THE MEMORY THEATER

Two children who are growing up set out on a journey to find escape, home, and revenge.

When Augusta stole Thistle’s name, she trapped him in the Gardens, forcing him to work as a servant until he grows up, though even that will bring no freedom: Unwanted servants become fodder for the hunt. The servants’ masters, however, never grow old, because the Gardens exist out of time, allowing the lords and ladies to endlessly relive their revels. Thistle’s other task is protecting his friend Dora, daughter of the earth, who is neither a servant nor a master. Then, when Thistle’s mistress, Augusta Prima—first seen in Tidbeck’s short story of the same name in Weird Tales (2011)—asks him to explain time, things in the Gardens begin to change. The appearance of a mysterious trader and traveler of the multiverse allows Thistle and Dora to escape, but Thistle is still without his name, and so they must search for Augusta, who holds the key to his past. Along the way, they encounter the Memory Theater, whose plays tell the story of all the worlds, as well as other creatures of myth and folklore. Augusta, meanwhile, has done some exploring of her own, leaving destruction in her wake. Tidbeck pieces together multiple worlds against a background of Swedish folktales and history. The fairy-tale quality of the prose adds to the folkloric themes of the novel but creates distance from the characters, who never develop true depth. Nevertheless, the strange and unique cast and the twists of the plot between weird and recognizable landscapes make for a satisfying read.

A dark fairy tale that snakes through the multiverse while maintaining the familiar tropes of legend.