The Dead Cat Tail Assassins

by P. Djèlí Clark

Overview

Notes From Your Bookseller

Blending the Black American experience with dark and fantastical folklore, The Dead Cat Tail Assassins delves into a steampunk realm with dynamic action sequences, subtle humor and unrelenting stakes. You'll rejoice in the ups and feel the fullness of the downs in this epic and wholly unique journey.

The Dead Cat Tail Assassins are not cats.

Nor do they have tails.

But they are most assuredly dead.

Nebula and Alex Award winner P. Djèlí Clark introduces a brand-new world and a fantastical city full of gods and assassins.

An NPR "Books We Love" choice of 2024, Indie Next Pick, LibraryReads Top Ten Selection, Southern Independent Booksellers Alliance Selection, and Best-Of Book according to BookRiot, and ALA/YALSA Alex Award winner

Eveen the Eviscerator is skilled, discreet, professional, and here for your most pressing needs in the ancient city of Tal Abisi. Her guild is strong, her blades are sharp, and her rules are simple. Those sworn to the Matron of Assassins—resurrected, deadly, wiped of their memories—have only three unbreakable vows.

First, the contract must be just. That’s above Eveen’s pay grade.

Second, even the most powerful assassin may only kill the contracted. Eveen’s a professional. She’s never missed her mark.

The third and the simplest: once you accept a job, you must carry it out. And if you stray? A final death would be a mercy. When the Festival of the Clockwork King turns the city upside down, Eveen’s newest mission brings her face-to-face with a past she isn’t supposed to remember and a vow she can’t forget.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781250767042
Publisher:	Tor Publishing Group
Publication date:	08/06/2024
Pages:	224
Sales rank:	77,434
Product dimensions:	8.10(w) x 5.30(h) x 0.80(d)

About the Author

Born in New York and raised mostly in Houston, P. DJÈLÍ CLARK (he/him) spent part of his childhood in Trinidad and Tobago, the homeland of his parents. He is the author of the novel A Master of Djinn and the novellas Ring Shout, The Black God’s Drums, and The Haunting of Tram Car 015. He has won the Nebula, Locus, and Alex Awards and been nominated for the Hugo, World Fantasy, and Sturgeon Awards. His stories have appeared in online venues such as Tor.com, Daily Science Fiction, Heroic Fantasy Quarterly, Apex, Lightspeed, Beneath Ceaseless Skies, and in print anthologies, including Griots, Hidden Youth, and Clockwork Cairo. He is also a founding member of FIYAH Magazine of Black Speculative Fiction and an infrequent reviewer at Strange Horizons.

Editorial Reviews

"Clark has created another memorable and intriguing fantasy setting in this fast-paced novella, which will be a hit with fans and newcomers alike."—Booklist, starred review

"This wildly surprising caper fantasy from Clark (A Master of Djinn) will keep readers on the edge of their seats working out who “dunit,” and how and why, as they explore the gritty underbelly of this world of living contracts, dead gods, and legal necromancy, reminiscent of Max Gladstone’s “Craft Sequence” and “Craft Wars” series. This will appeal to all lovers of urban fantasy."—Library Journal, starred review

"Author P. Djèlí Clark is on “auto-buy” for me. If he has a book available, I’ll purchase it. This book is a little lighter and a whole lot funnier than his other fare, but it still hits that same high-quality mark. In the city of Tal Abisi lives Eveen the Eviscerator, an unkillable assassin with a very particular set of skills. Skills she has acquired over a very long career. Skills that make her a nightmare for the people at the pointy ends of her blades. All except for one teenage girl she can’t bring herself to kill. When she fails to complete her contract, it kicks off a series of twisty, sinister events involving patriarchal jerks, edgelords getting their comeuppance, a pissed-off goddess and wibbly-wobbly, timey-wimey strangeness."—NPR

"Well crafted, exciting, darkly comic, and just gory enough."—Kirkus

"A breath of fresh air. . . Heart-pounding and quick-witted. . . . Eveen and Sky might be in a race against time, but you’ll wish their quest would go on forever."—BookPage

"Clark’s plot moves at a breakneck clip with quick wit, offbeat characters, and plenty of intrigue. This is pure entertainment."—Publishers Weekly

​"The richness of detail that Clark provides gives the whole thing something of the flavor of a hardboiled mystery set in New Orleans during Mardi Gras. . . . Clark is adept at balancing his central mystery with quirky character development and enough witty details to suggest that Tal Abisi has its own versions of science and pop culture. . . . In short, Tal Abisi is far more textured than a generic fantasy stage setting, just as Eveen is far more complex than most of those lurking assassins who have become nearly an archetype of fantasy novels and games.​"—​Locus

“In this stiletto-sharp book, Clark’s prose is as tight and efficient as it has been throughout his career, replacing the genre’s penchant for over-articulation with wit and incisiveness. . . If you, like me, prefer your dark fantasy to focus on the clever and subtle construction of its world, The Dead Cat Tail Assassins has much to sink your teeth into. And yes, there are also magic swords, walking, skeletal monstrosities, necromancy, poison, high magic, and explosions. Take your pick.”—Ancillary Review of Books

“I first discovered P. Djèlí Clark’s work via his Dead Djinn Universe, and have been a happy follower of his work ever since. I was especially looking forward to trying this new novella, given how much I’ve enjoyed his past work. This book introduces a new world/setting, and it is excellent . . . . it exceeded my high expectations.”—Civilian Reader

Praise for P. Djèlí Clark

"A breathtaking tale of cities, spirits, friendship, and society.”—Daniel José Older on A Master of Djinn

“A thrilling and provocative inferno of a story."—Tochi Onyebuchi on Ring Shout

“P. Djèlí Clark couldn't write a bad book if he tried.”—Victor LaValle on Ring Shout

“Slyly told and laced with dark humor, this haunting tale pulled me into a richly realized world I didn't want to leave.”—Rivers Solomon on Ring Shout

“A clever, wickedly fun steampunk mystery with an excellent balance of humor and heart.” - S. A. Chakraborty on A Master of Djinn

“A fantastical, brutal and thrilling triumph of the imagination."—The New York Times, Editor's Choice, on Ring Shout

“What a wonderful world P. Djélì Clark has created.”—NPR on the Dead Djinn Universe

“This is a story of Black female power, drawn from both the old and new worlds, a tale that honors the Black American experience in all its complexity, and yet also delivers in its Lovecraftian delight.” —Library Journal, starred review, on Ring Shout

“Brutal and hopeful, farcical and factual."—Justina Ireland on Ring Shout

"Explodes into vivid color with a voice that's both joyous and harrowing."—Bethany C. Morrow on Ring Shout

“With its richly imagined world and characters and its high-stakes and thrilling plot, this novel would make such a fantastic show in the vein of The Nevers and Carnival Row, but better.”—Buzzfeed on A Master of Djinn

"Lush and magical."—Kwame Mbalia on Abeni’s Song

“Cinematic action, a radical reimagining of real history, and magic on every page.”—Alix E. Harrow on A Master of Djinn

"Simply unlike anything else in the field. An astonishing adventure that managed to thrill, scare, and delight, all while telling a story that is beautifully complicated and moving."—Mark Oshiro, award winning author of Anger is a Gift on Abeni's Song

From the Publisher

★ 02/01/2024

They're not cats and don't have tails, but the Dead Cat Tail Assassins are indeed dead. Their sworn duty to their goddess is to put their contracted victims into that same condition—or spend eternity under torture. But someone has a grudge against Eveen the Eviscerator and personally commissions her for a contract that she won't be able to fulfill. That this unknown manipulator has bent, if not broken, all the rules between the gods, their sworn avatars, and the multiverse in which they all live is just one piece of a huge puzzle that Eveen has only until morning to solve. But she's the best at what she does, and she'll have assistance from the one person who can help her the most—her once and possibly future self. VERDICT This wildly surprising caper fantasy from Clark (A Master of Djinn) will keep readers on the edge of their seats working out who "dunit," and how and why, as they explore the gritty underbelly of this world of living contracts, dead gods, and legal necromancy, reminiscent of Max Gladstone's "Craft Sequence" and "Craft Wars" series. This will appeal to all lovers of urban fantasy.—Marlene Harris

Library Journal

Lynnette R. Freeman narrates a fantasy featuring assassins and gods. Eveen is a member of the Dead Cat Tail Assassins Guild, and one of the best assassins in the city of Tal Abisi. When her newest commission puts her in an unforeseen quandary, she must use all her wits to survive. Freeman's narration highlights the shifts between drama and the humor in Eveen's story: an action-packed fight scene smoothly gives way to a witty and sarcastic reflection on life, while a grim torture scene unexpectedly becomes an opportunity to bond with a new friend. When Eveen must bargain for her life with two goddesses, both of whom are intent on seeing her dead, Freeman's performance is breathtaking, hitting emotional notes that range from anger to resignation and to glee. K.M.P. © AudioFile 2024, Portland, Maine

SEPTEMBER 2024 - AudioFile

2024-02-03
An undead assassin seeks to get out of an impossible contract.

If a writer introduces three unbreakable laws (or in this case, vows), it’s because they intend a character to break at least one of them. Eveen is a member of the Dead Cat Tail Assassins; when still alive, she promised her afterlife existence to the goddess Aeril, Matron of Assassins. Resurrected without any memory, she has vowed only to accept just contracts, never kill anyone she’s not contracted for, and always carry out the hit. But on the night of Tal Abisi’s Festival, Eveen runs into a conflict with vow number three: The target appears to be her younger self, Sky, pulled out of time. If she goes through with the contract, Eveen might blink out of existence; if she doesn’t, Aeril will certainly punish her (and anyone connected to her) with a fate worse than death. Someone has clearly targeted Eveen for a nasty piece of revenge, and she’s only got until dawn to find the mastermind and figure out a contract loophole, all while keeping Sky safe and dodging the assassins from her own guild, who intend to carry out the contract and stave off Aeril’s wrath. Like the creations of the Clockwork King, whose defeat is celebrated during the festival, the plot’s gears click along in a somewhat predictable and yet marvelous fashion; even if the reader can figure out where the story is likely to go, the payoff is fun and the journey is full of action and amusing dialogue. Eveen is a delightful character, trying to seize what joy and remnants of her moral compass she can. She’s obviously bothered by not knowing what happened in her mortal life that led her to strike a bargain with Aeril; that concern comes to the fore when she encounters the innocent Sky, who can’t comprehend how she would ever become someone like Eveen. Clark wisely doesn’t answer all our questions on that front. The idea that the relationship between mortals and the divine could be founded on a legal contract rather than faith seems to be a favored concept of more than one fantasy author (most prominently, Max Gladstone), but there’s still juice in that trope.

Well crafted, exciting, darkly comic, and just gory enough.

Kirkus Reviews