A punk-queer romp through the magical end of the world—“a huge-hearted, utterly original flight of world-remaking imagination” (Karen Russell)—by the acclaimed author of The Boy with a Bird in His Chest.
The witches foretell that humanity will end in forty years, and who can blame them? Forests burn. When it rains, it floods. People are vanishing. In Portland, Oregon, activists have been protesting for 400 days straight, and the only results are more conservative policies, including one that cuts off access to gender-affirming hormones. August is a rudderless poet dating Brighton, a cop, in the hopes that Brighton may marry him and give him the access he needs to a steady supply of testosterone. Across town, M and his best friend, Iris, are tired of protesting: they decide to rob a police union pharmacy and redistribute the hormones they’ve been hoarding.
When the union building is inexplicably burned down post-robbery, the city is thrown into chaos. M and Iris, along with August and a mysterious newcomer named Selena, are forced on the run through Oregon, seeking refuge with witches and faeries as they come face-to-face with a magical underworld they never knew they belonged to. As the fugitives flee the authorities through the Pacific Northwest forest, Selena reveals a magical world with a prophecy at the center and parts for Iris, M, and August to play. But given the choice, will they hide out in a supernatural world or join the fight to save humanity?
The witches foretell that humanity will end in forty years, and who can blame them? Forests burn. When it rains, it floods. People are vanishing. In Portland, Oregon, activists have been protesting for 400 days straight, and the only results are more conservative policies, including one that cuts off access to gender-affirming hormones. August is a rudderless poet dating Brighton, a cop, in the hopes that Brighton may marry him and give him the access he needs to a steady supply of testosterone. Across town, M and his best friend, Iris, are tired of protesting: they decide to rob a police union pharmacy and redistribute the hormones they’ve been hoarding.
When the union building is inexplicably burned down post-robbery, the city is thrown into chaos. M and Iris, along with August and a mysterious newcomer named Selena, are forced on the run through Oregon, seeking refuge with witches and faeries as they come face-to-face with a magical underworld they never knew they belonged to. As the fugitives flee the authorities through the Pacific Northwest forest, Selena reveals a magical world with a prophecy at the center and parts for Iris, M, and August to play. But given the choice, will they hide out in a supernatural world or join the fight to save humanity?
Author
Emme Lund
Emme Lund’s debut novel The Boy with a Bird in His Chest was longlisted for the Center for Fiction’s First Novel Prize and was a finalist for the Oregon Book Award. Her work has appeared in Time, Electric Literature, Romper, The Rumpus, and Autostraddle among other venues. She lives in Portland, OR, where occasionally she teaches creative writing at Literary Arts and Portland State University.
Learn More about Emme Lund
