by Gene Wolfe
First published 1991
Latro wakes each day unable to remember yesterday. The Roman mercenary's head wound has stolen his ability to form lasting memories, leaving him dependent on the scrolls he writes to himself each night. But his injury granted him something extraordinary in return: he can see and speak with the gods and spirits that walk unseen through the Greek world. In this second volume of his story, Latro continues to navigate a landscape populated by invisible deities and supernatural beings who reveal themselves only to him. His companions guide him through each day as he struggles to piece together his identity from fragments of writing. The gods offer cryptic guidance, but their motives remain unclear. Latro must learn to trust others while questioning everything, including his own recorded words. His unique gift becomes both blessing and curse as he discovers that seeing the divine world comes at the cost of remembering the human one.
Genres: literary-fiction, historical-fiction, military-fiction, fantasy
Vibes: atmospheric, suspenseful, thought-provoking
Tropes: fish-out-of-water, unreliable-narrator
Setting: Greece
Period: Ancient
342 pages · Paperback · New English Library