The Gods of Heavenly Punishment: A Novel

"Showcases war’s bitter ironies…as well as its romantic serendipities." —Vogue

One summer night in prewar Japan, eleven-year-old Billy Reynolds takes snapshots at his parents’ dinner party. That same evening his father Anton—a prominent American architect—begins a torrid affair with the wife of his master carpenter. A world away in New York, Cameron Richards rides a Ferris wheel with his sweetheart and dreams about flying a plane. These three men will all draw together to shape the fate of a young girl caught in the midst of one of World War II’s most horrific events—the 1945 firebombing of Tokyo

Exquisitely rendered, The Gods of Heavenly Punishment tells the stories of families on both sides of the Pacific: their loves and infidelities, their dreams and losses—and their shared connection to one of the most devastating acts of war in human history.

© 2025 W. W. Norton & Company (E-bog): 9780393089738

Release date

E-bog: 25. april 2025