Notes on 'The Shadow of the Torturer' (1980) by Gene Wolfe (1931-2019)
Gene Wolfe is generally considered one of the greatest sf writers of all time, and with a huge online fanbase devoted to discussing his esoteric texts, it is difficult to underestimate his influence on the sf canon since 1980. His Book of the New Sun (1980-87) series – essentially a single work – is a genre-bending masterpiece of estrangement that deconstructs assumptions of narrative closure. Wolfe’s work strikes a fine balance between fantasy and science fiction, a format that underpins not only the work’s major spiritual and materialist themes, but also its method of estrangement. The first book in the series, The Shadow of the Torturer won the British Science Fiction Award (1981) and the World Fantasy Award (1981).