Into Captivity They Will Go

"Deeply moving, sad and haunting..." —Brandon Hobson, National Book Award Finalist and author of Where the Dead Sit Talking
"Into Captivity They Will Go is a story for our time, told with sometimes brutal emotional honesty and always with compassion."—Jennifer Haupt, author of In the Shadow of 10,000 Hills

Set in rural Oklahoma, Into Captivity They Will Go tells the story of Caleb Gunter, a boy whose mother has convinced him he is the second coming of Jesus Christ and that together they are destined to lead the chosen into the Kingdom of Heaven.


Believing the Seven Seals detailed in Revelation have been opened, he and his mother flee their home to join a tongue-speaking evangelical church and to prepare for the end of the world, but after tragedy ensues, Caleb must rebuild his life without the only support he has ever known—his mother and the church.


An exploration of familial bonds and extremist faith, Into Captivity They Will Go is a whirlwind bildungsroman that reveals the fragility of a child's identity. It is at once a study of guilt and redemption, and a book of how shattered trust can yet still lay the foundation for an entire life.

"Into Captivity They Will Go is an immersive novel, capturing Caleb's mindset in a way that is believable and heart-wrenching. Its visceral events grapple with topics of abuse, blind faith, and moral gray areas. As a microcosm of an apocalyptic present, Milligan's clear understanding of Revelation provides a theological framework for his narrative that is compelling and terrifying." —Holly Jordan, Foreword Reviews
"[I]t is an intense and propulsive novel exploring what it means to be alive and spiritual in a world ignoring such ideas. I loved its rich imagery, its crystal-clear prose, and its strangeness." —Brandon Hobson, National Book Award Finalist and author of Where the Dead Sit Talking
"In a story like this, about Christian extremism in modern rural America, it'd be easy to go into ironic dark parody or grim horror, but Milligan skirts both of those and shows all the people involved as humans instead." —Molly Ringle, author of Lava Red, Feather Blue

Noah Milligan's Into Captivity They Will Go is a spectacular next read: it combines the deft characterizations of Ann Patchett with the imaginative stylings of Anthony Doerr, but sets them in the dry landscapes of Tony Hillerman. Make it your book club pick: everyone will be talking about it for weeks to come.


Noah Milligan's other books:

Five Hundred Poor

An Elegant Theory