Shai is a Forger, a practitioner of magic who can rewrite an object’s history to alter its physical form. After being caught stealing a royal scepter, she is offered a formal pardon in exchange for an impossible task: recreating the consciousness of the Emperor. Following an assassination attempt, the Emperor survived but his mind was erased. Shai has one hundred days to research his childhood, diary entries, and public records to carve a Soulstone that mimics his personality, memories, and morality.
This novella attracts readers who enjoy hard magic systems based on technical logic and historical research. It appeals to those interested in the relationship between art and identity, specifically how a replica can be more authentic than its original subject. Readers finish the book with a clear understanding of the mechanical process behind world-building and a specific perspective on how a person's history dictates their current actions. It functions as a closed-room mystery where the stakes are life and death.
Escapist; a moderate read.
Best for readers like The Escapist Adventurer. Which reader are you?
Insights from The Emperor's Soul
“To forge a masterpiece, one must know the soul as well as the artist.”
Shai spent weeks learning every detail of the Emperor's past. Real art requires that kind of deep, obsessive empathy to feel true.
“A man's life is a story. Some stories are simply better told than others.”
Gaotona realized that a fake life can sometimes be better than the original. It made me wonder if our best selves are just better versions we choose to perform.
“Everything has a history. Everything can be rewritten.”
The magic depends on finding the exact moment where a person's history could have changed. Small choices really do ripple out into who we eventually become.
“Art is a conversation between the soul of the artist and the soul of the viewer.”
Shai hated the idea of her work being kept in a dark room. Beautiful things lose their meaning if nobody is there to witness them.
- Published
- 2012
- Publisher
- Tachyon Publications
- ISBN
- 9781616960926
- Language
- EN
