2023 Locus Award for Best First Novel (nominee)
2023 Mythopoeic Fantasy Award for Adult Literature (nominee)
2023 World Fantasy Award for Best Novel (nominee)
2022 Ray Bradbury Prize (nominee)
"Funny, wild, witty, and profound.ӉۥVictor LaValle
"A wild and wonderful debut, teeming with music, family and art."—New York Times
"Magical, lyrical, gritty, otherworldly…hype like Bayou Classic in the 90s."—P. Djèlí Clark
One of the Best Fantasy Books of 2022: New York Times; Oprah Daily; Vulture; Gizmodo; Boston Public Library
A fun and fantastical love letter to New Orleans unfolds when a battle for the city's soul brews between two young mages, a vengeful wraith, and one powerful song in this wildly imaginative debut.
Nola is a city full of wonders. A place of sky trolleys and dead cabs, where haints dance the night away and Wise Women help keep the order. To those from Away, Nola might seem strange. To Perilous Graves, it’s simply home.
Perry knows Nola’s rhythm as intimately as his own heartbeat. So when the city’s Great Magician starts appearing in odd places and essential songs are forgotten, Perry knows trouble is afoot.
Nine songs of power have escaped from the piano that maintains the city’s beat, and without them, Nola will fail. Unwilling to watch his home be destroyed, Perry will sacrifice everything to save it. But a storm is brewing, and the Haint of All Haints is awake. Nola’s time might be coming to an end.
Genre: Fantasy
"A wild and wonderful debut, teeming with music, family and art."—New York Times
"Magical, lyrical, gritty, otherworldly…hype like Bayou Classic in the 90s."—P. Djèlí Clark
One of the Best Fantasy Books of 2022: New York Times; Oprah Daily; Vulture; Gizmodo; Boston Public Library
A fun and fantastical love letter to New Orleans unfolds when a battle for the city's soul brews between two young mages, a vengeful wraith, and one powerful song in this wildly imaginative debut.
Nola is a city full of wonders. A place of sky trolleys and dead cabs, where haints dance the night away and Wise Women help keep the order. To those from Away, Nola might seem strange. To Perilous Graves, it’s simply home.
Perry knows Nola’s rhythm as intimately as his own heartbeat. So when the city’s Great Magician starts appearing in odd places and essential songs are forgotten, Perry knows trouble is afoot.
Nine songs of power have escaped from the piano that maintains the city’s beat, and without them, Nola will fail. Unwilling to watch his home be destroyed, Perry will sacrifice everything to save it. But a storm is brewing, and the Haint of All Haints is awake. Nola’s time might be coming to an end.
Genre: Fantasy
Praise for this book
"Alex Jennings writes with an energy and a profusion of imagination and vividness that carries you off. Brilliant!" - Katherine Addison
"Scary, sweet, lyrical, and real." - Poppy Z Brite
"I ached to live in their world. A stunning debut that is sure to become a classic." - Elizabeth Hand
"A beautiful song full of magic and rhythm, darkness and delight. A profoundly gorgeous debut." - Christina Henry
"The Ballad of Perilous Graves is not only an engrossing adventure but a potent homage to the beating heart of one of the world's most magical cities." - Ladee Hubbard
"Wild, witty, and profound. . . a cosmic storm of talent." - Victor LaValle
"His lyrical prose dances to a rhythm all its own." - Stina Leicht
"A hallucinatory wonder of a debut." - Walter Mosley
"A wild, dark and joyful love song to New Orleans, the power of stories, and hope in the face of destruction." - H G Parry
"An enchanting, energetic, wild ride of a story set to a staccato melody. The electric prose leaps off the page in a riot of colours and sounds." - Leslye Penelope
"An unforgettable story." - Rion Amilcar Scott
"Scary, sweet, lyrical, and real." - Poppy Z Brite
"I ached to live in their world. A stunning debut that is sure to become a classic." - Elizabeth Hand
"A beautiful song full of magic and rhythm, darkness and delight. A profoundly gorgeous debut." - Christina Henry
"The Ballad of Perilous Graves is not only an engrossing adventure but a potent homage to the beating heart of one of the world's most magical cities." - Ladee Hubbard
"Wild, witty, and profound. . . a cosmic storm of talent." - Victor LaValle
"His lyrical prose dances to a rhythm all its own." - Stina Leicht
"A hallucinatory wonder of a debut." - Walter Mosley
"A wild, dark and joyful love song to New Orleans, the power of stories, and hope in the face of destruction." - H G Parry
"An enchanting, energetic, wild ride of a story set to a staccato melody. The electric prose leaps off the page in a riot of colours and sounds." - Leslye Penelope
"An unforgettable story." - Rion Amilcar Scott
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Used availability for Alex Jennings's The Ballad of Perilous Graves