The Steel Seraglio“A confident One Thousand and One Nights for our present . . . Furious pop entertainment—full of sex, passion, violence, and magic” (Slant Magazine). The sultan Bokhari Al-Bokhari of Bessa has 365 concubines—until a violent coup puts the city in the hands of the religious zealot Hakkim Mehdad. Hakkim has no use for the pleasures of the flesh: He condemns the women first to exile and then to death. Cast into the desert, the concubines must rely on themselves and each other to escape from the new sultan’s fanatical pursuit. But their goals go beyond mere survival: With the aid of the champions who emerge from among them, they intend to topple the usurper and retake Bessa from the repressive power that now controls it. The assassin, Zuleika, whose hands are weapons. The seer, Rem, whose tears are ink. The wise Gursoon, who was the dead sultan’s canniest advisor. The camel-thief, Anwar Das, who offers his lying tongue to the concubines’ cause. Together, they must forge the women of the harem into an army, a seraglio of steel, and use it to conquer a city. But even if they succeed, their troubles will just be beginning—because their most dangerous enemy is within their own number. “The Steel Seraglio is not a work of feminist or utopian theory. Nor is it a historical fantasy, a romance, a thriller, a poem, an allegory, or an epic. Rather, somehow, it is all of these things.” —Neon Magazine “A masterful, engaging and utterly fascinating story by three wonderful writers.” —SF Revu |
Contents
COVER | |
Bokhari AlBokhari and His ThreeHundredandSixty | |
The Tale of the Dancing Girl | |
The Cup Lands Upright Part the First | |
The Tale of the Girl Her Father Her Two Suitors | |
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Common terms and phrases
Agorath Al-Bokhari Anwar Anwar Das arms army Ascetics Ashraf asked assassin bandits began Bessa Bethi Bokhari Caliph camels City of Women city’s concubines dark death desert didn’t djinni En-Sadim eyes face Farhat father feet fell felt Fernoush fight fire Fouad gates gaze gift girl guard Gursoon Hakkim Mehdad hand head heard Ibu Kim Imad-Basur Imtisar Increate Issi Jamal Jidur kill knew lady Librarian Lion’s live looked man’s marabout messenger Mike Carey mother moved Mushin Nabeeb never night nodded Nussau once palace Perdondaris Rashad Rem’s sand Sasim scrolls seemed seraglio silence Silmon soldiers Soraya speak spoke stared stone stood story sultan Susurrut sword tanbur tears tent there’s they’re things thought told took turned Umayma voice waited walked walls Warudu watched woman women words young Yrtsus Zeinab Zufir Zuleika