The Marsh People
M. Valentine Williams
language
(Victorina Press, March 16, 2019)
In the battle between the authoritarian, all powerful State and its imprisoned slaves, whose lives are controlled by The Masters, there are a few winners.People have been rounded up from the villages by dogs controlled by the Masters and forced to live and work in decaying, inhuman conditions. Provided with basic food and shelter, they have little else, but like automatons, rarely do they rebel. Scummo meets Kelpin. Her mother is dead. Scummo is moved to pity by this child, knowing that if she‘s taken to the Orphanage, she‘ll be killed. Risking all, he leaves the City taking her with him. They escape not knowing how they‘ll survive in the alien landscape outside. The invisible Masters watch their progress with interest.The pair travel through marshy, giant eel-infested lands, eventually meeting others living as outsiders, with Bethyl as their leader. Life is uncomfortable and unpredictable, but they learn about freedom, co-operation and compassion and must fight for their survival at times when rival groups try to take over. The Masters watch them. A dystopian novel pitting outsiders against inhuman tyrants. Who will win?