The Book of the Mad

A surreal gothic fantasy of three nefarious cities: Paradise, Paradis, and Paradys Welcome to Paradise, where the sun hasn't shone for years and a callous, ritual-obsessed populace roams the decayed metropolis enshrouded in fog. The citizens are unhinged, murder and incest are praised, and madness reigns. Only a pair of twins, Felion and Smara, remains sane. But their sole hope of escaping the city is a mysterious ice labyrinth connecting parallel worlds.   Thus begins the sinister finale to the Secret Books of Paradys, in which three alternate versions of one city-Paradise, Paradis, and Paradys-are the layered canvas upon which twisted narratives unfold. In Paradis, Leocadia, a striking and eccentric painter, lives a hedonistic and unremorseful life. She is the sole heir to her uncle's fortune, but the ease of life this affords her becomes a dizzying burden when her lover is murdered and doctors lock her up in an asylum called the Residence. Do the medics want to cure her madness-or do they wish to drive her insane?   Meanwhile, in Paradys, fifteen-year-old Hilde is a pale and perfect child with milk-white skin, ginger hair, and an obedient and loving countenance. But Hilde has a secret nocturnal life, budding sexuality, and lustful heart that becomes irrevocably engorged at the sight of a handsome actor with the face of a priest.   Written in author Tanith Lee's signature style, The Book of the Mad breaks taboos, relishes horror, and conjures the perverse.