Title:

The Vanisher's Palace

Author:

Aliette de Bodard

Category:

Science Fiction / Fantasy

Rating:

Date Reviewed:

January 15, 2026

his novella, The Vanisher's Palace, packs so many new ideas into the opening pages that I wondered if I had picked up a book that was part of a series, and that I had somehow skipped the preceding volume(s). Nope. This is a stand-alone novella. de Bodard throws a lot at the reader at the start, and there are some impressive ideas there.

de Bodard has imagined a world that was corrupted by the Vanishers. They were ultra-powerful, amoral beings who were so advanced that they could distort reality - walls and doorways didn't have to obey the laws of physics. The Vanishers were also careless and cruel. Now they have left (hence the name: The Vanishers), but they left behind a corrupted planet (called Broken-World by its residents) that struggles with toxins, magical spells and distorted reality. The humans that cling to existence suffer from diseases and alien disruptions. One of these humans eking out an existence is Yên. Yên's mother is a healer, but there is only so much that can be done when faced with Vanisher plagues. Unfortunately, the village girl Oanh has contracted an alien virus that is beyond Yên's mother's ability to cure. Oanh is fated to die an early death.

Spells are cast by saying four magic words. These words appear as silvery words that float in the air. Fish, river, gate, storm - Yên's mom speaks the spell that will summon a powerful dragon, and despite the doubts of the elders, a dragon does appear, a vast shape-shifting creature that can appear as a human or a long sinuous magic beast. The dragon is Vu Côn, and indeed she does have the ability to cure Oanh, but nothing is free. As payment for saving Oanh, the dragon claims Yên as her own. Yên is carried back to a huge, dangerous building constructed by the Vanishers. The dragon lives amongst these ruins, where danger lurks behind many a doorway and the laws of physics were warped according to the whims of the Vanishers. This giant structure is, of course, the Vanisher's Palace from the book title.

Yên thinks that the dragon is taking her back to the palace to eat her. But knowing Yên's scholarly background, Vu Côn plans to use her as a tutor. Living with Vu Côn in the palace are two hatchlings, Thông and Liên. They were discovered years ago in the hatchery - Vu Côn has been raising them as if they were her own offspring. Yên is assigned the task of teaching these two youngsters. Vu Côn has been schooling the two on her own, but since Yên is a trained scholar, Vu Côn assumes that she is better suited to tutor Thông and Liên.

It was not at all clear to me how old Thông and Liên are compared to Yên - although they respectfully address as Teacher, it seemed that they were about the same age. Nor could I determine how old Vu Côn was - I think she was a Vanisher construct, the last of her kind, and if the Vanishers departed decades or centuries ago, doesn't that imply Vu Côn is immensely old?

The world building was the best part of this book - a world wrecked by Vanisher poisons and careless altering of physic laws. The vast, deadly palace was impressive. The spells of silvery spoken words are cool. But while descriptions of places and people were well done, the plot was confusing (half the time it seems as if the dragon is merely wispy clouds, or only part human, part dragon). I listed some of my bewilderment in the spoilers.