The Gyre

***Winner of the Electric Book Award***An atmospheric journey into the far northern wilds, THE GYRE spins one man’s search for meaning into an astonishing saga where adventure, folklore, and the Arctic converge.Arkady Afanasyev is a nineteenth-century Russian monk who aims to be the northernmost holy man in the world when he hitches a ride to Spitsbergen, a remote island considered by most to be a no man’s land. As he struggles across the tundra, he’s haunted by regret, a long-lost family, and a chorus of Orthodox saints and Slavic pagan tricksters including hearth spirits, sea demons, and the Twelve Sisters of Scurvy. Amid their uncanny influence and the great, turning, harsh natural world, Arkady is brutally and deeply transformed. Read more