We Lived on the Horizon, Erika Swyler
We Lived on the Horizon, Erika Swyler
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We Lived on the Horizon

Author: Erika Swyler

Narrator: Shiromi Arserio

Unabridged: 12 hr 37 min

Format: Digital Audiobook Download

Published: 01/14/2025


Synopsis

A bio-prosthetic surgeon and her personal AI are drawn into a revolution in this “haunting, suspenseful, and nuanced look at the future we may already be barreling toward” (Esquire) from the author of The Book of Speculation.

The city of Bulwark is aptly named: a walled city built to protect and preserve the people who managed to survive a series of great cataclysms, Bulwark was founded on a system where sacrifice is rewarded by the AI that runs the city. Over generations, an elite class has evolved from the descendants of those who gave up the most to found mankind’s last stronghold, called the Sainted.

Saint Enita Malovis, long accustomed to luxury, knows that the end of her life is near. As the lone practitioner of bio-prosthetics, Enita is determined to preserve her legacy and decides to create a physical being, called Nix, filled with her knowledge and experience. In the midst of her project, a fellow Sainted is brutally murdered and the city AI inexplicably erases the event from its data. Soon, Enita and Nix are drawn into the growing war that could change everything between Bulwark’s hidden underclass and the programs that impose and maintain order.

“Singularly stunning and stunningly singular” (Kirkus Reviews, starred review), We Lived on the Horizon is a “powerhouse” (Publishers Weekly, starred review) that grapples with concepts as varied as the human desire for utopia, body horror, and what the future holds for humanity and machine alike.

About Erika Swyler

Erika Swyler is the bestselling author of the novels Light from Other Stars, The Book of Speculation, and We Lived on the Horizon. Her essays and short fiction have appeared in CatapultLitHubThe New York Times, and elsewhere. A graduate of NYU’s Tisch School of the Arts, she lives on Long Island, New York, with her husband and a mischievous house rabbit.


Reviews

Goodreads review by Sarah on January 17, 2025

I think there is a really great novella hiding in here. I’m conflicted about this one. There are good points about it. The characters were a highlight for me. I cared about what happened to them even though I’m not sure they’ll end up being the most memorable. The world building was interesting (with......more

Goodreads review by Trisha on January 13, 2025

Interesting story that got a bit bogged down in details and dialogue. This was a fascinating story to start but a very slow slog to get going. I loved learning about Elena and her skin-stitch business. Neren's body martyr details were a bit murkier but I slowly did learn what it meant and still shook......more

Goodreads review by Bam cooks the books on May 04, 2025

**Mother-and-Daughters Book Club Read for May, 2025** *3-3.5 stars. This is an odd novel of speculative fiction set in some future world where humans live in a protective walled city which is run by AI. There is a hierarchy to their society. Some are called the Sainted: they are those whose ancestors......more

Goodreads review by Andrea on February 04, 2025

I loved this. It's hard to even pin down the influences -- maybe a bit of Frankenstein, but both the monster and the doctor are sympathetic. The women protagonists are so well done, cranky and heroic with blindspots, good intentions, and terrible outcomes. A thoughtful exploration of power dynamics,......more

Goodreads review by tonya_with_an_o on December 02, 2024

Erika Swyler first captivated me when I stumbled across a copy of her novel The Book of Speculation. I fell deep in love with her words, her characters, and the world she made me appreciate a tiny bit more. Something you should know about reading Swyler's work is that no two pieces are twins, sister......more