Welcome to my weekly segment, Waiting on Wednesday, where I look at upcoming books that I am planning to order and review in the next few months and which I think I will really enjoy. Stay tuned to see reviews of these books when I get a copy of them. For my latest Waiting on Wednesday, I highlight one of my most anticipated fantasy novels of 2026, The Grave of Perfection by Adrian Tchaikovsky.
Over the last few years, I have become a massive fan of the constantly impressive Adrian Tchaikvosky, who is honestly one of the best current writers of fantasy and science fiction. Known for his Shadows of the Apt, Children of Time, Echoes of the Fall and Final Architecture series, as well as several awesome standalone novels, Tchaikovsky has a truly outstanding catalogue of works to his name. I personally have had the pleasure of reading several of his outstanding books, with entries like Service Model (one of my favourite books of 2024), Alien Clay, the novella Orges and the Warhammer 40,000 novel, Day of Ascension (one of my favourite Warhammer 40,000 novels) and more proving to be quite amazing.
However, my absolute favourite works of Tchaikovsky has to be his incredible Tyrant Philosophers series. This gripping, brilliant and highly amusing series is set in a cool fantasy world filled with magic, gods and demons, all of which are being consumed by the Palleseen, an anti-religious empire of perfection-seeking fanatics who have been conquering the world through elaborate military and diplomatic action. The first four books in the series have been quite exceptional, including City of Last Chances and House of Open Wounds (one of my favourite books and audiobooks of 2023), Days of Shattered Faith (one of my favourite books and audiobooks of 2025) and Pretenders to the Throne of God (one of my favourite books and audiobooks from the first half of 2026), as well as the cool novella Lives of Bitter Rain. I really love these elaborate and highly entertaining novels, each one loaded with new settings, which made me very excited for the fifth book in the series The Grave of Perfection.
Set for release in February 2027, The Grave of Perfection will conclude the Tyrant Philosophers series and bring an end to the ongoing storylines. Taking the reader back to first setting of the series, The Grave of Perfection sees all the chaos that has been building up throughout the previous four books coming to a crashing crescendo.
Plot Synopsis:
In the final instalment of the Tyrant Philosophers quintet, award-winning author Adrian Tchaikovsky takes us back to Ilmar, the ‘City of Last Chances’, a decade after our story began. Has the Palleseen campaign to impose ‘perfection’ on a chaotically magical world reached breaking point?
It’s almost ten years since the Gownhall Rising, in which time the Palleseen grip on the city has only strengthened. Landmarks like the Mahanic Temple and even the Gownhall itself have been torn down to be replaced by Palleseen edifices. The Grove, gateway to the infinite wood and all the worlds beyond, is scheduled for destruction. Only the haunted Reproach remains too much for even the Pals to extinguish.
Istri is a playwright, writing plays contrary to perfection and keeping ahead of both the censors and her creditors. In a bad spot, she is commissioned by Fidel, the ‘Old Owl’ of the resistance, to write her last and greatest work. Innocent enough, except it is to be a play touching on the most forbidden topic, the Reproach itself.
Orlandt, soldier of fortune and Istri’s former lover, has been over a decade away from the city since fleeing into the Grove to escape the Pal occupation. Now he’s back, looking for familiar faces. But his past is always with him, what he did in the war, and what was done to him within the Wood.
Yasnic the ex-priest, the conjurer, the beloved of Hell, has come home to find his city under threat not just from the Palleseen, but other sinister sources. Meanwhile the factory demons are working to rule, the old Gownhall site has been occupied by a familiar band of foreign soldiers, and the Palleseen Commission is schisming into mutually-opposed factions whose squabbling has finally reached Ilmar.
As Palleseen control of the city fractures and the terrible details of Fidel’s plan become clear, the destinies of all these disparate groups and individuals are set to collide in a war for the future of Ilmar, and of the whole Palleseen Sway.
Well now, this sounds particularly epic. I always knew that the final Tyrant Philosophers book was going to be amazing, but the plot for The Grave of Perfection has a lot of cool details to it that I’m excited for. Watching the inevitable fall of the Palleseen start at the city of Ilmar, which was the setting of the first entry in the series, is going to be amazing, and I’m really keen to see how much has changed since the events of the first book, especially as there have been wars, revolutions and schisms. It sounds like Tchaikovsky intends to reintroduce this entire city again and then bring everything crashing down, which is something I’m extremely excited to witness. Everything above hints at a particularly cool story for The Grave of Perfection and it’s one I’m keen to read.
In addition to the awesome plot notes hinted above, I’m also very intrigued in seeing all the excellent character-driven story arcs in The Grave of Perfection unfold. The above synopsis hints at a lot of compelling characters that will be featured in this book, including a mixture of familiar faces and new protagonists, and I have no doubt there will be some brilliantly moving and complex storylines contained within. Of particular interest to me is the return of Yasnic, who has served as the main recurring protagonist of this series. A lot has happened to Yasnic since his first appearance, such as losing his religion and finding love in the very worst of places, and it will be fascinating to see what happens when he returns home with all his new skills and confidence. After breaking our hearts with Yasnic’s plight in previous books, I’m a little worried about what Tchaikovsky has planned for the character in this final Tyrant Philosophers novel, but I am sure it will be engrossing and highly emotional no matter what.
After powering through all four previous books in this series, I can guarantee that I will be reading Adrian Tchaikovsky’s The Grave of Perfection the very second it is released next year. There is no way that Tchaikovsky isn’t pulling together another complex and emotionally charged story, and I cannot wait to see all the clever twists and unique plot threads that come together into a beautiful complete narrative. The Grave of Perfection will likely end up being one of my favourite books (and audiobooks depending on what format I read it in) of 2027, and I cannot wait to read this epic upcoming book.