The Fractured Atlas — Five Fragments

I. The Royal Fear. XVI century. Amsterdam. Cooverre (Couvreur), waiting to set sail for England, meets in a tavern a suspicious man who introduces himself as Porsche. The stranger persuades Couvreur to stay for a glass of wine so he can tell him an intriguing story—about more than just their world, and about many others.

II. The Spirit. XX century. The world after the First World War. Seeking rare books is no easy task and brings both physical and moral difficulties—but for Meggs, passionately devoted to his work, that’s no obstacle. Even though he is an outcast in society and smells unpleasant, his ability to find priceless antiquarian treasures brings him an income others can only dream of. One day he finds an old and valuable book that he will soon want to get rid of at any cost.

III. Filth. XX century. The world after the First World War. War spares no one. Even if you survive and return home unharmed, the terrible memories of war remain with you. An old general, convinced of his own rightness, decides to write memoirs to explain the events that took place under his command. He is unhappy with how his actions are perceived by witnesses and by history. The work goes slowly, and when strange, inexplicable happenings begin in his house, the general realizes that everything in the world is connected.

IV. The Stranger in the Unknown. XX century. The world after the First World War. An elderly lawyer hires an experienced detective, Souter, to investigate the disappearance of the wealthy client Lionel Moulding. The disappearance creates many problems for the parties involved—some of whom have opposite desires regarding his fate. During the investigation, Souter discovers a connection between the disappearance and a collection of rare occult books, which leads him to unwanted places.

V. Deep in the Dark. XX century. The world after the First World War. Mr. Quayle believes that the detective Hassard from Scotland Yard is investigating a series of murders too actively—one of the suspects is his own employee. Quayle doesn’t want the police to dig too deeply into his affairs. Although “The Broken Atlas” has already played its part, there are many tasks ahead, and Quayle does not want any interference.