The Traitor

Smart. Brutal. Gut-wrenching. You'll be captivated from the very first page. Dickinson is a sly, masterful writer who pulls no punches. Get ready to have your heart ripped out through your throat. Highly recommended. * KAMERON HURLEY, author of The Mirror Empire *
Seth Dickinson skillfully combines intrigue, action, and philosophical musings to create a suspenseful and deeply satisfying read. An intelligent and accomplished first novel reminiscent of Le Guin in its reflections on imperialism, colonialism, and the attractions and corruptions of power. * UNA MCCORMACK, New York Times bestselling author of The Crimson Shadow *
Not many books have me literally flailing with delight. [The Traitor...] did. Fascinating characters, a world imagined with wonderful depth, and storytelling that succeeds on both an epic and a powerfully intimate scale. This is really something special. * SUNNY MORAINE, co-author of Life and Orbit *
A beautiful, perfectly formed crystal of a novel borne out of a tight plot mated with elegant language. * JOHN CHU, Hugo award-winning author of The Water That Falls on You From Nowhere *
Dickinson has written a poet's Dune, a brutal tale of empire, rebellion, fealty, and high finance that moves like a rocket and burns twice as hot. [The Traitor] is a mic drop for epic fantasy. * MAX GLADSTONE, author of the Craft Sequence books *
An extraordinary debut--powerful, complex, and passionate. I was blown away by it. * KIJ JOHNSON, Hugo award-winning author of The Man Who Bridged the Mist *
Amazing and inventive. * TOBIAS BUCKELL, New York Times bestselling author of the Xenowealth series *
A new fantasy world as rich and complex as our own . . . Baru Cormorant is brilliant, bold, and very, very dangerous. * SEBASTIEN DE CASTELL, author of Traitor's Blade *
Brutal, relentless and with the heartbreaking beauty of the best tragedies. The Traitor is a haunting book that asks hard questions about revolution, change, and what it means to keep faith * ALIETTE DE BODARD, Nebula Award-winning author of The Waiting Stars *
Stunning! There are moments that take my breath away * ELLEN KUSHNER, World Fantasy Award-winning author of Thomas the Rhymer *
Beautiful and brutal. This is unflinching fantasy * CHUCK WENDIG, author of Blackbirds *
Visceral and unflinching, The Traitor employs a rich palate of cultures to explore brutal moral complexities * RACHEL SWIRSKY, Nebula Award-winning author of The Lady Who Plucked Red Flowers Beneath the Queen’s Window *
A fascinating tale of political intrigue and national unrest * Washington Post *
Dickinson's debut, the start of a trilogy set in an impressively well-crafted fantasy world, is assured and impressive . . . Readers will share every one of Baru's strong, suppressed emotions * Publishers Weekly *
A highly impressive debut that engages intellectually * Kirkus Reviews *
Literally breathtaking . . . a crucial, necessary book * NPR *
A truly intense, brutal, yet beautiful geopolitical fantasy . . . . I don't think I've actually read anything quite like it * Bookfrivolity *
A hundred pages in, and I knew The Traitor would be a game-changer * Littleredreviewer *
Like its namesake, The Traitor lures you in, puts you at your ease, wins your confidence, and then destroys you . . . It's the way this story gets under your skin and hits you where it really counts that puts it in a class by itself * SF Reviews *
Breathtakingly original and carefully crafted, The Traitor by debut novelist Seth Dickinson is one of those very few works that straddle the line between "genre" and "literary" fiction . . . Dickinson's writing is intricate, sometimes delicate, and always absolutely delicious * Fantasyliterature.com *
The Hundred Thousand Kingdoms meets Guns, Germs, and Steel * Risingshadow.net *
As for Seth Dickinson, I can only applaud the sheer audacity and courage to deliver a book like this. It is a triumph of imagination and a powerful reminder of what fantasy is for * Upcoming4.me *
This is eloquent, grown-up, intelligent Fantasy that will keep you thinking long after you finish and will demand that you read and reread it' * SFFWorld.com *