The Deliverer by Jason William Karpf

Karpf has imagined a dystopian time in the future after much of the political turmoil we see today had boiled over into a full fledged second Civil War. States certifying their preferred candidates, refusing to follow Supreme Court decisions, and accelerating lawsuits had led to an all out war between sections of the country. Areas had declared independent nationhood with a green west coast, a red central and southern area, and a blue upper east coast and upper central area. A fragile peace was frequently interrupted by border skirmishes and violent groups of armed people bent on lawlessness.

Within this turmoil we are introduced to Bren, a deliverer in the midst of supply chain catastrophes. He braves pirates to deliver goods in his amazing, well armed and armored electric vehicle. He is the hero and media darling of those caught up in consumerism and live media presentation of uncensored violence. He is also a Christian in the midst of a decadent society.

Bren may well be an extreme characterization of Christians today, struggling to maintain a witness in a culture so un-Christian. He can quote a Scripture one moment and kill an attacking pirate the next, seemingly without thought.

Karpf's novel is what he describes as hard sci-fi, a sub-genre emphasizing technical detail and scientific accuracy. There are many descriptions of weapons and battles. There is a great deal of advanced technology in the plot, from super weapons and virtual reality to using quantum entanglement to track a person.

I found Karpf's writing style difficult to follow at times. It seemed transitions or connecting statements were often missing. I frequently had trouble understanding the context of a scene. Karpf has included and Afterward and as I read through character, locations and event descriptions, much became clear. I do wish all of that information had been included in the structure of the novel.

This is a novel that extrapolates the current political division, the fascination with social media success, the allure of violence, and fringe Christian thought. Readers who like advanced technical stuff and lots of battle scenes will enjoy this novel. Readers who look for thought provoking issues in their fiction will find much here, from enduring severe storms due to climate change to an exploration of being a Christian in a contrary and violent culture. It is entertaining and thought provoking.

You can read my review of an earlier novel of his, Brimstone 1, and a sci-fi collection in which he has a short story, Wonders of the Galaxy.

My rating: 4/5 stars.

Jason William Karpf grew up with story telling. He is the son of a screen writer and appeared as a child actor in several classic TV shows of the 1970s. He was a screenwriter for decades and today is an author, speaker, college instructor, and marketing/fundraising professional. His blogging and nonfiction writing brings a Christian perspective to marketing and communication. A history and trivia aficionado, he was a four time champion on the TV game show Jeopardy. He and his wife live in Minnesota and have three grown children.

Elk Lake Publishing, 256 pages.

I received a complimentary digital copy of this book from the author. My comments are an independent and honest review.

(My star ratings: 5-I love it, 4-I like it, 3-It's OK, 2-I don't like it, 1-I hate it.)