The Dead Lands

In Benjamin Percy's new thriller, a post-apocalyptic reimagining of the Lewis and Clark saga, a super flu and nuclear fallout have made a husk of the world we know. A few humans carry on, living in outposts such as the Sanctuary-the remains of St. Louis-a shielded community that owes its survival to its militant defense and fear-mongering leaders.

Then a rider comes from the wasteland beyond its walls. She reports on the outside world: west of the Cascades, rain falls, crops grow, civilization thrives. But there is danger too: the rising power of an army that pillages and enslaves every community they happen upon.

Against the wishes of the Sanctuary, a small group sets out in secrecy. Led by Lewis Meriwether and Mina Clark, they hope to expand their infant nation, and to reunite the States. But the Sanctuary will not allow them to escape without a fight.

"The Dead Lands is an ingenious thriller, relentlessly driven by Benjamin Percy's powerful writing." Jess Walter, author of Beautiful Ruins

"In a literary world peppered with post-apocalyptic novels, Percy’s stands out." Kirkus Reviews

"The Dead Lands is a bomb-blast of a novel, casting its tremors in every direction. Benjamin Percy's range grows broader with every book he writes. Here he takes a journey across a cataclysmic future American West, sending his band of seekers, scholars, assassins, and explorers through a landscape as dangerous and surreal as it must have seemed to the original Lewis and Clark. Their adventure, like the novel itself, travels far past the frontier, into the deepest and most thrilling of wildernesses." Kevin Brockmeier, author of The Brief History of the Dead

"This novel is a reminder that the best speculative fiction speaks to the concerns and issues of its time." Publishers Weekly (Starred Review, PW Pick)

"The Dead Lands is a gripping and inventive adventure about the resilience of the human species. Benjamin Percy may conjure a future that's brutal and dark, but it's not without bravery, compassion, and love. He is a truly gifted storyteller." Edan Lepucki, author of California

"Benjamin Percy’s The Dead Lands is a case of wonderful writing and compulsive reading. You will not come across a finer work of sustained imagination this year. Good God, what a tale. Don’t miss it." Stephen King

Benjamin Percy is the author of the novels Red Moon and The Wilding, and two short story collections, Refresh, Refresh and The Language of Elk. His writing has appeared in Esquire, GQ, Time, Tin House and elsewhere. His honors include the Pushcart Prize, an NEA grant, the Plimpton Prize for Fiction, and a Whiting Award. Raised in the high desert of central Oregon, he lives in Minnesota.