Penric and the Bandit
core novella 2024 World of the Five Gods
Record
| First published | 2024 |
|---|---|
| Original language |  EN |
| Work type | novella |
| Canon status | core |
| Reader rating | 4.50 (3,465 ratings, collected 2026-09-13) |
| Page count | 123 |
| First-edition ISBN | 9798874866594 |
| Internal chronology | 15 |
Synopsis
A road-weary bandit named Rozakajin spots what looks like an easy target at a country inn: a traveler carrying what appears to be a treasure map. Deciding to attach himself to this seemingly unremarkable man, Rozakajin soon learns that his mark is Penric, a Temple sorcerer who is never quite as alone or as vulnerable as he first seems. What begins as a simple robbery attempt grows more complicated as old enemies from the bandit's past catch up with him, drawing Rozakajin into a situation far stranger and more dangerous than he anticipated when he chose his target. The novella follows the uneasy partnership that forms between the bandit and the sorcerer as circumstances force them to rely on one another, with Rozakajin discovering just how far out of his depth he has wandered.
Where it sits
- Universe: World of the Five Gods
- Series: Penric & Desdemona core; position 13 of 16 in the series' recorded order
- Author: Lois McMaster Bujold
Notes
- From the series record (Penric & Desdemona): 16 novellas (2015-2026); publication order diverges from the author's own stated internal chronological order (recorded via internal chronology). Set roughly 150 years after The Hallowed Hunt and roughly 100 years before the Chalion novels. Classified Core Canon (not Expanded) because the novellas are marketed/sold as their own numbered series, are narratively load-bearing rather than side content, and the Hugo voting body treated them as full constituent parts of the universe when awarding the 2018 Hugo Best Series to the whole World of the Five Gods.
Neighbouring works
Publication order and internal chronology are tracked as two separate orderings and are never conflated: a book's place in one says nothing about its place in the other.
- Publication order, within the series Penric & Desdemona: position 13 of 16: previous Demon Daughter (2024) · next The Adventure of the Demonic Ox (2025)
- Internal chronology, within World of the Five Gods: position 15 of 19: previous Demon Daughter (2024) · next The Adventure of the Demonic Ox (2025)
Sources
← World of the Five Gods dossier · All universes
Part of the Library. Fields without an identified source are omitted, never guessed.