Anthropocene Rag

Irvine’s first nonlicensed novel since 2012’s Mare Ultima is an eclectic, kaleidoscopic view of a future United States. A quasi-intelligent nanotech called the Boom has wreaked havoc on the country, reshaping the land to its whims and driving many mad. The Boom selects a group of humans, the “lucky six,” and one increasingly self-aware artificial intelligence, Prospector Ed, to travel to Monument City. None know why they were chosen, but they won’t pass up the chance to be accepted into the city that is rumored to be a haven. The quest to Monument City, by turns whimsical and ominous, takes them across a chaotic continent of dangerous technology and Boom-resurrected figures from American history and myth, among them Mark Twain, Paul Bunyan, Henry Ford, and pirate Jean Lafitte. Irvine’s imaginative landscape mixes the strange and the familiar, giving rise to both philosophical questions and nail-biting horror. This wondrous, playful, but still weighty science fiction odyssey will appeal to Irvine’s fans and serve as an excellent introduction to his work. Agent: Jason Yarn, JYLA. (Apr.)