Nine Layers of Sky

In such novels as The Poison Master and Empire of Bones, Liz Williams sparked readers' imaginations by creating worlds at once strange and familiar. Now this bold new writer delivers a profound and provocative look at human nature in a timely novel of a nation-and a world-torn asunder, and of a hope that refuses to die. Nine Layers of Sky A former Soviet rocket scientist, Elena Irinovna now cleans office buildings-until she crosses paths with Ilya Muromyets. A remnant of Russia's glorious and fabled past, Ilya is an eight-hundred-year-old hero turned heroin addict, dreaming of a death that never comes. They are brought together by a strange artifact Elena has found, which offers a glimpse into another dimension, creating a dangerous breach in a world Elena only thought she knew . . . Ilya is no stranger to the unexplained. He's been hired by a mysterious organization to track down the artifact. But nothing prepares him for what it offers-or for a woman like Elena. Fighting their own inner demons as well as those from across the breach, Ilya and Elena embark on a harrowing trip between nations and worlds. And for the first time the man of myth and the woman of science discover that they have a dream to defend-and even die for . . .