Dead, and furious.The afterlife she’s been taught about just doesn’t exist. There are only the brutal caverns of the Depths, deep underground – and the tightly controlled gates that protect the paradise of the Azure. In return for a life of safety, Alex is forced into the Depths as a spy for the tyrannical Azure leader.But Alex soon discovers that the Depths isn’t quite the nightmare she anticipated. Among the memory-leeching monsters and decadent all-night parties, she manages to find friends in the chaos. Friends that introduce her to the mysterious Flynn Cooper – right-hand man to the ruler of the Depths. As her spy mission derails and devastating secrets are revealed, Alex realizes that she needs to pick a side. But she’s no longer sure which one is right – or if a right side exists at all.

    

    Reflecting on his childhood in the early 20th century, Harley recounts that after his father’s sudden death, his family migrated down to Florida’s swamplands—mere miles away from what would become Disney World—to join a community of Shakers. Led by Elder John, a generous man with a mysterious past, the colony devoted itself to labor, faith, and charity, rejecting all temptations that lay beyond the property. Though this way of life initially saved Harley and his family from complete ruin, when Harley began falling in love with Sadie Pratt, a consumptive patient living on the grounds, his loyalty to the Shakers and their conservative worldview grew strained and, ultimately, broke. As Harley dictates his story across more than half-a-century—meditating on youth, Florida’s everchanging landscape, and the search for an American utopia—the truth about Sadie, Elder John, and the Shakers comes to light, clarifying the past and present alike. A dazzling tapestry of love and faith, memory and imagination, The Magic Kingdom questions what it means to look back and accept one’s place in history. With an expert eye and stunning vision, Russell Banks delivers a wholly captivating portrait of a man navigating Americana and the passage of time.