"a slightly portly man of a hundred and thirty"

Blazing Reader,

Earlier this year, I read my first novel by philosopher turned fiction writer Stefan Molyneux. It was called The Present. I've now read the "the sequel" (of sorts) called The Future.

The novel is set hundreds of years in the future in the territory currently known as the United States. But the US government is gone, along with any form of government. Law and order is achieved through competing private companies known as Dispute Resolution Organizations (or DROs for short).

Before I share my thoughts on the story, I want to highlight Molyneux's impressive gift for witty and detailed character descriptions. It fills this novelist with envy. Here's an example:

"He raised his head to stare at the two girls. His eyes were hooded under his thick brows – eyes the exact same colour as the surrounding background, so that they looked like two holes that went straight through his head. Alice thought absurdly of two bowling alleys, side-by-side..."

Here's another clever one:

"Todd, a slightly portly man of a hundred and thirty – with a mildly irritating habit of clasping his fingertips together and speaking softly over the laced pink spiderweb of his hands – spoke slowly.”

The Future is available in both ebook and audiobook format at: https://freedomain.com/freedomain_books/the-future/

Stay sane & read great books,
John C.A. Manley

John C. A. Manley is the author of Much Ado About Corona: A Dystopian Love Story, the forthcoming All The Humans Are Sleeping and other works of speculative fiction. Get free samples of his stories by becoming a Blazing Pine Cone email subscriber at: https://blazingpinecone.com/subscribe/