Incarnations

There is a deep underlying spookiness to The Incarnations by Susan Barker that kept me on the edge of my seat and eager to devour the entire book to get at the core of the mystery. An unknown letter writer guides a Beijing taxi driver through a tour, via mysterious letters left in the cab, of the driver's purported past lives. The letters illustrate how the lives of the letter writer and the cab driver have intertwined over 1,000 years, during some of the greatest historical upheavals in Chinese history. Each of the lives is a fascinating story unto itself, each more wrenching than the one before, all interspersed with the cab driver's equally gripping current reality. The book is heartbreaking and amazing, and I now can't wait to read Susan Barker's other books. Recommended By Robin F., Powells.com

Hailed as "China's Midnight's Children" (The Independent) this "brilliant, mind-expanding, and wildly original novel" (Chris Cleave) about a Beijing taxi driver whose past incarnations over one thousand years haunt him through searing letters sent by his mysterious soulmate.

Who are you? you must be wondering. I am your soulmate, your old friend, and I have come back to this city of sixteen million in search of you.

So begins the first letter that falls into Wang's lap as he flips down the visor in his taxi. The letters that follow are filled with the stories of Wang's previous lives — from escaping a marriage to a spirit bride, to being a slave on the run from Genghis Khan, to living as a fisherman during the Opium Wars, and being a teenager on the Red Guard during the cultural revolution — bound to his mysterious "soulmate," spanning one thousand years of betrayal and intrigue.

As the letters continue to appear seemingly out of thin air, Wang becomes convinced that someone is watching him — someone who claims to have known him for over one thousand years. and with each letter, Wang feels the watcher growing closer and closer...

Seamlessly weaving Chinese folklore, history, and literary classics, The Incarnations is a taut and gripping novel that sheds light on the cyclical nature of history as it hints that the past is never truly settled.

and#8220;Barker's remarkable new novel is ambitious in scope, scholarly in depth and absolutely riveting. andlt;Iandgt;The Incarnationsandlt;/Iandgt; works on a number of levels, pulling together so many strands of history and perspectives and drawing them into a compelling and convincing tale. Part history, part love story, with good doses of horror, comedy and philosophy, it is ultimately a thriller and a page-turnerand#8230;. The effect is explosive.and#8221; and#8212;andlt;Iandgt;South China Morning Postandlt;/Iandgt;

and#8220;Reads as China's andlt;Iandgt;Midnight's Childrenandlt;/Iandgt;. An utterly remarkable novel, it is certainly a very different book from Rushdie's but just as important in its historical and cultural sweep....Barker's storytelling is lively and addictive....She has an eye for the absurd and darkly comic.and#8221; and#8212;andlt;Iandgt;The Independentandlt;/Iandgt; (UK)

"Suspend your disbelief, flow along with this wonderful book, like the crazy traffic flowing around Beijing's six ring roads...The book moves effortlessly from past to present and back again....Masterful." and#8212;andlt;Iandgt;The Guardianandlt;/Iandgt; (UK)

"Barker resembles David Mitchell in the ability to weave together past and present in a convincing, and ultimately intriguing, manner."and#8212;andlt;Iandgt;Sydney Morning Heraldandlt;/Iandgt;

and#8220;A thrilling journey through a thousand years of obsession and betrayal and a vivid tapestry of the individual's struggle against the tyranny of history, this is the most extraordinary work of imagination you'll read all year.and#8221;andlt;BRandgt; and#8212;Adam Johnson, author of andlt;Iandgt;The Orphan Master's Sonandlt;/Iandgt; (Winner of the Pulitzer Prize for Fiction, 2013)

“A brilliant, mind-expanding and wildly original novel.”

—Chris Cleave, author of Little Bee

and#8220;An extraordinary novel. Erudite, intriguing and compulsively readable, The Incarnations takes the reader on an intimate and mesmerizing journey through Chinese history. Susan Barker, a born story-teller, has written one of the most remarkable novels of recent years.and#8221; andlt;BRandgt; and#8212;John Boyne, author of andlt;iandgt;The Boy in the Striped Pajamasandlt;/iandgt;

and#8220;Invigorating. To recreate convincingly a single historical period is an achievement. To recreate six is to approach virtuosity....Deft, smart, various and warm: a very good book indeed.and#8221; and#8212;andlt;Iandgt;Sunday Business Postandlt;/Iandgt; (UK)

“What a ferociously talented writer Susan Barker is. The Incarnations is a hallucinatory ride. Highly recommended”

—Anna Hope, author of Wake

“Remarkable…Ambitious in scope, painstakingly researched and most importantly, a gripping read.”

—Publishing Perspectives

and#8220;Light and often witty...There is tragedy, though perhaps not where the reader expects it, but there is also hope.and#8221; andlt;BRandgt; and#8212;Thatsmags.com (China)

and#8220;Not since Jung Chang's andlt;Iandgt;Wild Swansandlt;/Iandgt; has been such a visceral re-telling of the old days.and#8221; and#8212;andlt;Iandgt;Open Magazineandlt;/Iandgt; (India)

and#8220;A brilliant, mind-expanding and wildly original novel.and#8221; andlt;BRandgt; and#8212;Chris Cleave, author of andlt;Iandgt;Little Beeandlt;/Iandgt;

and#8220;What a ferociously talented writer Susan Barker is. andlt;Iandgt;The Incarnationsandlt;/Iandgt; is a hallucinatory ride. Highly recommendedand#8221; andlt;BRandgt; and#8212;Anna Hope, author of andlt;Iandgt;Wakeandlt;/Iandgt;

and#8220;Remarkableand#8230;Ambitious in scope, painstakingly researched and most importantly, a gripping read.and#8221; andlt;BRandgt; and#8212;andlt;Iandgt;Publishing Perspectivesandlt;/Iandgt;

and#8220;A page-turning reincarnation fantasy . . . Lush historical detail . . . A very memorable read.and#8221; and#8212;andlt;iandgt;Publishers Weekly andlt;/iandgt;(starred review)

"[A] stunning epic . . . Barker's historical tour de force is simultaneously sweeping and precise. . . . Effortlessly blends the past with the present, dark humor with profound sadness. A deeply human masterpiece." and#8212;andlt;iandgt;Kirkus Reviewsandlt;/iandgt; (starred review)

and#8220;Barkerand#8217;s fluid prose makes of their tragic stories irresistible readingand#8230;.The stories come alive via a veritable catalog of dark and desperate details. This ambitious novel traffics in intrigue and betrayal yet never loses its hypnotic grip.and#8221;and#8212;andlt;iandgt;Booklistandlt;/iandgt; (starred review)

and#8220;A perfect conclusion brings home the writerand#8217;s warning: and#8216;History is coming for you.and#8217;and#8221;and#8212;andlt;iandgt;New York Magazine andlt;/iandgt;(and#8220;7 Books You Need to Read This Augustand#8221;)andlt;BRandgt;andlt;BRandgt;and#8220;Perfect fodder for summer's waning, Barker's novel is grim and gripping, a yarn for the ages.and#8221;and#8212;andlt;iandgt;Interview Magazineandlt;/iandgt;

New York Times Notable Book of 2015
Kirkus Reviews Best Fiction Book of 2015
Finalist for the 2015 Kirkus Prize for Fiction
Winner of a Jerwood Fiction Uncovered Prize
Hailed by The New York Times for its "wildly ambitious...dazzling use of language" and "mesmerizing storytelling," The Incarnations is a "brilliant, mind-expanding, and wildly original novel" (Chris Cleave) about a Beijing taxi driver whose past incarnations over one thousand years haunt him through searing letters sent by his mysterious soulmate.
Who are you? you must be wondering. I am your soulmate, your old friend, and I have come back to this city of sixteen million in search of you.
So begins the first letter that falls into Wang's lap as he flips down the visor in his taxi. The letters that follow are filled with the stories of Wang's previous lives--from escaping a marriage to a spirit bride, to being a slave on the run from Genghis Khan, to living as a fisherman during the Opium Wars, and being a teenager on the Red Guard during the cultural revolution--bound to his mysterious "soulmate," spanning one thousand years of betrayal and intrigue.
As the letters continue to appear seemingly out of thin air, Wang becomes convinced that someone is watching him--someone who claims to have known him for over one thousand years. And with each letter, Wang feels the watcher growing closer and closer...
Seamlessly weaving Chinese folklore, history, and literary classics, The Incarnations is a taut and gripping novel that sheds light on the cyclical nature of history as it hints that the past is never truly settled.

Susan Barker is the author of Sayonara Bar and The Orientalist and the Ghost, both longlisted for the Dylan Thomas Prize. She grew up in East London with a Chinese-Malyasian mother and a British father, and studied creative writing at the University of Manchester. She spent several years living in Beijing while working on The Incarnations, and currently lives in the UK.