face of the end of everything--is no sophomoric thought experiment, and his stark world is poetically rendered. A thoughtful read perfect for this moody season." --Wall Street Journal

". . . the sensational descriptions of the Himalayan landscape form the heart of this harrowing tale. Fans of apocalyptic fantasy should check this out." --Publishers Weekly

"Karma of the Sun is a gripping, prescient science fiction take on the apocalypse, blending Buddhism with an irresistible adventure." --Foreword Reviews, a Foreword Book of the Day

"Brandon Ying Kit Boey has crafted a propulsive tale of adventure, sacrifice, and salvation, not just for the young protagonist Karma, but for all of humanity. Set in Tibet in a frighteningly apocalyptic future, Boey's novel offers us an earnest and sensitive hero who has been tasked with no less than ensuring the survival of the entire planet. Though filled with intense battle scenes and life-or-death decisions, Karma's quest is one we will all recognize, grounded as it is in family, love, and a profound search for the self. A hero's journey for the end of the world, KARMA OF THE SUN is a must-read for anyone reckoning with where we are now and where we will go next." --Erin Swan, author of Walk the Vanished Earth

"Fans of a post-apocalyptic world that is not a crushingly dystopian one should check this one out." --Booklist, Starred Review

"VERDICT: For readers of post-apocalyptic cli-fi who enjoy magic-infused stories that don't center Western cultures." --Library Journal

"With silken prose and atmospheric grandeur, Boey's elegantly assured debut weaves in fascinating interpretations of Asian cosmology and concepts of the afterlife and end-times to haunting, resounding effect." --Angela Mi Young Hur, author of Folklorn, New York Times Best Sci-Fi and Fantasy Novel of 2021

About the Author