"Poppie's riveting novel is soundly constructed, action-packed, and features a fast-paced plot. . .Mackenzie serves as an endlessly entertaining character. . ." -Publishers Weekly, The BookLife Prize"He was a slave, yes. We both were slaves, but where I saw only darkness ahead, Mackenzie found hope for the world. I wish he were correct.He always found hope for the world." - James Anderson -Many books have been written about the decline and fall of the United States and the turmoil thereafter, whether these are biographies on Robert Dalimore, case studies of the Executive Ten, books on the mysterious lives of those in Society, or the thousands of journal pieces that have been brought together to create a picture of what it was like to live in the post-United States world. Despite the extensive library that could be created from the literature of that time, one story, perhaps the most important story, still remains untold. This book begins that story.