Faith shapes the landscape, defines the laws of physics, and makes a mockery of truth. Common knowledge isn't an axiom, it's a force of nature. What the masses believe is. But insanity is a weapon, conviction a shield. Delusions give birth to foul new gods.
Violent and dark, the world is filled with the Geisteskranken--men and women whose delusions manifest, twisting reality. High Priest Konig seeks to create order from chaos. He defines the beliefs of his followers, leading their faith to one end: a young boy, Morgen, must Ascend to become a god. A god they can control.
But there are many who would see this would-be-god in their thrall, including the High Priest's own Doppels, and a Slaver no one can resist. Three reprobates--The Greatest Swordsman in the World, a murderous Kleptic, and possibly the only sane man left--have their own nefarious plans for the young god.
As these forces converge on the boy, there's one more obstacle: time is running out. When one's delusions become more powerful, they become harder to control. The fate of the Geisteskranken is to inevitably find oneself in the Afterdeath.
The question, then, is: Who will rule there?
Reviews
"Set in a world where madness equates to power, Michael R. Fletcher's Beyond Redemption is often as nightmarish as it is fascinating. An alarming, original and compulsive tale laced with a blackly comic sensibility. Highly recommended." -Anthony Ryan, New York Times bestselling author of Blood Song
"The journey is dark and emotionally taxing, but there aren't many fantasy novels as smart, ambitious, and excellently written as this one." -Booklist
"Fletcher populated the landscape with an array of mental disorders, turning a well-thumbed psychiatric manual into a dramatis personae. His protagonists worry about their fate in the Afterdeath as they commit their crimes, but they always keep their slim hopes for redemption. The dystopia and its victims never quite collapse under the weight of the horror, and their perseverance encourages the readers to endure the grimness until the thought-provoking conclusion." -Publishers Weekly (starred, boxed review)
"Incredibly brutal, this unusual fantasy world from Fletcher (88) is populated by delusional sociopaths--literally. Mental disorders such as megalomania and kleptomania provide the sufferers power over those around them, giving the whole world an off-kilter manic edge. If you like your fantasy ΓΌberdark, this might be an intriguing Freudian excursion." -Library Journal
About the Author
Michael R. Fletcher's BEYOND REDEMPTION, a work of dark fantasy and rampant delusion, was published by HARPER Voyager and released June 16th, 2015. His dΓ©but novel, 88, was released by Five Rivers Publishing and tastes like dystopia with a dash of cyberpunk. The next two Manifest Delusions novels, THE ALL CONSUMING and THE MIRROR'S TRUTH have been written and are currently in editing.