48 States

Best Indie Books of 2022 (Kirkus Reviews)

"An adept and chilling cautionary tale-the narrative equivalent of brass knuckles to the skull." -Kirkus, Starred Review

Perfect for fans of Station Eleven by Emily St. John Mandel, California by Edan Lepucki, and Gold Fame Citrus by Claire Vaye Watkins, 48 States is a fast-paced dystopian thriller about the dangers of extremism and the power of love and forgiveness.

In 2042 the United States is recovering from a series of terrorist attacks that upended the government, rewrote our civil liberties, and erased two states from the map. River, a widow, single mother, and veteran of the Caliphate Wars works as a waste hauling trucker in Energy Territory No. 1, formerly known as North Dakota. Living in a dingy motel room with nothing but her books and a semiautomatic pistol for company, she is weeks away from the end of her contract and returning to her young daughter. Finn Cunningham, a hydrologist with the United States Geology Survey (USGS) in Montana, is suspicious of environmental changes he's seeing in nearby western waterways and decides to investigate. His decision sets him on a collision course with River, sending them both on the run. One a fugitive, the other a reluctant participant, they develop an affinity for each other, sharing stories of past loves, loss, and hardship. 48 States is a one-of-a-kind dystopian thriller about the dangers of extremism and the power of love and forgiveness.