Martyr!

A Novel

De: Kaveh Akbar

Narrado por: Arian Moayed

NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • 2025 PEN/Jean Stein Book Award, Long-listed • SHORTLISTED FOR THE NATIONAL BOOK AWARD • ONE OF THE NEW YORK TIMES BOOK REVIEW'S 10 BEST BOOKS OF THE YEAR • A newly sober, orphaned son of Iranian immigrants, guided by the voices of artists, poets, and kings, embarks on a remarkable search for a family secret that leads him to a terminally ill painter living out her final days in the Brooklyn Museum. Electrifying, funny, and wholly original, Martyr! heralds the arrival of an essential new voice in contemporary fiction.

“Kaveh Akbar is one of my favorite writers. Ever.”—Tommy Orange, Pulitzer Prize-nominated author of There There

“The best novel you'll ever read about the joy of language, addiction, displacement, martyrdom, belonging, homesickness.”—Lauren Groff, best-selling author of Matrix and Fates and Furies

Cyrus Shams is a young man grappling with an inheritance of violence and loss: his mother’s plane was shot down over the skies of the Persian Gulf in a senseless accident; and his father’s life in America was circumscribed by his work killing chickens at a factory farm in the Midwest. Cyrus is a drunk, an addict, and a poet, whose obsession with martyrs leads him to examine the mysteries of his past—toward an uncle who rode through Iranian battlefields dressed as the angel of death to inspire and comfort the dying, and toward his mother, through a painting discovered in a Brooklyn art gallery that suggests she may not have been who or what she seemed.

Kaveh Akbar’s Martyr! is a paean to how we spend our lives seeking meaning—in faith, art, ourselves, others.

©2024 Kaveh Akbar (P)2024 Random House Audio

Reseñas de la Crítica

“Incandescent . . . Akbar has created an indelible protagonist, haunted, searching, utterly magnetic. But it speaks to Akbar’s storytelling gifts that Martyr! is both a riveting character study and piercing family saga . . . Akbar is a dazzling writer, with bars like you wouldn't believe . . . What Akbar pulls off in Martyr! is nothing short of miraculous.”—The New York Times Book Review

“A dazzling, thrilling debut novel about identity and loss . . . Martyr! thrillingly depicts why we cobble selves from alloys of words and cultures.”—Minneapolis Star Tribune

“A brilliant and blisteringly alive novel about not just how we go on, but also why. Kaveh Akbar's first novel is so stunning, so wrenching, and so beautifully written that reading it for the first time, I kept forgetting to breathe. I will carry this story, and the people in it, with me for the rest of my life."—John Green, author of The Fault in Our Stars

Transcendent

This story wallows in, kicks at, and ultimately transcends the limits of language to communicate what it is to be in the world. I loved it. Love it. Akbar’s characters all transcend the pain of existence in one way or another, and Martyr!, in the end, becomes an unflinching affirmation of grace. Grateful for Moayed’s performance as well.

Too Many Ideas

The title is very good. It has a great premise and the concept for the story is brilliant. However, the execution slips as the story transitions from one cliche plot odea to the next. It is not predictable but it can be tiring. There are too many ideas. It would be a lot better removing some of the twists in the story or make it a dark comedy and add even more.

The Narrator is excellent and pulls you deep into the story. However, he reads the protagonist with too much if an accent which confuses the description of the character who is supposed to not have an Iranian accent.

living/dying reasons, and meanings.

like many stories that weave in and through time I often need a program or genogram of the characters in the story. Yet, part of not knowing the whole story assists in giving meaning and reasons to their living and dying. Well done.

Ahhhh what a tale

A surprising and ultimately sweet rich story full of so many ideas. I was transported

Inconsistent….

Just when I was about to give up on this book, the next chapter drew me back in, only to repeat the process…

Magical descriptions

This novel took me a bit to get involved in it, but once hooked, I just let go and enjoyed the words so beautifully expressed. Thanks for President Invictive...may I borrow that?

Wow

What did I just read? I have so many questions! The ending though, which way did it end?? Amazing 👏👏👏

Narration

The narrator made this story come alive! The story was wonderful, thanks to Akbar for the expression of ideas and thoughts!

I like the story. How it unfolds

The way the author told his story in such a passionate descriptive way. Beautiful stinging words.

One of my favorite books of late!

Loved this story told of personal struggle and friendship. Strong characters and beautiful writing. Will come back to this book or find others by this author.