What do you think?
Rate this book
The Tavern at the End of History
Not yet published
Expected 10 Feb 26Over a span of five days, two strangers find themselves in a sea-rocked sanitarium on the coast of Maine where, as they gather at an auction for a piece of art stolen in the Second World War, they must reckon with the wounds of inheritance: shame, displacement, and the longing of exiles.
Jacob, grandson of a Holocaust survivor, son of refugees, has lived his life overshadowed by the grief of others. His mistakes have cost him his job and his marriage. So when he meets Baer, an impoverished Holocaust survivor looking for help, Jacob sees an opportunity to redeem himself.
But what Baer wants won’t be easy. A piece of art given to him as a boy—and that disappeared during the war—has resurfaced and is about to go up for auction in a secluded sanitarium for Holocaust survivors and their families on an island off the coast of Maine. The head of the sanitarium is Alex Baruch, a disgraced writer and Kabbalist whose memoir about surviving the Holocaust has been denounced as fraudulent. Baer asks Jacob to go to the auction with his niece, Rachel, and steal back the piece.
Rachel carries grief of her own. She’s mourning her husband, a young Jew trying to separate himself from his ultra-orthodox community, and instead of living the artist's life she dreamed, she’s working in a museum basement answering questions on the phone about paintings she can’t see. Grieving and guilty, she’s eager for an impossible quest.
Together, Rachel and Jacob head to the sanitarium, where they find Baruch and his community of odd and broken souls. But two nights before the auction, in the midst of a storm, a stranger appears—an old man, a ghost or a dybbuk, or just a survivor of the European catastrophe—bearing a secret. As the line between forgery and authenticity blurs, Rachel and Jacob, Baruch and his followers must face the claims the dead make on the living, in a surreal reckoning with the past where no one is who they say they are, but everyone may be telling the truth.
Recalling the warmth and humor of Nicole Krauss and Joshua Cohen, and the wild collage of history and fantasy of Bruno Schulz and Olga Tokarczuk, The Tavern at the End of History is a deeply felt exploration of grief, love, and identity in the long shadow of twentieth-century calamity.
Jacob, grandson of a Holocaust survivor, son of refugees, has lived his life overshadowed by the grief of others. His mistakes have cost him his job and his marriage. So when he meets Baer, an impoverished Holocaust survivor looking for help, Jacob sees an opportunity to redeem himself.
But what Baer wants won’t be easy. A piece of art given to him as a boy—and that disappeared during the war—has resurfaced and is about to go up for auction in a secluded sanitarium for Holocaust survivors and their families on an island off the coast of Maine. The head of the sanitarium is Alex Baruch, a disgraced writer and Kabbalist whose memoir about surviving the Holocaust has been denounced as fraudulent. Baer asks Jacob to go to the auction with his niece, Rachel, and steal back the piece.
Rachel carries grief of her own. She’s mourning her husband, a young Jew trying to separate himself from his ultra-orthodox community, and instead of living the artist's life she dreamed, she’s working in a museum basement answering questions on the phone about paintings she can’t see. Grieving and guilty, she’s eager for an impossible quest.
Together, Rachel and Jacob head to the sanitarium, where they find Baruch and his community of odd and broken souls. But two nights before the auction, in the midst of a storm, a stranger appears—an old man, a ghost or a dybbuk, or just a survivor of the European catastrophe—bearing a secret. As the line between forgery and authenticity blurs, Rachel and Jacob, Baruch and his followers must face the claims the dead make on the living, in a surreal reckoning with the past where no one is who they say they are, but everyone may be telling the truth.
Recalling the warmth and humor of Nicole Krauss and Joshua Cohen, and the wild collage of history and fantasy of Bruno Schulz and Olga Tokarczuk, The Tavern at the End of History is a deeply felt exploration of grief, love, and identity in the long shadow of twentieth-century calamity.
326 pages, Hardcover
Expected publication February 10, 2026
2 people are currently reading
82 people want to read
About the author
Morris Collins
3 books17 followersMorris Collins lives in Boston, MA and teaches at The College of the Holy Cross.
He is the author of The Tavern at the End of History (forthcoming Feb, 2026) and Horse Latitudes.
He is the author of The Tavern at the End of History (forthcoming Feb, 2026) and Horse Latitudes.
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews
December 10, 2025
I received a free copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. Thank you to Dzanc Books for this opportunity!
The Tavern at the End of History is a complex novel that shows how the events of the Holocaust continue to affect survivors and their families. The story follows Jacob, a disgraced professor. His life changes when he meets Baer, an old man who owned a piece of artwork stolen by the Nazis in the war. Jacob and Rachel, Baer's niece, go to recover the artwork when it surfaces at an auction. Their journey takes them to a mysterious tavern, and to a sanatorium, where they meet a group of Holocaust survivors.
I really enjoyed the storyline. There are so many interesting branches to the story that intertwine at the end. The angels, the abandoned tavern, the missing artwork, the big orange cat, and so many memories...you'll have to read it to find out how they all come together. The author does a fantastic job bringing the story together.
I was lost at times in the discussions of Jewish philosophy. However, that is probably due to my unfamiliarity with the subject than with the book’s descriptions. Overall, The Tavern at the End of History is an enjoyable read. The story is intriguing, and the theme of memory, both fading and vivid, is incredibly relevant.
The Tavern at the End of History is a complex novel that shows how the events of the Holocaust continue to affect survivors and their families. The story follows Jacob, a disgraced professor. His life changes when he meets Baer, an old man who owned a piece of artwork stolen by the Nazis in the war. Jacob and Rachel, Baer's niece, go to recover the artwork when it surfaces at an auction. Their journey takes them to a mysterious tavern, and to a sanatorium, where they meet a group of Holocaust survivors.
I really enjoyed the storyline. There are so many interesting branches to the story that intertwine at the end. The angels, the abandoned tavern, the missing artwork, the big orange cat, and so many memories...you'll have to read it to find out how they all come together. The author does a fantastic job bringing the story together.
I was lost at times in the discussions of Jewish philosophy. However, that is probably due to my unfamiliarity with the subject than with the book’s descriptions. Overall, The Tavern at the End of History is an enjoyable read. The story is intriguing, and the theme of memory, both fading and vivid, is incredibly relevant.
Read
January 11, 2026The Tavern at the End of History is a masterful exploration of grief, memory, and the legacies of the past. Collins intertwines the lives of Holocaust survivors, their descendants, and those seeking redemption into a narrative that is both haunting and profoundly human. The sanitarium on the Maine coast becomes a stage for secrets, longing, and impossible quests, where history, myth, and personal reckoning collide in breathtaking ways.
What makes this novel extraordinary is its ability to blend historical trauma with surreal, almost mystical elements without ever losing emotional authenticity. Characters like Jacob, Rachel, and Baer are vividly drawn, their grief, guilt, and courage resonating long after the last page. Collins’ prose is precise yet lyrical, capturing both the weight of inherited sorrow and the fragile beauty of human connection. This is a story that lingers, challenges, and ultimately elevates the reader.
What makes this novel extraordinary is its ability to blend historical trauma with surreal, almost mystical elements without ever losing emotional authenticity. Characters like Jacob, Rachel, and Baer are vividly drawn, their grief, guilt, and courage resonating long after the last page. Collins’ prose is precise yet lyrical, capturing both the weight of inherited sorrow and the fragile beauty of human connection. This is a story that lingers, challenges, and ultimately elevates the reader.
Read
January 6, 2026The Tavern at the End of History is a haunting, intellectually rich novel that explores the aftershocks of history through grief, inheritance, and moral reckoning. Set within the eerie confines of a storm battered sanitarium, the novel unfolds with quiet intensity, blending realism, myth, and psychological depth into a story that feels both intimate and expansive.
What distinguishes this novel is its emotional restraint and philosophical ambition. Collins navigates themes of authenticity, survival, and the ethical weight the past places on the living with remarkable nuance. The characters wounded, searching, and deeply human inhabit a liminal space where truth and falsehood, memory and invention, collide. The result is a resonant meditation on what it means to inherit trauma and how the dead continue to speak through the living.
What distinguishes this novel is its emotional restraint and philosophical ambition. Collins navigates themes of authenticity, survival, and the ethical weight the past places on the living with remarkable nuance. The characters wounded, searching, and deeply human inhabit a liminal space where truth and falsehood, memory and invention, collide. The result is a resonant meditation on what it means to inherit trauma and how the dead continue to speak through the living.
Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews