The Bruising of Qilwa by Naseem Jamnia ISBN: Print: 9781616963781; Digital: 9781616963798 Published: August 2022 Available Format(s): Trade Paperback and Digital World Fantasy Award Nominee Buzzfeed Best Books Coming Out in Summer The Mary Sue’s 10 Best Fantasy Books with Non-Binary Characters Literary Hub 10 New SF and Fantasy Books to Augment Your August Book Riot 8 Notable Nonbinary SFF Books You Need to Check Out A Foreword Book of the Day Lambda Literary August’s Most Anticipated LGBTQIA Literature Tor.com Reviewer’s Choice: The Best Books of 2022 Ambling Along the Aqueduct’s Pleasures of Reading, Viewing, and Listening in 2022 Subjective Chaos Kind of Awards Nominee, Best Fantasy Novel 2022 Locus Award Finalist 2023 Crawford Award Shortlist “I loved this gorgeous book about blood magic, chosen family and refugees in a hostile city. Naseem Jamnia has created a rich, complex world.” —Charlie Jane Anders, author of All the Birds in the Sky [STARRED REVIEW] “A delight to read. Highly recommended.” —Library Journal In this intricate debut fantasy introducing a queernormative Persian-inspired world, a nonbinary refugee practitioner of blood magic discovers a strange disease that causes political rifts in their new homeland. Persian-American author Naseem Jamnia has crafted a gripping narrative with a moving, nuanced exploration of immigration, gender, healing, and family. Powerful and fascinating, The Bruising of Qilwa is the newest arrival in the era of fantasy classics such as the Broken Earth Trilogy, The Four Profound Weaves, and Who Fears Death. Firuz-e Jafari is fortunate enough to have immigrated to the Free Democratic City-State of Qilwa, fleeing the slaughter of other traditional Sassanian blood magic practitioners in their homeland. Despite the status of refugees in their new home, Firuz has a good job at a free healing clinic in Qilwa, working with Kofi, a kindly new employer, and mentoring Afsoneh, a troubled orphan refugee with powerful magic. But Firuz and Kofi have discovered a terrible new disease which leaves mysterious bruises on its victims. The illness is spreading quickly through Qilwa, and there are dangerous accusations of ineptly performed blood magic. In order to survive, Firuz must break a deadly cycle of prejudice, untangle sociopolitical constraints, and find a fresh start for their both their blood and found family.
