Utopian and Dystopian Reading Group discussion

I am looking for review sites to review REPUBLIC (America's Future, bk 1) by Charles Sheehan-Miles. I am also be looking for reviewers for book 2 INSURGENT.

If you are interested in reviewing REPUBLIC please fill out this form.
https://docs.google.com/a/authorsange...

If you are interested in reviewing INSURGENT please fill out this form
https://docs.google.com/a/authorsange...

If you have any questions you can contact me at didi@authorsangels.com


REPUBLIC blurb:
From an author described as "one of America's criminally neglected authors, " Republic is a surprise bestselling dystopian novel (more than two years on the Amazon Alternate History bestseller list) described by readers as "breath-taking," "riveting," and "haunting."

Republic: A Novel of America's Future

Ken Murphy is a 45 year-old National Guard Colonel and senior manager at a computer chip manufacturer in quiet Highview, West Virginia. In this future history featuring frightening parallels to our present, the local economy is thrown into a tailspin when the plant is suddenly shut down, even as the nation is thrown into turmoil by a deadly domestic terrorist attack. Murphy, like everyone else in his town, is suddenly thrown out of work, with no way to pay for medical care for his son.

The local workers, in an attempt to prove they can operate on their own, move in and occupy the factory. What started as a labor dispute becomes a deadly conflict when the federal government intervenes and three people die in a tragic confrontation.

Karen Greenfield, a young captain in Murphy's National Guard battalion, faces a devastating choice: how does she serve the Constitution she swore to protect when the danger comes from the federal government itself? After witnessing the senseless death of a co-worker, she begins to question the foundations of everything she has ever believed.

The conflict escalates from Charleston, West Virginia to the halls of Congress. Politicians on both sides refuse to back down or compromise, bringing open armed conflict closer and closer to reality.


INSURGENT (America's Future, bk 2) Blurb
Three months after the end of the West Virginia civil war, Valerie Murphy faces her worst fears as the violence escalates. Former Congressman Al Clark, now Governor of the bankrupt state, must quell an insurgency even as he struggles to put the state back together.

In a small town south of Charleston, West Virginia, Corporal Jim Turville faces combat, love and fear in an conflict which grows increasingly dangerous with every day.



What people are saying about Republic:

"Imagine if you will a series of escalating incidents, occasioned by a nation at heightened alert because of series of terrorist incidents. Now imagine a major attack, say blowing up a shopping Mall next to the Pentagon. What do you think might happen? Might everyone of Arab descent be rounded up on suspicion? If that seems far-fetched, remember the reactions after Oklahoma City and since 9-11. And suppose you had Federal agents with the power to seize whomever they wanted, using whatever force they deemed necessary, without having to inform local authorities of their intent. Suppose some of such incidents had some tragic consequences, including innocent people getting killed. And suppose that at least to start the portrayal of the incidents in the media was sufficiently controlled by the Federal government that most people did not realize that it was the government whose actions were wrong. Might those who had suffered begin to feel as if their government were out of control, not to be trusted? Suppose this were compounded by a sense that the government clearly favored the rich, that the needs of ordinary people were being abandoned. Might resentment build to a dangerous point?
That is the framework for this powerful novel. It is set largely in West Virginia, a state with a strong tradition and history of government, including Federal troops, being used on behalf of powerful interests (such as coal barons) to suppress those opposing such interests (such as mineworkers)." by teacherken, http://www.dailykos.com



"Republic: A Novel of America’s Future written by Charles Sheehan-Miles is a fictional dramatic work that will have readers taken captive by the tale. Within the pages of this story are the lives of characters that could be one’s neighbors or self. Sheehan-Miles has taken possible present-day scenarios and created a future for the United States that reads like newspaper headlines with the depth and heart of the people involved with the happenings. Unaccustomed to delving into dramatic works as I am, my abrupt captivity within the tale was a complete and enthralling surprise." CM Truxler The Literary Review



"Well, the book (REPUBLIC) ought to cause us to look at our own culture now and examine what things are taking place and where the rudder is pointed. There are some core cultural values that have shaped this nation and if not recognized and preserved they are in danger of vanishing. This book attempts to awake people out of their stupor and consider what is going on around them. It warns people of the danger of failing to understand the viewpoint of “the other” and how dangerous it can become when ideas are taken to an extreme." jaybark7, thoughtful convergence