This is a superb fantasy novel, working as a touching romance, a dark satire about immigration, and a fable about the redemptive power of faith.
Darroti has confessed to the murder of a young noblewoman, and is to be exiled to another world. In accordance with tradition, his immediate family -- father, two brothers, their wives and children -- will go with him.
They pass through the gate, knowing they will never return, and the world they've entered turns out to be a near-future version of our own. Paranoid xenophobia has taken over in America, and Darroti's family -- wearing unfamiliar clothing, carrying strange food and plants, speaking a language no one has ever heard, and certainly not in possession of the proper documents -- find themselves herded into an internment camp for illegal immigrants.
The family is aided by Lisa, a local woman whose strong religious belief leads her to help the family leave the camp and adapt to live in this strange new home. We focus in particular on Timbor, Darroti's father, who survives by clinging to his own religious tradition, and on Zamatryna, Darroti's young niece, who acclimates and becomes an overachieving teenager.
Palwick creates remarkably full-bodied characters here. I was particularly impressed by Lisa and her husband Stan; their desire to do good and their tendency to be led into narrowmindedness by their beliefs are balanced fairly. They are neither cartoon zealots nor perfect saints.
The ending of the book is perhaps a bit rushed; a lot happens in the last two chapters. But the final scenes are beautifully written, lyrical and moving, as the religious traditions of all the characters are reconciled in interesting fashion, and the exiled family is finally able to make peace with their numerous losses.
This is a marvelous book, and I recommend it with great joy.
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