First published 2019
Desdemona lives in luxury while factory workers choke on industrial smoke from her family's mines. Her pampered world shatters when she learns the truth about her father's wealth. He struck a bargain with the creatures below, promising them a tithe of men in exchange for mining rights. Now the debt comes due, and Desdemona must descend into the underworld to deliver what her father owes. Below the surface, she discovers goblin markets and strange kingdoms that operate by different rules. The goblins have their own hierarchies and their own sense of justice. As Desdemona navigates this alien realm, she confronts the cost of her family's prosperity and the suffering it built upon. The journey forces her to question everything she believed about power, privilege, and what it means to be human.
Genres: fiction, literary-fiction, fantasy, magical-realism
Vibes: dark, thought-provoking, whimsical
Tropes: fish-out-of-water, found-family
Setting: Underworld
224 pages · Paperback · Tordotcom
Content warnings: death, violence