Brasyl by Ian McDonald

Brasyl

Ian McDonald

A multilayered sci-fi novel set in Brazil over three periods: 1732, 2006 and 2032. Full of lush imagery, it delivers an exciting mix of football, quantum physics, sword fights, religion and reality TV. The frequent use of Portuguese can be tricky but there's a handy glossary to help you out.

Extract
Hot hot hot in skinny-heel knee boots, high-thigh polo neck body, and a cutie little black biker's jacket cut bolero style, Efrim stalks the gafieira. Cidade de Luz is bouncing. This is a wedding gafieira, and they're the best. The open end of Jose's Garage is now the sound stage; the speakers hauled up on engine-tackles. A kid DJ wearing the national flag like Superman's cape spins crowd-pleasers. A roll-screen displays a shifting constellation of patterned lights, the arfids of the gafieira tracked through the Angels of Perpetual Surveillance and displayed as a flock of beauty.
Parallels
  • River of Gods by Ian McDonald
  • The Fountain - the film
  • Jumper - the film