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The Causal Angel

2014 novel by Hannu Rajaniemi

Manuscripts, fine bindings, an engraving plate and preserved performance ephemera
Arts and lettersInterpretive dossier study · Crown Archives visual atlas
Record originEnglish Wikipedia
Text licenseCC BY-SA 4.0
Source revisionJun 6, 2026
Entity authorityQ18205890
Source-derived summary

The Causal Angel is the third science fiction novel by Hannu Rajaniemi featuring the protagonist Jean le Flambeur. It was published in July 2014 by Gollancz in the UK and by Tor in the US. The novel is the finale of a trilogy. The previous novels in the series are The Quantum Thief (2010) and The Fractal Prince (2012).

Synopsis

After the events of The Fractal Prince, Jean le Flambeur and Mieli are separated and their sentient spacecraft Perhonen is destroyed. The two protagonists, each in their own way, struggle to decide where their loyalties lie and how to proceed in the catastrophically altered situation. Meanwhile, the Solar System is plummeting into an all-out war of unprecedented scale and consequence. The most powerful factions, the Sobornost and the Zoku, are gathering their forces and making their plays, while simultaneously being torn apart by internal strifes.

Editorial summary

This brief starts where responsible research should: with the source description of “The Causal Angel” as 2014 novel by Hannu Rajaniemi. Everything that follows is an evidence route, not borrowed authority.

Editorial reviewA productive route into publication, performance and collection histories when the underlying object or edition remains clearly identified. The current lead gives the account dated anchors—2014, 2010, 2012—that can be checked directly. The linked authority record independently contributes the date 2014-07. The account is most persuasive where Causal, Angel and novel can be independently traced.
Editorial analysis

Why this record matters

The subject matters to the arts & letters register because the source frames it as 2014 novel by Hannu Rajaniemi. Its deeper value depends on whether names, dates, institutions and citations support that framing.

Evidence profile

Reception evidence should be dated and situated: later canonical status may differ sharply from the work’s initial circulation. The source revision retrieved here is dated Jun 6, 2026. The linked authority identifier is Q18205890. 1 of 1 selected statements include explicit references; 0 carry qualifiers and 0 use preferred rank. The first chronological checks are 2014, 2010 and 2012.

Critical limits

Rights, attribution and provenance may remain disputed even when a general reference summary presents a stable account. The lead is largely declarative, so disagreement and counter-evidence require a deliberate search beyond the opening account. Authority statements aid reconciliation but still require their own references, qualifiers and ranks to be checked.

How to read it

Separate the work, its editions or performances, and its later reception. Catalogue records, publication histories and object files often preserve different parts of that story.

Best used for
  • Identifying works and editions
  • Tracing reception history
  • Finding collection records
Verify next

The original object or edition, catalogue raisonné, performance record, rights file and holding institution.

Three-step research path

  1. Establish the record: confirm the title “The Causal Angel”, its source revision and the description used here.
  2. Expand the search: follow The Causal Angel primary sources, The Causal Angel archive and Causal research across catalogues and specialist indexes.
  3. Test the account: compare the strongest cited source with the responsible institution’s current record and note any disagreement.

Questions for further research

  1. Which source most directly establishes the central claim about “The Causal Angel”?
  2. Which edition, object, performance or recording is being described?
  3. Where is authorship, date or provenance documented?
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Source & attribution

This entry incorporates text from The Causal Angel” on English Wikipedia. Contributors are listed in the page history. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Selected authority identifiers and statements are retrieved from Wikidata under CC0; their references and qualifiers remain part of the verification path.