I have met, befriended,
and read several authors that I hadn’t discovered over the past year.
One of
my favorites is definitely Stephen Kozeniewski, author of such novels as The Ghoul Archipelago, Braineater Jones,
Hunter of the Dead, and Billy and the Cloneasaurus.
After
meeting him I immediately knew that I had to pick up something of his work to
dive into and sate my never ending love affair with the written word. After
reviewing his bibliography I decided on Every
Kingdom Divided a dystopian thriller depicting a 2nd American
Civil War between the Red (Primarily the South and Midwest) and Blue (Pacific
and Northeast Coast) states with political moderates called Whites stuck in
between.
I know
what you’re thinking “Wile you’re a horror novelist and love reading the same,
why are you taking the time to read something like this?”
First of
all, yes I love reading horror and writing the same but it doesn’t mean I
haven’t aspired to write dystopian fiction akin to Mad Max or Waterworld, so if
an author I respect writes dystopian fiction you know I will be reading it.
Second
of all: I read this around election time and I felt like I was reading a
possible window into the future.
A window
that is heavily tinted with unending amounts of satire.
The
novel revolves around Jack a doctor from Blue California who must travel across
the entire mainland US in search of his fiancé who is a soldier in the Blue
Army on the other side of the Divided States.
At least
that is the adventure he claims to have undertook as he is interrogated by a
Blue Commander under siege from approaching Red forces who wishes to execute
him as a potential Red spy.
Jack’s
story carries lingering hints of Homer’s the Odyssey if it was ground up in a
blender, painted red, white, and blue, then bathed in a fresh dose of
Americana. Jack’s trials continue to escalate and that’s when you see the true
beauty of the novel and its point: extremism of any type is bad.
From
Mexican armies attempting to reclaim former land, Mormon religious police enforcing
strict morality codes, Red dogmatic conservatism, Blue hedonistic liberalism,
and White shoot everything that moves because we’re the minority in the
political structure.
An odd
mix of Judge Dredd, Mad Max, and the tv series Jericho all wrapped up in a neat
and nice package that shows an understanding of some of the flaws of our still
united country and what we could possibly become if we allow ourselves to be
divided rather than participate in the conversation understanding that some
people believe in different things than we do… and that isn’t a bad thing.
I will
admit that the ending felt kind of rushed but doesn’t detract from the novel at
all and brings a resolution that I hesitantly hope will lead to a sequel.
A
wonderful read that I would recommend to anyone who isn’t particularly hardcore
about their politics and a great entryway to Mr. Kozeniewski’s work.
Sidenote: I live in Oklahoma and making Lawton the capitol of a totalitarian bible thumping regime was spot on brilliance.
