The Song That Moves the Sun

Bright (The Boundless) takes inspiration from Dante Alighieri’s Divine Comedy, reimagining the lives of Alighieri, Beatrice Portinari, and Marco Polo in a mesmerizing portal fantasy. Aurora Sonder and her best friend Claudia Portinari, both white and 17, struggle to manage their increasingly tumultuous personal lives amid sudden, inexplicable societal calamities, such as mountains sinking into the earth and sinkholes devouring small towns. As Rora navigates undiagnosed PTSD following an incident and Claudia is separated from her twin brother, the pair take solace in music. Soon, they meet white Major and Middle Eastern-cued Amir al-Kindi, both 18, who hail from settlements on Mercury and Mars, respectively, and claim that there is discord among the celestial spheres. Believing Rora can remedy the disruption, the boys implore the girls to traverse the universe, via interdimensional portal, to help them save the heavens. Chapters detailing Alighieri, Portinari, and Polo’s discovery of the portals and settlement upon the spheres, set in 1287, is woven throughout, adding context and intrigue to Rora and company’s quest. Bright employs poetic prose and a complex magic system to deliver a wildly inventive fantasy adventure. Ages 14–up. Agent: Elana Roth Parker, Laura Dail Literary. (June)