"Paralkar merges folklore and fable, meditative commentary and meticulous detail . . . Each nameless character is drawn with psychological depth and layered motivations. Paralkar, a physician-scientist, melds medical realism and metaphysical debate, wry humor and somber observations to create a riveting and intriguing tale." —Booklist

"Fablelike tale that melds the philosophical with the corporeal . . . Paralkar’s novel underscores the arbitrary nature of death, the fact that one can neither prepare for it nor, perhaps, cheat one’s way out of it . . . Grotesque, strange, and hopeful in turns, the novel will leave readers marveling at the mysteries of death—and the wonders of life." —Publishers Weekly

"Otherworldly . . . [Paralkar's] prose is sharp and melodious, and within these enchanting passages is a haunting contemplation of life, death, the liminal space in between, and the dogged search for resurrection . . . A beguiling and unforgettable fable." —Kirkus Reviews (starred review)

"Yes, Night Theater is an exquisite fable about what we need and what we want, and a beautiful meditation on what it means to be alive. But it reads like an urgent thriller, full of characters pumping with blood and guts, twisting and turning and twisting again. This novel actually kept me up all night and then some, clutching my mortality, listening to my heartbeat, drawing that line between the living and the dead until it blurred." —Aja Gabel, author of The Ensemble

“Night Theater is mesmerizing, strange, and frightening. Paralkar masterfully captures the thrill and desperation of humanity’s oldest struggle—to escape death itself.” —Peng Shepherd, author of The Book of M

"A haunting, hallucinatory fable, Night Theater wrestles with the deepest mysteries of morality, death, and the afterlife." —Rachel Heng, author of Suicide Club

"Night Theater hypnotized me, held me on the line between life and death, perfectly grotesque in its discussion of the body, perfectly heady in its depiction of the afterlife. Paralkar has created my favorite kind of story: morbid, magical, and enthralling." —Sarah Blake, author of Naamah

"In rural India an unnamed surgeon uncovers old secrets: What do angels look like? Why are tears denied to the dead? Is the afterlife run by bureaucrats? The surgeon’s indifference to death is like God’s, only more terrifying because it is human. I read this book in a single addictive sitting. It will stay with me for a long time." —Jeet Thayil, author of the Booker Prize–short-listed Narcopolis

"Haunting and irresistible. I cannot wait for you to read this book." —Wayétu Moore, author of She Would Be King