Searing and sublime ... Walter is a slyly adept social critic, and has clearly invested his protagonist with all of the outrage and heartbreak he himself feels about the dark course our world has taken. He’s also invested his protagonist with a self-deprecating sense of humor that keeps his pessimism from veering into maudlin territory. If there’s hope to be found within this harsh landscape, it’s in our connection with one another.
[A] buoyant, witty caper ... Walter’s affinity for his quirky cast shines through in their banter ... Lacks the layers of the author’s previous works ... His set pieces entertain.
The novel has genuinely severe consequences for some characters, but it also makes a lot of excuses for people, presenting some militia members as just misunderstood or misguided, and Kinnick concludes a profanity-laden screed about the 2016 election by saying that Trump voters 'weren’t really the problem' ... This would be a pleasant read in a vacuum, but in the world that it’s attempting to comment on, it can feel obtuse.
Walter’s trademark mix of clever dialogue, diverting tangents, heartrending emotional stakes, and real-feeling characters caught in amped-up human situations will please a broad range of readers.
Feels both prescient and timely yet with a backward glance ... This work is a tremendous achievement: more literary and ambitious than Walter’s previous popular books, with an urgency that may make it one of the strongest realist but dystopian novels of the present era.
The genius of Jess Walter's writing is both mercury and steel: never predictable, always reliable ... A thriller, a family drama, and a think piece all in one, about a man forced to reckon with questions of faith and politics and what we will do to save the ones we love.
Things get really serious toward the end in a way we might not be totally prepared for, and doesn’t feel absolutely necessary, but perhaps it’s Walters’ way of saying the danger is real. Walter is a beacon of wit, decency, and style.
Rollicking and heartrending ... The propulsive plot also sees Bethany coming to terms with her own choices, and the reader comes to care deeply about all the primary characters—even Shane, who turns out to be more of a misguided seeker than a villain. This captivates.
