George Saunders Releases Vigil, an Afterlife Novel of Moral Reckoning

Overview

• Random House published George Saunders’s Vigil on January 27, 2026, marking his return to themes of death and liminality.
• The story follows Jill Blaine, a deceased guide who helps dying souls cross over, as she confronts K.J. Boone, a powerful oil executive who resists accountability.
• A figure known as the Frenchman presses for contrition and shame, sharpening the novel’s examination of determinism and moral judgment.
• Jill’s resurfacing human memories introduce questions of identity and atonement without offering tidy answers.
• Critics praise Saunders’s fresh treatment of mortality and ethical ambiguity, with one review wishing for more depictions of Boone in power and another lauding the novel’s brisk, inventive, and affecting approach.