THE HEALER

A bloody fable of flawed gods and true believers.

Kessler (A Satan Carol, 2012) builds a shadowy world in which humans have lived on a remote, hostile planet for generations. Their society is completely reliant on pigs, which they sacrifice to Pup, their vengeful god, in exchange for seeds to grow their meager crops. It’s a harsh world, full of violence and decay—one in which Butchers are priests who use “pigs’ choicest parts, their hearts, brains, and tongues” in their rituals, and everyone believes that “in life gain eventually equal[s] loss.” Everyone, that is, except for outcasts known as Burners. Although they live “afraid and powerless,” they wait for a magical boy that they believe will come from the stars to mend their world. But when the healer does arrive, his ministry goes far from smoothly. This circuitous tale leaps back and forth across space and time and switches from one apparent protagonist to another every few pages. Readers may sometimes find it difficult to get a handle on what, exactly, is happening, as the prose is also full of unexplained terminology; a typical passage mentions “Pup Day festivities requiring Fire Runs to commence on Butcher Bargain Day.” The graphic, gratuitous violence also distracts from the plot. However, Kessler has a knack for arresting turns of phrase: “On a farm where bulb vegetables and blue corn never grew as high as the neighbor’s crops and sick animals always died, Vorn’s parents taught him about love.” The repeating images and symbols also give the story a haunting allure even though their meanings are often opaque. Finally, the book’s commentary on the complexities of religious belief is both confounding and compelling: snippets of the Bible appear, conflicting theologies abound, and it’s never clear who the good guys are. Intrepid readers, however, may enjoy attempting to solve the thorny puzzle.

A barely comprehensible story set in a richly imagined world.