Young warriors fight a repressive government in this dystopian vision of America.

Boutwell’s (Outland Exile, 2015) sequel, which begins immediately after the events of his debut, plunges readers back into the high-stakes fight between the Democratic Unity of America and the Restructured States of America, two nations that emerged following the collapse of the U.S. in 2051. Seventy-five years after the great war, tension between the two countries is increasing. Seventeen-year-old Unity soldier Malila Chiu has faked her death and is on the run from her commander, Eustace Jourdaine, who’s engineering a coup that will put him in charge of the nation. At the same time, the Restructured States have sent Will Butler to spy on the Unity and gather secrets from The CORE, its vast computer network. Malila’s childhood friend Hecate Hester Jones is also fleeing the Unity, hoping to make it across the Scorch, a lawless borderland filled with sentient plants. Meanwhile, wizened warrior Jesse Johnstone is on his own mission for the Restructured States even as he fends off assassination attempts. If all this sounds a little confusing, it is, at least at first. Readers would be wise to start with the series’ first installment, which introduces several key characters and their back stories. Perspectives and settings shift from chapter to chapter, similar to George R.R. Martin’s A Song of Ice and Fire series, and, as in those books, it takes a while to see how everything fits together. But Boutwell is a masterful worldbuilder, packing his gripping tale full of rich, creative details that should thrill genre fans, from the shadowy, anonymous Solons, who rule the Unity, to a race of subterranean tunnel dwellers whose society is structured like a union with rituals involving the recitation of poetry (the novel is dense with literary references). The sci-fi trappings should draw readers in, but Boutwell’s sharp writing will keep them turning the page. When he describes a voice as “old and cracking as if taken out of a box just for this occasion,” he proves he can make even quieter moments come alive.

A vividly imagined sci-fi epic.

Boutwell tells the story of a young soldier navigating the chasm between two opposing societies in this sci-fi debut.

In the 22nd century, the United States has been replaced by a number of successor states. The Democratic Unity of America is a military-controlled dictatorship of the young, fueled by drugs and implants, in which people over 40 are forced into retirement (and often worse than that). West of the Unity are the outlands, a low-tech wilderness where the Sisis (senior citizens) still live. Malila Evanova Chiu, a foulmouthed 17-year-old officer in the Defensive Unity Forces for Security, is sent out to take control of a troublesome station deep in the heart of outlander territory. Plans go awry, and Malila quickly finds herself caught up in the machinations of an inconceivably old Sisi, Johnstone, who possesses information about world history that sets Malila’s head spinning. What’s more, she finds that she’s a pawn in the plot of an aging DUFS lieutenant colonel to further his own dark ambitions. Malila must sift the facts from the truth—and control her own rash temper—to help right the injustices of the system into which she was born. The mythology of this world is dense, as are the jargon and references that Boutwell sprinkles throughout his prose; luckily, he provides a glossary and timeline at the end of the novel. It takes some getting used to, but readers will quickly acclimate. Beneath the worldbuilding, Boutwell’s prose is sharp and efficient: “Malila awoke, her ears ringing and too dazed to move....An ax and sheathed knife threaded onto a broad leather belt hung from a small branch near her head. Only when she moved to retrieve them did she comprehend she had been bound, her wrists tied behind her back and her legs tied at the ankles.” The story takes a while to get moving, but once it does, it does not pause. The book is neither as didactic nor as allegorical as the premise might suggest; rather, Boutwell creates an immersive world where provocative ideas propel a darkly satisfying adventure.

An engrossing, imaginative dystopian thriller. 

In this third installment of a futuristic series, the battle between the Restructured States of America and the Democratic Unity rages on.    

Boutwell’s (Exiles’ Escape, 2018, etc.) sci-fi novel early on offers a flashback to the venerable and seemingly ageless fighter Jesse Johnstone’s youth. Then the action shifts to the period immediately following the climactic events of the preceding volume. Indefatigable heroine Malila Chiu has escaped from the Unity’s clutches and crashed into the Savannah River, where she’s rescued by a mysterious entity called Splanch. Jesse is searching for Malila, the woman he loves. Meanwhile, other familiar characters, including American spy Will Butler and Unity Lt. Gen. Eustace Tilley Jourdaine, continue their adventures. The People—the plantlike beings who were “called to sentience by the dreadful acts” of war that destroyed the United States decades earlier and who now inhabit the wastelands of the Scorch—also take a prominent role. Like Dr. Seuss’ Lorax, some of these creatures “speak for the trees.” Will the People become an ally of humans or an enemy? The story Boutwell has created is vivid and complex, and while the author provides enough details to remind those familiar with his earlier installments what has come before, anyone jumping into the series at this stage will likely have trouble following along. But those who enjoy richly envisioned sci-fi will find much to savor. The novel’s realm is strange enough to intrigue readers while retaining enough elements from the modern world to remain familiar. (In an amusing thread, major hotel brands like Hyatt and Hilton have managed to survive the conflict that destroyed the U.S.) Where Boutwell stumbles is in Malila and Jesse’s relationship. Their romantic subplot feels forced and reads at times like authorial wish fulfillment. But it’s the compelling fight between the Unity and the Restructured States—and the jockeying for power within each nation—that’s of primary interest. This is just Book 3 in what is envisioned as a five-volume series, so fans of Boutwell’s work have more to look forward to.

A fine addition to an inventive sci-fi saga.

Boutwell’s post-apocalyptic thriller documents the struggle for power among the surviving groups.

In this sequel, set after the author’s Old Men and Infidels trilogy, the urban Democratic Unity suffers a humiliating defeat at the hands of the rural Restructured States of America. Cowardly and opportunistic Major General Fettwap Aliende grabs the last outbound skimmer, accompanied by his aide, Captain Blanche Woods. Aliende seizes power when he returns to DU headquarters in Nyork, and Woods scrubs out any dissent. At the same time, American spy William Butler and his lover, Hecate Hester Jones, are hiding in the shadows, attempting to elude Unity searchers; Aliende assigns Woods to track down the American spies. A handful of “ghosts” in the CORE, the Unity’s massive and nation-girdling computer, try to find their place in the post-apocalyptic landscape. Hoping to influence the direction of events, these electronic ghosts contact and make offers to both Woods and Aliende: They want Woods to take charge of the Unity. To accomplish that goal, they offer to make Aliende a Solon, a powerful, unseen ruler of the country. Aliende drafts a computer technician to run a controversial program to wipe out the ghosts. Quite a lot happens in this first volume of Boutwell’s The Silence and the Gods trilogy. The transgender Woods propels the narrative along its various paths; she’s the most intriguing character in the novel, as she constantly questions her life choices, past and future. (“Somehow, Blanche felt some corner in her life’s walk had been turned. Somehow, what was to happen in the future would bear no resemblance to all that had proceeded, whether for good or ill.”) The electronic ghosts are better developed than Aliende, who’s the stereotypical, venal politician. The author has made it easy for new readers to dive in, supplying a character list at the start and a timeline and glossary in the appendix (it’s also possible to enjoy this as a stand-alone work). Boutwell wraps up precious few plot threads in the book, so the next entry in the series will still offer plenty to explore.

This beginning of a new trilogy compellingly explores a frightening future.