The Spear Cuts Through Water

Jimenez (The Vanished Birds) crafts an elusive, layered epic that thoroughly rewards its demands. In an outpost of an unnamed country ruled by a ruthless emperor and his three sons, the Terrors, commander Uhi Araya convinces Keema of the Daware Tribe, a one-armed mercenary, to swear an oath to deliver a spear to someone near the capital. Shortly thereafter, the outpost is sacked and Keema flees with Jun, an elite guard, and the goddess Jun has freed from her prison. Together with a disabled, telepathic tortoise and the dying deity, they crisscross the country with a plot to find allies among the increasingly discontented people and end the cruel reign of the Terrors. Jimenez interweaves this sprawling journey with flash-forwards following an unnamed character whose family possesses the spear generations later as they watch their grandmother’s stories of these heroes unfold via the dream-accessed Inverted Theater. The rapidly shifting perspectives and slippery plot make for a steep barrier to entry, but the beautiful prose and inventive worldbuilding pay dividends. Though this won’t be for everyone, committed readers who enjoy piecing together stories will be blown away. Agent: Hannah Fergesen, KT Literary. (Aug.)