Book review of The Iron Garden Sutra by A.D. Sui

A.D. Sui’s The Iron Garden Sutra is a riveting locked-door mystery set in one of the most terrifying of places—an abandoned ship drifting through space. When Vessel Iris, a death monk with the Starlit Order, is assigned to the Counsel of Nicaea to help its long-dead residents pass on, he’s surprised to learn that the ship is actually teeming with life, from vines and flowers and fruit orchards to a group of academics who are studying it. Any confusion Iris may have had about his assignment, though, is put aside when members of the group are picked off one by one in a series of violent deaths. Trapped in a hostile spacecraft with limited supplies, the survivors must uncover the murderer.

Sui, a 2025 Nebula Award winner for the novella “The Dragonfly Gambit,” excels at immersing readers in this world of bustling space stations, ascetic monasteries and an eerie spaceship. Despite the death surrounding him, Iris is fascinated by the ship’s many secrets, from its rainforest and orchards to the ancient humans’ preoccupation with weapons and violence. He isn’t used to connecting well with other people at the monastery of the Starlit Order, but he might have a chance at developing a friendship—or more—with his fellow academic passengers. 

Iris is flawed yet relatable, and his verbal self-flagellation drops clues about why he pursued being a monk, what physical and mental trauma he is hiding and his motivations for helping the dead move on from this world. His ever-present AI, VIFAI, is full of sharp observations and fun quips, even as its integration brings up questions of the ethics of AI implantations. Sui weaves every character’s personality so deftly that there is an emotional pang each time a cast member exits the stage. 

The Iron Garden Sutra confronts some of the most difficult questions about death’s manner and timing, not to mention the respect and care we can provide for the souls of those who have been taken by it. Vessel Iris might be a death monk and a shepherd to what comes after, but on this ship he is trying his best to live another day in a way he never anticipated.