The City of the Plague God
Thirteen-year-old Sikander Aziz is still grieving the older brother he lost when monsters turn up looking for a jar of pickles his family has been quietly guarding. The jar, it turns out, contains an ingredient of the Flower of Immortality, and the one who wants it back is Nergal, the ancient Mesopotamian god of plague, whose arrival in present-day Manhattan is already spreading sickness through the city. With the help of Gilgamesh himself, now retired to the East Village and tending a rooftop garden, Sik is pulled into a fight rooted in thousands of years of myth. Sarwat Chadda's entry in the Rick Riordan Presents line brings Mesopotamian mythology and Iraqi American family life into a warm, funny middle-grade adventure about grief, duty, and what people owe the people they have loved.
Themes & atmosphere
What you might want to know about The City of the Plague God
The questions readers send us most often, answered without spoilers.
Thirteen-year-old Sik Aziz is mostly worried about helping his Iraqi parents at their Manhattan deli, until disease demons attack the shop. Sik finds himself the target of Nergal, the ancient Mesopotamian god of plague.
Yes. The City of the Plague God is part of Disney's Rick Riordan Presents imprint, which publishes mythology-based fantasy by underrepresented authors. It draws on Mesopotamian mythology including Gilgamesh.
Yes. Sarwat Chadda wrote a sequel, City of the Plague God: Beyond the Mountains. The duology is complete.
The City of the Plague God was written by Sarwat Chadda, published in 2020 by Disney Press.
The City of the Plague God is 383 pages in standard print editions, though page counts vary slightly between hardcover, paperback, and large-print formats.
At an average reading pace of about 250 words per minute, The City of the Plague God takes most readers 6 to 8 hours to finish.
The City of the Plague God is a standalone novel by Sarwat Chadda, not part of a series.
The City of the Plague God is available in hardcover, paperback, ebook, and audiobook formats from Amazon, Bookshop.org, ThriftBooks, and most major bookstores.